The city of Belo Horizonte, that hosted 6 games during the FIFA World Cup, and the state of Minas Gerais, are the new power house of Brazilian football with local teams Cruzeiro and Atlético-MG winning respectively the Brazilian championship and Copa do Brasil for 2014. The final of the cup was actually played between Cruzeiro and Atlético-MG.

Both Cruzeiro (1976 and 1997) and Atlético-MG (2013) have previously won the Copa Libertadores, the top club tournament in South America.