Mirassol: Big-money rise makes them the talk of Brazilian football | OneFootball

More than 450 km from São Paulo’s capital, an emerging club has been drawing attention and bringing the spotlight of an entire country upon itself. Mirassol, which bears the name of its city of 65,000 inhabitants in the interior of São Paulo, has become the pride of the region and a threat to the powerhouses of national football.

In its very first year in Série A, the Leão occupies sixth place in the Brazilian Championship and has racked up some impressive results: it beat São Paulo at Morumbis, defeated Corinthians, crushed Neymar’s Santos, and drew with Palmeiras at Allianz Parque.

Mirassol’s performance this season is, of course, surprising. Not even in their wildest dreams did the club’s top brass imagine that, after the first half of the Brasileirão, the green and yellow team would be in the G6, fighting for a spot in the Libertadores. But what has been achieved so far is a testament to the structure available to the athletes and coaching staff.

Gazeta Esportiva traveled to Mirassol to try to uncover the secrets behind the club’s great success in 2025 and show everything it currently offers its players to remain among the best teams in the country.

Mirassol’s Training Center

In a 1,500 m² space on the edge of the Euclides da Cunha Highway, which connects São José do Rio Preto to Mato Grosso do Sul, the Mirassol squad works daily with access to the most modern equipment in physical preparation, physiology, and medical departments.

A large part of the facilities was made possible thanks to the sale of Luiz Araújo, now at Flamengo. In 2017, the forward, then a São Paulo player, was bought by Lille, in France, and since he spent part of his development in Mirassol’s youth academy, the club from São Paulo’s interior was entitled to 30% of the transfer—specifically, R$ 11.5 million.

It was precisely with this amount that Mirassol began a dream that, years later, became a solid foundation for success both at the state and national level.

There are four official-sized fields, all with natural grass, one of which has bleachers for 250 people, 20 double rooms for the professional squad, and another 20 for the youth categories, each capable of housing four athletes.

Besides the main gym, there is an exclusive gym for the youth teams, as well as separate dining halls. Hot tubs, a swimming pool, sauna, and even a sand court complete the facilities.

Investment in Technology

One of Mirassol’s trump cards is its high investment in technology. The club currently has various state-of-the-art equipment to treat or prevent injuries, with the ability to accelerate the recovery process of its athletes and minimize sporting losses throughout the year.

One piece of equipment used by all players is a ring capable of providing various metrics to physiologists and fitness coaches regarding sleep, mood, oxygenation, fatigue, among others.

For example: if a player’s child has just been born and his nights are no longer the same as before, having to wake up from time to time to care for the baby, Mirassol’s entire health team will know exactly how much this athlete has been sleeping in order to devise a strategy to minimize the effects of this new routine on his performance on the field.

The club also has a flotation tank which, according to the manufacturer, only Fluminense also possesses in Brazil. The athlete immerses himself in water with Epsom salts, and one hour inside this capsule is equivalent to five hours of sleep, making up for a possible bad night for various reasons.

Another standout piece of equipment is the anti-gravity treadmill. Its function is to minimize the impact of running for athletes recovering from joint injuries, allowing them to perform movements that would otherwise be unthinkable and would take much longer to achieve.

This treadmill can reduce the athlete’s body weight by up to 100%. Thus, he can run even if he cannot endure any impact on the injured joint.

“I came here to visit the training center before signing, last year I came when I was doing internships at some clubs. Today, working within the club, it’s something that impresses me, because often people don’t know what’s inside here, what the club fights every day to offer the best to the athlete. We have to value ourselves, because the board fought their whole lives to provide all this,” commented Paulinho, Corinthians idol and currently Mirassol’s executive director.

The high technology at Mirassol’s training center extends even to the kitchen. All meals are prepared without oil or olive oil and also without any kind of flame. Yes, there isn’t a single conventional or industrial stove at the club.

The equipment used by the staff responsible for the athletes’ meals is programmed according to the type of food being prepared, even following the stipulated time for it to be served.

Beans, for example, can cook from one day to the next and, even so, there is no risk of burning the food. In other words, cooking happens at the time set by the staff and according to the club’s needs and schedule.

The Stadium

It’s not just Mirassol’s training center that has received heavy investment from the board. The José Maria de Campos Maia stadium has also undergone significant renovations to host Série A matches of the Brazilian Championship.

More than R$ 14 million was invested to remodel the stadium’s facade and improve accessibility and the experience not only for fans but also for the teams visiting Mirassol throughout the season.

Access ramps and a wide entrance were built in the visiting section, which has seen high occupancy with matches against major national teams, especially local rivals like Palmeiras, São Paulo, Corinthians, and Santos. The bathrooms, once one of the biggest complaints of those attending the Maião, are now larger and able to accommodate a much bigger crowd.

The fence around the pitch has been replaced by glass. Fieldside boxes have been built with all the latest amenities to host guests. Other exclusive spaces have been inaugurated, such as the family box for athletes, the visiting club’s box, which has no contact with Mirassol fans, and the installation of seats in nearly the entire stadium.

The Maião’s floodlights are now three times stronger than before and capable of putting on a true light show before matches.

There have also been improvements to the locker rooms, both for the home and visiting teams, and the construction of a mezzanine at the highest point of the stadium so that businesspeople and important local figures can network.

No effort is spared, and for this reason, the board has been striving to make the Maião flawless. Not by chance, all youth category matches have stopped being played there and have been moved to Bálsamo, the neighboring city.

Feet on the Ground and Focus on the Long Term

Amid so many improvements and the euphoria of the fans for this very special moment the team is experiencing, Mirassol’s board maintains the same mentality. Their feet remain firmly on the ground, knowing that their budget is far from matching that of the great powers of Brazilian football, but the desire to become increasingly relevant not only at the state level but also nationally is the fuel for the club to continue enjoying this success.

The road is still long, the improvements don’t stop, but the progress made so far is undeniable. Today, Mirassol is synonymous with competence and a source of pride for a region that, until recently, could never have imagined becoming a protagonist in national football.

For now, the focus remains on staying in Série A of the Brazilian Championship. Mirassol’s goal is still to reach 45 points so that, then, it can dream bigger within the competition. However, expectations are now different. Libertadores or Sudamericana, it doesn’t matter. The fact is that, at this pace, the Leão is getting closer and closer to making its mark internationally as well.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.