Aves won promotion from LigaPro in 2016–17, finishing as runners-up to Portimonense S.C. under the management of José Mota. On 20 May 2018, the club defeated Sporting CP 2–1 and won their first Taça de Portugal. However, Aves did not qualify for the 2018–19 UEFA Europa League group stage because they failed to obtain a license for European competitions. The team were relegated in 2019–20, with five games to play, were marred by financial problems. For these reasons, they and Vitória F.C. were given a further relegation to the third tier.