© ReproduçãoYour Guide To BrazilWe’re heading to the energetic heart of Brazil
OláfãsdoVCARB,sejambemvindosaSãoPaulo!
Been spinning this track from The Weeknd for days now. Any idea why?
How about because it’s Round 21 of the 2025 FIA Formula One World Championship, and that means we’re in the heart of Brazilian motorsport: São Paulo. It’s the largest urban area outside of Asia and home to the FORMULA 1 MSC CRUISES GRANDE PREMIO DE SÃO PAULO 2025. As is VCARB tradition, we’re here to take you on a cultural sightseeing tour of the sights and sounds of this incredible city. Let’s get into it.
This is VCARB’s Cultural Guide to São Paulo.
Oh, but before we begin…
LiveartandFormulaOne?Yesplease…
On November 5, VCARB will be celebrating the Brazilian Grand Prix at an exclusive event in São Paulo.
Visa Cash App Racing Bulls will be joined by Marie Balbinot, a big name in the world of Brazilian street art, and our very own F1 Academy driver, Rafaela Ferreira, at ZIV Gallery on November 5. During the event, Marie Balbinot will deliver a live painting session that encapsulates the local culture of São Paulo’s rhythm and racing spirit. Her artwork will evolve as the evening progresses, reflecting the colours and energy of a Grand Prix weekend in Brazil.
Based in Beco do Batman in São Paulo, the event will invite the public to experience the emotion of motorsport through the medium of urban art and local culture. This is all part of VCARB’s Creator Platform, a global project designed to open the doors of Formula 1 to a new generation of creators.
Marie will take her art to the Interlagos Circuit, where she’ll paint our VCARB garages, with help from our very own Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson. She’s also the talent behind our Creator Platform race poster, which you can see below:
And finally, Marie will customise five team t-shirts that will be raffled for fans, so one of them could soon be yours!
Here are all the details you’ll need:
- Date: Wednesday, November 5
- Time: 6:00 PM to 11:00 PM
- Location: ZIV Gallery – Rua Gonçalo Afonso, 119, Pinheiros, São Paulo (Beco do Batman)
- Admission: Free and open to the public
São Paulo is the largest Portuguese-speaking city in the world, and its people are known as paulistanos. The city is one of the cultural hubs of Latin America and the world as a whole, being responsible for birthing global sport, food, music and fashion. São Paulo sits above the Serra do Mar (coastal range) and is part of the Brazilian Highlands, with the city an average of 800 metres above sea level. The city is HOT. Hot and humid. The high altitude and the tropical surroundings make for a humid, subtropical climate with average temperatures around 24°C. And rain. We can’t forget the rain. How many F1 Grand Prix in Brazil have been held during wet weather? Exactly. It’s wet here.
Points in the Rain© Getty Images
Parque Ibirapuera is the first place we’d recommend anybody visit on their first trip to São Paulo. The scenic park offers a break from the hustle and bustle of city life, with hiking trails and bike paths to guide you along the way. Stop by for a bit of park yoga, too, if that’s your thing. The park is also home to the Modern and Contemporary Art Museum and the Auditório Ibirapuera, an auditorium and venue for musical performances. If shopping is more of your preferred pastime, then Paulista Avenue is the place to be. It’s the Bond Street of London or the Rodeo Drive of California. There’s also an abundance of street performers, museums and local markets, making it the perfect place to get your full dose of Brazilian culture.
Fênix vogues on a São Paulo crosswalk© Amaphiko
It’s hard to think of São Paulo without immediately thinking about music. Samba, bossa nova, soul and funk all have a long and fruitful history in São Paulo. The city was an early adopter in the radio era, with famous samba artists like Adoniran Barbosa taking over the airwaves and Trem das Onze being regarded as one of the best samba songs in history. The psychedelic 60s didn’t just reach Western Europe. RPM was a successful band, known as ‘The Beatles of Brazil’ and held the record for the best-selling Brazilian record ever. Their success matched the Beatlemania happening in the UK and the USA, and they were one of the first Latin American bands to fill stadiums and sell merchandise.
Then, there’s sport. Once again, Brazil and São Paulo are huge players in the world of professional sports. The city hosted the 1950 FIFA World Cup and the 2014 FIFA World Cup Ceremony. Football is HUGE in São Paulo, but so is a little sport known as Formula One. Heard of it?
Neymar Santos in Sao Paulo© Jürgen Skarwan
Don’t deny it, we’re all here for Formula 1, aren’t we? And who could blame us? The Brazilian (São Paulo) Grand Prix rarely fails to deliver. Formula 1 has visited Brazil as an official event since 1973, first racing a longer version of the Autódromo José Carlos Pace, also known as the Interlagos Circuit. And the circuit’s first winner? São Paulo native, Emerson Fittipaldi, of course. And then again a year later, followed by fellow Brazilian Carlos Pace in 1975.
Senna in Sao Paulo© Glenn Dunbar/LAT Photographic
Between 1981 and 1989, Formula 1 raced at Jacarepaguá instead, a circuit 400 km east of São Paulo in the nation’s festival city of Rio de Janeiro. Formula 1 returned to Interlagos in 1990 and has raced there ever since, often hosting the final race of the season. 2008’s tussle between Felipe Massa and Lewis Hamilton is just one example of the Brazilian Grand Prix cooking up the good stuff. Joining Fittipaldi and Pace as native race winners are Nelson Piquet, Ayrton Senna (another São Paulo local) and the aforementioned Felipe Massa.
So, there’s a lot to get through here, we admit. But there’s a lot to Brazil, and we love it. Join Liam, Isack and the entire VCARB team from 7-9 November for the FORMULA 1 MSC CRUISES GRANDE PREMIO DE SÃO PAULO 2025.
Adeus!
