After winning twice in a row in the 2013 and 2014 seasons, Cruzeiro came in defending their title as the Brazilian football champions.

For the thirteenth consecutive season, the tournament was played in a double round-robin system.

The team with the highest number of points at the end of the season was declared champion.

The bottom four teams were relegated and will play in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série B in the 2016 season.

Despite Criciúma's relegation in the previous championship, it marked the first time four clubs from Santa Catarina took part of the same Brasileirão, at least in its current format; last time it happened, in 1979, the championship had more than 90 teams.