# 2021 Campeonato Paulista

The 2021 Campeonato Paulista de Futebol Profissional da Primeira Divisão - Série A1 was the 120th season of São Paulo's top professional football league. The competition was played from 28 February to 23 May 2021.
In addition, it was also decided that Paulistão 2021 will have VAR in all games, including those in the first phase of the competition.

## Format

* In the first stage the sixteen teams are drawn, with seeding, into four groups of four teams each, with each team playing once against the twelve clubs from the other three groups. After each team has played twelve matches, the top two teams of each group qualify for the quarter-final stage.
* After the completion of the first stage, the two clubs with the lowest number of points, regardless of the group, will be relegated to the Campeonato Paulista Série A2.
* Quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals are played in a two-legged home and away fixture, with the best placed first stage team playing the second leg at home.
* In case of a draw in any knockout stage, the match will be decided by a penalty shoot-out.
* The two highest-placed teams not otherwise qualified will qualify for the 2022 Copa do Brasil.
* The top three highest-placed teams in the general table at the end of the competition who are not playing in any level of the national Brazilian football league system will qualify for the 2022 Campeonato Brasileiro Série D.

### Tiebreakers

The teams are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss). If two or more teams are equal on points on completion of the group matches, the following criteria are applied to determine the rankings:
* Higher number of wins;
* Superior goal difference;
* Higher number of goals scored;
* Fewest red cards received;
* Fewest yellow cards received;
* Draw in the headquarters of the FPF.

## Teams

| Club | Home city | Manager | 2020 result |
| Botafogo | Ribeirão Preto | Argel Fucks | 14th |
| Corinthians | São Paulo (Tatuapé) | Vagner Mancini | 2nd |
| Ferroviária | Araraquara | Elano | 11th |
| Guarani | Campinas | Allan Aal | 10th |
| Internacional de Limeira | Limeira | Thiago Carpini | 12th |
| Ituano | Itu | Vinícius Bergantin | 13th |
| Mirassol | Mirassol | Eduardo Baptista | 3rd |
| Novorizontino | Novo Horizonte | Léo Condé | 9th |
| Palmeiras | São Paulo (Perdizes) | Abel Ferreira | 1st |
| Ponte Preta | Campinas | Fábio Moreno | 4th |
| Red Bull Bragantino | Bragança Paulista | Maurício Barbieri | 5th |
| Santo André | Santo André | Paulo Roberto Santos | 7th |
| Santos | Santos | Fernando Diniz | 8th |
| São Bento | Sorocaba | Marcelo Cordeiro | 2nd (Série A2) |
| São Caetano | São Caetano do Sul | Paulinho McLaren (interim) | 1st (Série A2) |
| São Paulo | São Paulo (Morumbi) | Hernán Crespo | 6th |

## First stage
### Group A

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Corinthians | 12 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 17 | 9 | +8 | 25 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Internacional de Limeira | 12 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 12 | −4 | 18 | Knockout stage |
| 3 | Santo André | 12 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 13 | −4 | 13 | Troféu do Interior |
| 4 | Botafogo | 12 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 15 | −5 | 12 | Troféu do Interior |

### Group B

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | São Paulo | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 28 | 9 | +19 | 27 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Ferroviária | 12 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 20 | 12 | +8 | 21 | Knockout stage |
| 3 | Ponte Preta | 12 | 4 | 1 | 7 | 13 | 16 | −3 | 13 | Troféu do Interior |
| 4 | São Bento (R) | 12 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 14 | −6 | 9 | Relegation to Série A2 |

### Group C

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Red Bull Bragantino | 12 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 15 | 7 | +8 | 23 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Palmeiras | 12 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 18 | 10 | +8 | 21 | Knockout stage |
| 3 | Novorizontino | 12 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 17 | 12 | +5 | 19 | Troféu do Interior |
| 4 | Ituano | 12 | 4 | 1 | 7 | 10 | 14 | −4 | 13 | Troféu do Interior |

### Group D

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Mirassol | 12 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 15 | 15 | 0 | 18 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Guarani | 12 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 11 | 16 | −5 | 14 | Knockout stage |
| 3 | Santos (E) | 12 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 12 | 19 | −7 | 13 | |
| 4 | São Caetano (R) | 12 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 4 | 22 | −18 | 3 | Relegation to Série A2 |

## Troféu do Interior

The Troféu do Interior of the 2021 Campeonato Paulista began on 12 May with the quarter-finals and ended on 20 May 2021 with the final. A total of six teams compete in the Troféu Interior.

### Round dates

| Round | Single match |
| Quarter-finals | 12–13 May 2021 |
| Semi-finals | 16–17 May 2021 |
| Final | 20 May 2021 |

### Bracket

| Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| C3 | Novorizontino | | | | | | | |
| -- | | | C3 | Novorizontino | 4 | | | |
| | | | C4 | Ituano | 0 | | | |
| C4 | Ituano | 5 | C4 | Ituano | 0 | | | |
| A4 | Santo André | 1 | | | | | | |
| A4 | Santo André | 1 | | | | C3 | Novorizontino | 2 |
| | | | | | | B3 | Ponte Preta | 0 |
| KS | Red Bull Bragantino | | | | | | | | B3 | Ponte Preta | 0 |
| -- | | | KS | Red Bull Bragantino | 1 (2) | | | |
| | | | B3 | Ponte Preta | 1 (4) | | | |
| B3 | Ponte Preta | 0 (14) | B3 | Ponte Preta | 1 (4) | | | |
| A3 | Botafogo | 0 (13) | | | | | | |

### Quarter-finals

| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
| Ituano | 5–1 | Santo André |
| Ponte Preta | 0–0 (14–13 p) | Botafogo |
Note: The match was concluded the following day, due to a power outage at the stadium.

