2026 Campeonato Mineiro: groups, dates and key rules

The 2026 Campeonato Mineiro kicks off this weekend and brings an important change: the final returns to a single match format. The ball starts rolling for the first time on Saturday (10th), at 4:30 PM (Brasília time), at Parque do Sabiá, with Uberlândia vs. Tombense.

A total of 12 clubs are competing in the State Championship: Atlético-MG, América-MG, Cruzeiro, Democrata-GV, URT, Uberlândia, Betim, Pouso Alegre, Tombense, Athletic, Itabirito, and North Esporte Clube.

The competition will be held from January 10 to March 7. The first phase ends on February 14. Clubs can register new players until February 20, shortly before the semifinals begin.

The 2026 edition puts Atlético-MG as the "target" of the other state rivals, after all, Galo is the biggest champion (50 titles) and the current six-time champion.

+ Campeonato Mineiro starts this Saturday; check out the tournament highlights

⚽ Groups of the 2026 Campeonato Mineiro

Group A

Atlético-MG

Democrata-GV

URT

Uberlândia

Group B

América-MG

Pouso Alegre

Betim

Tombense

Group C

Cruzeiro

Athletic

Itabirito

North

👀 First Round Matches

01/10 – Uberlândia vs. Tombense

01/10 – Cruzeiro vs. Pouso Alegre

01/10 – Itabirito vs. Democrata-GV

01/10 – URT vs. North

01/11 – Atlético-MG vs. Betim

01/11 – América-MG vs. Athletic

📜 Regulations

The 12 teams were divided into three groups, with four clubs each. In the first phase, teams do not face opponents from their own group. Each team plays eight games.

After the 48 matches of the initial phase, the overall ranking will be formed. The top four advance to the semifinals, with the following matchups:– best leader vs. best second-placed– second best leader vs. third best leader

From 5th to 8th place, clubs compete for the Troféu Inconfidência.

At the end of the first phase, yellow cards are reset. Suspensions for red cards or a third yellow must be served in the next game.

⚔️ Final Phase

The semifinals will be played in home-and-away matches. The team with the better campaign decides at home. There is no extra time: a tie in the aggregate score leads to a penalty shootout.

The final will be a single match, at Mineirão. In case of a tie, the champion will be decided by penalties.

🧐 Tiebreaker Criteria

In case of a tie in points in the first phase, the following criteria apply:

1. Number of victories
2. Goal difference
3. Goals scored
4. Head-to-head
5. Fewer red cards
6. Fewer yellow cards
7. Draw at FMF

📺 Where to Watch

The 2026 Campeonato Mineiro will be broadcast by TV Globo, on open TV and on ge (one game per round in the first phase). SporTV will show all phases of the tournament. Premiere will broadcast all matches of Atlético-MG, Cruzeiro, and América-MG.

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

📸 Pedro Vilela - 2025 Getty Images