[Snatch81]

Hi,

I´m just wondering how the league system in Brazil works. Is it some kind of state championship in the first half of the season, and then the big teams meet in the final part, that is called the Brasiliero?

Would be nice with a detailed description. And are there any good internet sites to follow the state championships and the Brasiliero? With tables, game facts and a topscorer list? I have been looking around, but can´t find any really good sites. Hope you can help me out.

 

[Snatch81]

No one knows?

 

[JCamilo]

The Brazilians league is like any other league, it starts in the begining of May and ends in December. From January to April, for the main centers of Football, happens a regional competition in every state. And from February to July the Brazilian cup , with the system of the national cups everywhere.

 

[HeitorTevez]

Yes, like JCamilo said, the Brazilian League works like any other league, the only difference is that it isn't played during the whole season.

In the 1st Division (Série A), there are 20 teams. Like in most of the other leagues, they play each other twice, and the team with more points at the end of the 38 games wins the competition. The bottom 4 are relegated, and the top 4 get qualified for the Libertadores (the Copa do Brasil champion is qualified too). The champion and the teams placed from 5-11 go to the Copa Sulamericana.

The 2nd Division (Série B) works in the same way. 20 teams, home and away games, best team at the end of 38 games wins the title. Top 4 also get promoted to the 1st Division, and bottom 4 get relegated to the 3rd Division.

The 3rd Division (Série C) is different. It has 4 phases. In the 1st phase, teams are divided in groups (16 groups of 4 teams - 64 teams), usually divided according to the state/region (to avoid to force a team to travel too much). Top 2 of each group go to the 2nd phase, in which the teams are divided in groups again (8 groups of 4 teams). Top 2 continue in the competition. The 3rd Phase works in the same way (4 groups of 4 teams, top 2 qualified). The 4th Phase is the only different, where the 8 remaining teams are placed in a single group and, after home and away games, the winner of the group is the division champion. Top 4 promoted. Teams can go to the 3rd Division from different ways, so there isn't a relegation rule.

The State Championships are unrelated to the national league, reuniting teams from different divisions but from the same state in the competition.

The Brazilian Cup (Copa do Brasil) is the national cup, composed by 64 teams.

 

[gauteballe]

Snatch

The best site is probably this:

http://www.futebolinterior.com.br

This site contains information on all state and national championships in Brazil.
There is also a live update with information as the matches are played.

For the national championships, there is a large source of information on the official web site of the Brazilian Football Confederation:

http://www.cbfnews.com.br