Taca de Prata – second level. 24 teams engaged in a simple knock-out format until the final. Two legs and if there was still a tie – penalty shoot-out. Names of home city and state in brackets. The first phase: Moto Clube (Sao Luis – MA) lost to Tuna Luso 0-0 and 0-3, River (Teresina – PA) to Fortaleza 1-3 and 0-2, Vitoria (Vitoria – ES) – to America MG 0-2 and 2-0, 4-5 shoot-out,
America (Natal – RN) lost to Treze 0-2 and 1-1,
America (Sao Jose do Rio Preto – SP) – to Goytacaz 1-0, 0-1 and 2-3 shoot-out, CRB (Maceio – AL) to Central 1-1, 0-0, and 2-4 shoot-out, Colorado (Curtitba – PR) to Marilia 1-1 and 0-3, Uniao (Rondonopolis – MT) to Rio Negro 1-1 and 0-2, Confianca (Aracaju – SE) to Caruense 0-2 and 0-1,
Sobradinho (Sobradinho – DF) to Americano 0-0 and 1-3, Novo Hamburgo (Novo Hamburgo – RS) to Fugueirense 0-0 and 1-2, and
Goiania (Goiania – GO) to Operario 0-2 and 1-2.
Second stage. Six teams were eliminated here.
Rio Negro (Manaus – AM) lost to Tuna Luso 0-1 and 1-2,
America (Belo Horizonte – MG) to Goytacaz 1-3 and 0-1,
Treze (Campina Grande – PB) to Fortaleza 3-1 and 0-3, Americano (Campos – RJ) to Operario 0-3 and 0-0,
Marilia (Marilia – SP) to Figueirense 2-3 and 1-3, and
Central (Caruaru – PE) to Catuense 1-1, 0-0, and 3-4 penalty shoot-out.
Third phase – three teams eliminated.
Catuense (Alagoinhas – BA) lost to Goytacaz 0-0 and 1-3, Operario (Campo Grande – MS) to Figueirense 2-1 and 1-3, and
Fortaleza (Fortaleza – CE) to Tuna Luso 0-0 and 1-5. Fortaleza was perhaps the best known club in this issue of second level, but they were practically destroyed.
The final – the last three team played two-leg round-robin tournament and the winner was decided before the last game was played.
Figueirense (Florianopolis – SC) finished 3rd with 3 points: 1 win, 1 tie, 2 losses, 5-7.
Goytacaz (Campos – RJ) ended 2nd with 3 points – 1 win, 1 tie, 2 losses, 4-4.
Tuna Luso won the final tournament with 6 points – 3 wins and 1 loss, 5-3. They lost the away leg to Figueirense 2-3, but they won the next home match and were champions before the last game of the final was played.
Tuna Luso Brasileira (Belem – PA) were champions of Taca de Prata for 1985 and qualified for the 1986 Taca de Ouro. Well deserved victory – they lost only one match in this campaign, to Figueirense at the final, and were clearly the best team this year. And it was important they won, for Tuna Luso was always trailing behind Paysandu at the local stage and had almost no chances to be ‘selected’ to play at Taca do Ouro. By the rules, they were the only team promoted from Taca do Prata, but was it really so? Rules changed so frequently in Brazil – but rule change concerned other clubs, not the winners.