The new century started well for Mengão. In 2001, the red-and-black team won its third state soccer championship, as well as the Champions' Cup that year. In fact, until it won its sixth national championship and its fifth in 2009, 2001 was etched in the memories of its fans as the club's best recent years. All thanks to a foreigner with a difficult-to-pronounce name that quickly caught on in Brazil.

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Pétkovic, Petkovic... The way he pronounced his name mattered least. What mattered was that his talent on the field was making the Serbian a topic of conversation in football circles. And it was no wonder. Considered one of the brightest prospects in European football and having even played for Real Madrid, Petkovic arrived at Gávea in 2000 surrounded by expectations, which he had already met that year but would surpass in 2001.

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Despite this, the year didn't start well for Flamengo's football. In the Rio-São Paulo tournament, Flamengo has its worst record ever. In the Guanabara Cup, the team will face Fluminense for the title, and it's already showing that the Campeonato Carioca couldn't go to any other club than Flamengo itself. The game ends 1-1 and goes to penalties, where a rare occurrence occurs. Cássio takes his shot, the goalkeeper makes a difficult save, but the ball bounces back into the net. Result: Flamengo wins the Guanabara Cup.

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Vasco da Gama wins the Rio Cup and goes with Flamengo to win the Carioca Championship for the third consecutive year. The finale was the same as in 1999 and 2000, with Flamengo winning the title and Vasco finishing as runner-up. But the most memorable match of the decade can't be described solely in this way. The mystique of the great derby once again reigned supreme. In the first leg, Petkovic opened the scoring for Flamengo, but the Cruzmaltinos turned the game around with goals from Viola and Juninho Paulista. The fans of the São Januário team, favorites for the title, celebrated the victory wildly. But the red-and-blacks were undeterred. Despite the disadvantage, they turned out in greater numbers than their rivals for the final of the competition, on that unforgettable Sunday in May 2001.

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A match worthy of Flamengo and Vasco. A match worthy of a Campeonato Carioca final. This was the Rio de Janeiro State Championship final in 2001. In front of over 60 fans at the Maracanã, Flamengo pulled off the impossible. They ignored their rivals and their advantage, securing an unforgettable 3-1 victory, with two goals from Edílson, the championship's top scorer, and a free kick from maestro Petkovic, immortalized in the club's history, in the 43rd minute of the second half. With outstanding performances from goalkeeper Júlio César and players Edílson and Petkovic, Flamengo beat all odds, and with a blend of grit, talent, and luck, they secured victory in the final moments of the match, giving the club its fourth state championship as a gift to the Rubro-Negra Nation and to the emotional coach Zagallo, one of the heroes of the victory.

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After winning their third Rio de Janeiro state championship, Flamengo traveled to Maceió to compete in the Champions' Cup. With a stellar campaign, Flamengo defeated São Paulo in the final, winning the championship, and securing a spot in the 2002 Copa Libertadores. But victory wasn't so simple. Quite the opposite. The decision came in two thrilling matches. In the first, Flamengo won 5-3. In the second, they lost 3-2. And who scored Flamengo's second goal, which ultimately gave them the title? Petkovic. How? A free kick. Many commentators even claimed he would never repeat the masterful play from the third Rio de Janeiro state championship final. How wrong! He did, shortly thereafter, giving Mengão another important title.

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Flamengo still competes in the Mercosul Cup and the Brazilian Championship simultaneously. In the Mercosul Cup, they have a great campaign, reaching the tournament final, but ultimately losing to San Lorenzo of Argentina. However, in the Brazilian Championship, they perform very poorly, narrowly avoiding relegation to the second division. Despite this, the 2001 balance was extremely positive, especially for the foreigner Petkovic, who wrote his name into the club's history.

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Other Sports – Flamengo also wrote beautiful pages of its history on the court in 2001. On October 27th, at Maracanãzinho, Flamengo played a basketball game against Fluminense. Player Oscar took the court with the enviable mark of 46.723 points throughout his career. He was two points shy of the world record, held by American Kareen Abdul Jabbar. With a shot 40 seconds into the second quarter, Oscar surpassed the record and became the all-time leading scorer in world basketball.

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In volleyball, Flamengo won the Women's Volleyball Super League, featuring players like Virna and Leila, and defeating Vasco da Gama in the grand final. Flamengo assembled a very strong team for the 2000/2001 women's volleyball season. Many years after winning their first titles, Flamengo strengthened its squad, bringing in key players like Leila and Virna, and won the sport's premier championship: the Women's Volleyball Super League. The club had previously won the Brazilian championship twice, in 1978 and 1980, and won the competition under its new format this season.

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Led by Luizomar de Moura, the stars Arlene, Leila, Virna, Valeskinha, Tara Cross, and Josiane faced another all-star team from Vasco da Gama, and in a thrilling series, Flamengo prevailed 3 games to 1. In the final, played at the Maracanãzinho gymnasium, Flamengo prevailed in thrilling and unforgettable fashion. The score was 3 sets to 2, with a tiebreak victory of 17 to 15. The standout performer of the match was middle blocker Arlene.

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The Olympic sports titles didn't stop there. In Olympic Gymnastics, Flamengo won the Canada International Tournament, the Marseille International Tournament, the Women's State Championship in the Adult, Youth, Pre-Minor, Junior, and Children's categories, and the Men's State Championship in the Adult, Youth, Pre-Minor, Junior, and Children's categories. They also won the Brazilian Absolute Championship for the thirteenth consecutive time, with athlete Daniele Hypólito winning the Brazilian Individual All-Around Championship for the fourth consecutive time. And in Swimming, Flamengo won the José Finckel Trophy and the Mercosul Cup for the second time.

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Time of Year: Winning the 2001 Carioca Championship
Character of the Year: petkovic
Game of the Year: Flamengo 3 x 1 Vasco, 2001 state title game
Top Scorer of the Year: Edilson, with 28 goals

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To check out all of Flamengo's games in 2001, click here.
For more information about this year, visit this article on Flapedia.
To learn more about the unforgettable "Pet Goal" game in the Carioca final, click using this link.
To meet the cast that participated in this series of achievements, just access more this article from the Flamengo Collaborative Encyclopedia.
Also read about the Champions League final matches here e here.