The team plays in Série D, the fourth tier of the Brazilian football league system, as well as in the Campeonato Mineiro, the top tier of the Minas Gerais state football league.

Villa Nova is the second oldest active club of Minas Gerais.

Martim Francisco, coach of the club in 1951, was pointed out as the inventor of 4-2-4 in the book 'Inverting The Pyramid' by Jonathan Wilson, which chronicles the evolution of football tactics.

[3] In 1971, Villa Nova won the Campeonato Brasileiro Série B first edition, after beating Remo in the final.

[4] Villa Nova's stadium is Estádio Castor Cifuentes, also known as "Alçapão do Bonfim".