C.D. Cova da Piedade

Clube Desportivo Cova da Piedade is a football club established in the parish of Cova da Piedade, municipality of Almada, Portugal. The club merged with B-SAD, in an attempt of the former to retain their position currently in Liga 3, the third tier of Portuguese football, but they weren't granted license and were relegated to distrital championships.^[1]

Cova da Piedade

Full name	Clube Desportivo da Cova da Piedade
Nickname(s)	Rapazes de Azul-Grená
Founded	1947; 78 years ago (1947)
Ground	Estádio Municipal José Martins Vieira, Cova da Piedade
Capacity	3,000
Chairman	Paulo Veiga
Manager	João Sousa
League	Distrital Championship
2020–21	Liga Portugal 2, 11th of 18 (forcibly relegated)
Website	www.cdcovapiedade.pt
Home colours Away colours

History

Clube Desportivo Cova da Piedade was founded on 28 January 1947, resulting from the merge between União Piedense Futebol Clube, founded on 9 April 1914, and Sporting Clube Piedense. Cova da Piedade's current president is Paulo Veiga.

Promotion to LigaPro

On 30 April 2016, Cova da Piedade were promoted for the first time ever to the professional second-tier (all previous presences in the second-tier were prior to the creation of Segunda Divisão de Honra in 1990) after beating Angrense 2–1, confirming the first place on Campeonato de Portugal, South Zone, with two more matches still to play. They won the third-tier championship title on 5 June 2016, against North Zone winners Vizela.

Relegation to Liga 3

Cova da Piedade failed to produce valid licensing documentation to compete in the 2021–22 season of the Liga Portugal 2, so they were punished by the Portuguese Professional Football League with direct relegation to the Liga 3.^[2]

Merger with B-SAD

On 7 March 2023, the boards of Cova da Piedade and B-SAD (an offshoot of C.F. Os Belenenses) announced a merger, taking the league position of B-SAD while retaining the name and facilities and Cova da Piedade. Cova da Piedade had not played senior football since being expelled from Liga Portugal 2 in 2021, while B-SAD had been renting the Estádio Nacional from the state while using distant facilities for training.^[3] In June, B-SAD was relegated from the second tier after a 2–1 playoff defeat to Länk FC Vilaverdense, meaning that the fused club would begin life in Liga 3.^[4]

Stadium

Cova da Piedade play their matches at Estádio Municipal José Martins Vieira (named after the former President of the Municipality of Almada) and has a capacity for 3,000 spectators.^{[citation needed]} The stadium has natural turf.

Current squad

As of 26 January 2022

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  POR Sandro Cabral 2 DF  POR Luís Marcelino 3 DF  POR João Gomes 4 DF  POR Fábio Santos 7 MF  POR Iko Caetano 8 MF  CPV Fábio Arcanjo 9 FW  POR Vicente Caldeira 11 MF  POR Rui Batalha 13 GK  POR Tomás Carvalho 14 DF  POR Pedro Carvalho 15 FW  URU Juan San Martín 16 MF  BRA Caio Carioca

No. Pos. Nation Player 17 FW  ZAM Kenneth Kalunga 20 MF  POR Tiago Baptista 21 DF  GNB Assane Baldé 22 FW  POR Hélio Vaz 23 DF  GNB Califo Baldé 29 FW  POR Valter Zacarias 30 FW  POR Diogo David 33 DF  BRA Sandro 41 DF  CHN Victor Wang 44 DF  CPV Yaka Medina 47 DF  POR Celsinho 88 MF  POR Pedro Pinto

Honours

• Campeonato de Portugal: 1
  • 2015–16
• Terceira Divisão: 2
  • 1947–48, 1970–71

League and cup history

Season	Tier	Competition	Pos.	Pl.	W	D	L	GS	GA	P	Portuguese Cup	Portuguese League Cup	Notes
2014–15	3	Campeonato de Portugal (league)	3	18	8	4	6	17	15	28	Round 3	Not eligible
2015–16		Campeonato de Portugal (league)	1	18	10	5	3	23	13	35	Round 4	Not eligible	Promoted
2016–17	2	Portuguese Second Division	16	42	14	11	17	45	60	53	Round 4	2nd qualifying round
2017–18		Portuguese Second Division	9	38	14	9	15	42	45	51	Quarter-finals	2nd qualifying round
Fusion from B-SAD
2023–24	5	Distrital Championship