Santos president: New Brazilian calendar brings new opportunities | OneFootball

Santos' President, Marcelo Teixeira, has commented on the changes to the Brazilian football calendar. The leader believes that the modifications imposed by the CBF could be beneficial for both clubs and players.

"These changes for 2026 are already set in the context of a World Cup year. In 2025, for example, we already had a calendar impacted by the Club World Cup, which required a readjustment in the dates of the Copa do Brasil finals and the anticipation of the end of the Brasileirão. The new competition calendar established by the CBF will be an experience to start the season with the Brasileirão, reconciling with the State Championships," he said.

"It could represent an important step for Brazilian football in valuing its product. These are structural changes that open a range of new commercial opportunities and new means of revenue and engagement with the fans, whether in stadiums or in the digital environment. In addition, they should also enhance the performance of our athletes and the technical level of our main championships, which have been gaining more and more visibility and notoriety worldwide," he added.

The new calendar

The CBF presented the new Brazilian football calendar on Wednesday. The match schedule, announced by Samir Xaud, president of the entity, and Julio Avellar, director of competitions, will be valid for the four-year period from 2026 to 2029.

Anticipation of state and national championships

The state championships will start on January 11, 2026, and end on March 8. In addition, the tournaments will have fewer dates – from 16 to 11.

The Brazilian Championship will kick off on January 28. Due to the World Cup, the calendar will be interrupted in the middle of the year. Thus, the Brasileirão will continue until December, with an end date scheduled for the 2nd.

Expansion of the Copa do Brasil and new formula

The Copa do Brasil will conclude the Brazilian football matches, with an end date scheduled for December 6. The competition also saw a significant increase, going from 92 to 126 teams.

With this growth, the structure was completely altered, now featuring nine phases. The first four will be single-elimination matches, between teams qualified through state, regional, and Series C and D championships. All Series A teams will join the 12 teams qualified for the fifth phase, when the two-legged knockout stages will begin, leading up to the final.

The decision also changed. Instead of the traditional home and away matches, the final will be a single match. The CBF will still announce the stadium for the decisive match.

Creation of the Copa Sul-Sudeste and changes in the regionals

The CBF also altered the structure of the regional tournaments. The teams that compete in Conmebol competitions will not participate in these tournaments. In addition, the entity created the Copa Sul-Sudeste, which will follow the models of the Copa do Nordeste and the Copa Verde as a regional competition for these regions of the country.

All regionals have been standardized, with group stages and knockout rounds to determine the champions. The winners will secure a spot in the third phase of the subsequent Copa do Brasil.

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