### Semi-finals

| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
| Red Bull Bragantino | 1–1 (2–4 p) | Ponte Preta |
| Novorizontino | 4–0 | Ituano |

### Final

| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
| Novorizontino | 2–0 | Ponte Preta |
* 2021 Troféu do Interior champions
* Novorizontino 1st title

## Knockout stage

The knockout stage of the 2021 Campeonato Paulista began on 11 May with the quarter-finals and end on 23 May 2021 with the final. A total of eight teams compete in the knockout stage.

### Round dates

| Round | First leg | Second leg |
| Quarter-finals | 11–14 May 2021 | – |
| Semi-finals | 16 May 2021 | – |
| Finals | 20 May 2021 | 23 May 2021 |

### Format

The quarter-finals will be played in a single match at the stadium of the better-ranked team in the first phase. If no goals were scored during the match, the tie will be decided via a penalty shoot-out. The semi-finals will be played with the same format as the quarter-finals. The finals will be played over two legs, with the team having the better record in matches from the previous stages hosting the second leg.

### Qualified teams

| Group | Winners | Runners-up |
| A | Corinthians | Internacional de Limeira |
| B | São Paulo | Ferroviária |
| C | Red Bull Bragantino | Palmeiras |
| D | Mirassol | Guarani |

### Bracket

| Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Finals | Finals | Finals | Finals | Finals | |
| B1 | São Paulo | 4 | | | | | | | | | |
| B2 | Ferroviária | 2 | | | | | | | | | |
| B2 | Ferroviária | 2 | B1 | São Paulo | 4 | | | | | | |
| | | | D1 | Mirassol | 0 | | | | | | |
| D1 | Mirassol | 0 (4) | D1 | Mirassol | 0 | | | | | | |
| D2 | Guarani | 0 (3) | | | | | | | | | |
| D2 | Guarani | 0 (3) | | | | B1 | São Paulo | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
| | | | | | | C2 | Palmeiras | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| A1 | Corinthians | 4 | | | | | | | | C2 | Palmeiras | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| A2 | Internacional de Limeira | 1 | | | | | | | | | |
| A2 | Internacional de Limeira | 1 | A1 | Corinthians | 0 | | | | | | |
| | | | C2 | Palmeiras | 2 | | | | | | |
| C1 | Red Bull Bragantino | 0 | C2 | Palmeiras | 2 | | | | | | |
| C2 | Palmeiras | 1 | | | | | | | | | |

### Quarter-finals

| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
| Corinthians | 4−1 | Internacional de Limeira |
| Mirassol | 0–0 (4–3 p) | Guarani |
| Red Bull Bragantino | 0–1 | Palmeiras |
| São Paulo | 4–2 | Ferroviária |

### Semi-finals

| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
| Corinthians | 0–2 | Palmeiras |
| São Paulo | 4–0 | Mirassol |

### Finals

| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| São Paulo | 2–0 | Palmeiras | 0–0 | 2–0 |

#### Second leg

* 2021 Campeonato Paulista champions
* São Paulo 23rd title

## Overall table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | São Paulo (C) | 16 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 38 | 11 | +27 | 37 | Finalists |
| 2 | Palmeiras | 16 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 21 | 12 | +9 | 28 | Finalists |
| 3 | Corinthians | 14 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 21 | 12 | +9 | 28 | Eliminated in the semi-finals |
| 4 | Mirassol | 14 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 15 | 19 | −4 | 19 | Eliminated in the semi-finals |
| 5 | Red Bull Bragantino | 14 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 16 | 9 | +7 | 23 | Eliminated in the quarter-finals |
| 6 | Ferroviária (B) | 13 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 22 | 16 | +6 | 21 | Eliminated in the quarter-finals |
| 7 | Internacional de Limeira (B) | 13 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 9 | 16 | −7 | 18 | Eliminated in the quarter-finals |
| 8 | Guarani | 13 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 11 | 16 | −5 | 15 | Eliminated in the quarter-finals |
| 9 | Novorizontino (W) | 14 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 23 | 12 | +11 | 25 | |
| 10 | Ponte Preta | 15 | 6 | 1 | 8 | 14 | 19 | −5 | 19 | |
| 11 | Ituano | 14 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 15 | 19 | −4 | 16 | |
| 12 | Santos | 12 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 12 | 19 | −7 | 13 | |
| 13 | Santo André (B) | 13 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 18 | −8 | 13 | |
| 14 | Botafogo | 13 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 10 | 15 | −5 | 12 | |
| 15 | São Bento (R) | 12 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 14 | −6 | 9 | Relegation to Série A2 |
| 16 | São Caetano (R) | 12 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 4 | 22 | −18 | 3 | Relegation to Série A2 |

## Awards
### Top scorers

| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Bruno Mezenga | Ferroviária | 9 |
| 2 | Moisés | Ponte Preta | 6 |
| 3 | Jenison | Novorizontino | 4 |
| 3 | Pablo | São Paulo | 4 |
| 4 | Danielzinho | Novorizontino | 3 |
| 4 | Diego Tavares | São Bento | 3 |
| 4 | Gabriel Sara | São Paulo | 3 |
| 4 | Andrigo | Guarani | 3 |