24 Aug 2026
How the CBF National Club Ranking Works
The CBF National Club Ranking measures teams’ recent performances in national competitions. The list is updated annually and influences the allocation of places in tournaments organised by the governing body.
What is the CBF ranking?
The National Club Ranking, also known as the RNC, is an annual classification produced by the Brazilian Football Confederation. It adds up the points earned by each club in national competitions over the previous five years. Its aim is to rank teams by recent performance, excluding state championships, friendlies and international tournaments.
Which competitions award points?
The CBF awards points for campaigns in the Brazilian Championship’s Série A, B, C and D, the Copa do Brasil and the Copa do Nordeste. The Copa Verde is also included when provided for in the rules for the cycle. Each tournament has its own weighting: Série A and the Copa do Brasil are worth more than the lower divisions because they feature clubs competing at a higher national level and involve greater sporting demands.
How are points from the five years calculated?
The most recent edition carries the greatest weight in the total. As a rule, the latest season receives a weighting of 5, the previous one 4, followed by weightings of 3, 2 and 1. Therefore, a strong recent result is worth more than an older campaign. Points earned in each competition are multiplied by the weighting for the corresponding year and added to the club’s total.
Why can a club’s position change without winning a title?
Winning titles helps, but the ranking does not reward champions alone. Reaching the latter stages of the Copa do Brasil, finishing strongly in Série A or earning promotion in a national division can produce many points. At the same time, when an older season drops out of the five-year calculation, the club loses the points from that cycle. As a result, a team can fall in the ranking even after a reasonable campaign.
What is the National Club Ranking used for?
The ranking helps the CBF establish technical criteria for places and the allocation of clubs in national competitions, especially when regulations reserve places based on the performance of federations and their representatives. It is also used as an institutional reference to order teams in the organisation’s documents and assessments. It does not determine champions, promotion, relegation or places in the Copa Libertadores, which depend on each tournament’s regulations.
The club ranking and federation ranking are not the same
The National Club Ranking classifies teams such as Flamengo, Palmeiras, Bahia and Remo. The National Federation Ranking, by contrast, adds up the points earned by clubs from each state and the Federal District. This second ranking has an important impact on the number of places each federation receives in competitions such as the Copa do Brasil and Série D. Therefore, a club may be well placed in the RNC while its federation occupies a different position in the national list.
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