Paulista - A2 (Brazil) 2026/27

The Campeonato Paulista Série A2 serves as the second tier of professional football in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. Organised by the Federação Paulista de Futebol, it sits directly below the top-flight Série A1 and above the third-tier Série A3. The competition was established in 1948, with the inaugural champion being XV de Piracicaba, which earned promotion to the elite division for the 1949 season.

The current format involves 16 clubs. The season begins with a single round-robin phase where every team plays every other team once, resulting in 15 matches per club. There are no regional groups in this phase, distinguishing it from the Série A1, which often uses a 'pots' system to separate teams. The top eight teams in the general standings advance to the knockout stage. The quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final are played over two legs. In the final, the team with the best performance in the regular season chooses whether to play the second leg at home or away.

Promotion to the Série A1 is awarded to the champion and the runner-up of the Série A2. Conversely, two teams are relegated from the Série A1 to the Série A2 each year, typically the two lowest-placed teams in the top-flight table. From the Série A3, the champion and runner-up are promoted to the Série A2.

Relegation from Série A2 to Série A3 affects the two teams finishing in the last two positions of the general table. Recent champions include Velo Clube (2024), Capivariano (2025), and Juventus (2026). The Série A2 is distinct from other Brazilian state second divisions by its consistent use of a single-table league format for the initial phase, ensuring all teams face each other directly, unlike the grouped formats often employed in the top tier or other states.