Corinthians and Santos agree ground swap for Vila Belmiro and Neo Química Arena | OneFootball

Corinthians and Santos have agreed a ground swap for early season fixtures, with Santos to host Red Bull Bragantino at Neo Química Arena and Corinthians to face Bahia at Vila Belmiro.

The deals were finalised on Friday, and the CBF confirmed Corinthians' venue change late that night.

Santos will play the fifth round of the Paulistão as hosts in Itaquera on 25 January at 16:00 Brasília time, their first match in São Paulo city in 2026.

Corinthians' Brasileirão opener had been set for 20:30 on 29 January at Neo Química Arena, it has been brought forward to 28 January and moved to Vila Belmiro.

The proposal came from president Osmar Stabile and executive Marcelo Paz, aimed at giving Dorival Júnior's squad more recovery time before the Supercopa do Brasil against Flamengo in Brasília on 1 February.

The schedule also reflects that São Paulo will host Flamengo at Morumbis on 28 January.

It will not be Santos' first home outing at Neo Química Arena, they used Corinthians' ground against Bragantino in the 2024 Paulistão semi-final, then later staged games at Allianz Parque and Morumbis.

Source: Globo.com