Brazil’s top domestic league
The Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, commonly called the Brasileirão, is the top division of Brazil’s professional club football league. It is organized by the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF), brings together 20 teams, and sits within a multi-division system that includes Série B. At the end of a season, the lowest-placed teams are relegated to the lower division, while clubs from Série B can move up.
The name Série A distinguishes this competition from the other divisions of the Brazilian Championship. “Brasileirão” is the popular name for the tournament; Série A can refer to the top-tier competition generally or to a particular season’s edition.
How the competition works
In the league format described for the competition, each team plays every other team twice, once at home and once away. With 20 clubs, that means 38 matches per team. A win earns three points and a draw earns one. Clubs are ranked by their points totals, with goal difference, goals scored, head-to-head results, and other CBF-regulation criteria used to break ties.
Because the table accumulates results across the season, the title is decided by the overall league standings rather than a final knockout round. The same standings also shape the race for continental places and the effort to avoid relegation.
Continental places and history
Final placement can bring qualification for the Copa Libertadores or the Copa Sudamericana. The number of places and how they are allocated depend on the applicable season’s criteria, so a fixed range of league positions should not be treated as a guarantee regardless of the regulations or additional places. In the format described for the 2026 edition, the bottom four teams are relegated to Série B.
Brazil’s national club competition has changed names and formats over time. Earlier tournaments included the Taça Brasil and the Torneio Roberto Gomes Pedrosa, while the name Campeonato Brasileiro Série A has been used in different historical periods. The 2026 edition is described as the competition’s 70th, beginning in January and scheduled to finish in early December.