| Competition: | Campeonato Brasileiro Série A |
| Season: | 2012 |
| Winners: | Fluminense 3rd Campeonato Brasileiro title 4th Brazilian title |
| Relegated: | Figueirense Atlético Goianiense Palmeiras Sport Recife |
| Continentalcup1: | Copa Libertadores de América |
| Continentalcup1 Qualifiers: | Corinthians (title holder) Palmeiras (cup winner) Fluminense Grêmio Atlético Mineiro São Paulo |
| Continentalcup2: | Sudamericana |
| Matches: | 380 |
| Total Goals: | 940 |
| League Topscorer: | Fred (20) |
| Biggest Home Win: | Atlético Mineiro 6−0 Figueirense |
| Biggest Away Win: | Vasco 0−4 Bahia |
| Highest Scoring: | Figueirense 3−4 Atlético Mineiro |
| Longest Wins: | 7 games Atlético Mineiro |
| Longest Unbeaten: | 15 games Grêmio |
| Longest Winless: | 14 games Figueirense |
| Longest Losses: | 7 games Atlético Goianiense Figueirense |
| Highest Attendance: | São Paulo 2−1 Náutico 62,207 |
| Lowest Attendance: | Atlético Goianiense 0−1 Sport 449 |
| Average Attendance: | 12,983 |
| Prevseason: | 2011 |
| Nextseason: | 2013 |
The 2012 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (known as the Brasileirão Petrobras 2012 for sponsorship reasons) was the 56th edition of the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, the top-level of professional football in Brazil. Corinthians come in as the defending champions having won the title in the 2011 season.On 11 November 2012, Fluminense won the title for the fourth time.[1]
For the tenth consecutive season, the tournament will be played in a double round-robin system. The team with most points at the end of the season will be declared champion. The bottom four teams will be relegated and will play in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série B in the 2013 season.
The Série A will serve as a qualifier to CONMEBOL's 2013 Copa Libertadores. The top-two teams in the standings will qualify to the Second Stage of the competition, while the third and fourth places in the standings will qualify to the First Stage.
| Team | Coach | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlético Goianiense |  Arthur Neto | Márcio | Super Bolla | Cimento Tocantins | |
| Atlético Mineiro | Cuca | Réver | Topper | Banco BMG | |
| Bahia | Jorginho | Titi | Nike | Grupo OAS | |
| Botafogo | | Jefferson | Puma | Guaraviton | |
| Corinthians | Tite | Alessandro | Nike | Caixa | |
| Coritiba | Marquinhos Santos | Lincoln | Nike | Caixa | |
| Cruzeiro | | Fábio | Olympikus | Banco BMG | |
| Figueirense | Adilson Batista | Wilson | Penalty | Taschibra | |
| Flamengo | Vanderlei Luxemburgo | Leonardo Moura | Olympikus | UNICEF | |
| Fluminense | Abel Braga | Fred | Adidas | Unimed | |
| Grêmio | | | Topper | Banrisul | |
| Internacional | Osmar Loss (caretaker) |  | Nike | Banrisul | |
| Náutico | | Martinez | Penalty | None | |
| Palmeiras | | | Adidas | Kia | |
| Ponte Preta | | Roger | Pulse | Hitachi | |
| Portuguesa | Geninho | | Lupo | Irwin | |
| Santos | | Neymar | Nike | Banco BMG | |
| São Paulo | | | Reebok | Semp Toshiba | |
| Sport | Sérgio Guedes | Magrão | Lotto | MRV | |
| Vasco da Gama | Gaúcho | | Penalty | Eletrobras |
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Replaced by | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlético/GO | Adílson Batista | Sacked | 29 May | 10th | Hélio dos Anjos | |
| São Paulo | Emerson Leão | Sacked | 26 June | 8th | Ney Franco | |
| Atlético/GO | Hélio dos Anjos | Resigned | 9 July | 20th | Jairo Araújo | |
| Bahia | Paulo Roberto Falcão | Sacked | 20 July | 19th | Caio Júnior | |
| Internacional | Dorival Júnior | Sacked | 20 July | 8th | Fernandão | |
| Figueirense | Argel Fucks | Sacked | 20 July | 17th | Hélio dos Anjos | |
| Flamengo | Joel Santana | Sacked | 23 July | 10th | Dorival Júnior | |
| Sport | Vágner Mancini | Resigned | 11 August | 16th | Waldemar Lemos | |
| Figueirense | Hélio dos Anjos | Sacked | 24 August | 20th | Márcio Goiano | |
| Bahia | Caio Júnior | Resigned | 27 August | 16th | Jorginho | |
| Coritiba | Marcelo Oliveira | Sacked | 6 September | 16th | Marquinhos dos Santos | |
| Vasco da Gama | Cristóvão Borges | Resigned | 9 September | 4th | Marcelo Oliveira | |
| Palmeiras | Luiz Felipe Scolari | Mutual consent | 13 September | 19th | Narciso | |
| Atlético/GO | Jairo Araújo | Resigned | 13 September | 20th | Arthur Neto | |
| Palmeiras | Narciso | Replaced | 19 September | 19th | Gilson Kleina | |
| Ponte Preta | Gilson Kleina | Left to sign with Palmeiras | 19 September | 11th | Guto Ferreira | |
| Sport | Waldemar Lemos | Sacked | 6 October | 17th | Sérgio Guedes | |
| Vasco da Gama | Marcelo Oliveira | Sacked | 5 November | 7th | Gaúcho | |
| Figueirense | Márcio Goiano | Sacked | 5 November | 19th | Adílson Batista | |
| Internacional | Fernandão | Sacked | 20 November | 8th | Osmar Loss (caretaker) |
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Club | Goals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| align=center | 1 | Fred | Brazil | Fluminense | 20 |
| align=center | 2 | Luís Fabiano | Brazil | São Paulo | 17 |
| align=center rowspan=4 | 3 | Aloísio | Brazil | Figueirense | 14 |
| Hernán Barcos | Argentina | Palmeiras | 14 | ||
| Bruno Mineiro | Brazil | Portuguesa | 14 | ||
| Neymar | Brazil | Santos | 14 | ||
| align=center rowspan=2 | 7 | Kieza | Brazil | Náutico | 13 |
| Vágner Love | Brazil | Flamengo | 13 | ||
| align=center rowspan=2 | 9 | Bernard | Brazil | Atlético Mineiro | 11 |
| Elkeson | Brazil | Botafogo | 11 |