Top scoring samba schools return to Rio’s Sambadrome for champion’s parade

The six top-scoring samba schools from Rio de Janeiro’s Carnival returned to the Sambadrome for a final parade, wowing spectators with dazzling costumes, energetic performances, and live samba music.

Mangueira, which placed sixth, opened the festivities, while Beija Flor de Nilópolis, this year’s champion, closed the night in triumphant fashion.

Beija Flor was crowned the 2025 Rio Carnival champion with a parade theme honoring its late carnival director, Laila, who passed away in 2021. The victory carried extra significance for legendary samba singer and composer Neguinho da Beija-Flor, who announced his retirement after nearly five decades as the school’s official interpreter.

Judges determined the winner on Wednesday, evaluating schools across multiple performance categories.

For many performers, the final parade was a moment of pride and accomplishment.

Thiago Alves, the performer at Mangueira Samba School, Expressed Histo Gratitude: “To be back for the champions’ parade, it’s a feeling that everything we’ve done in this long process—four to five months of rehearsals—was worth it. To have our work recognized and to be among the top six schools is a feeling of duty accomplished.”

Iris Giles, also from Mangueira, described the overwhelming emotions of performing: “When I step onto the Sambadrome avenue, I can’t explain the feeling. I just know that I shiver. It’s a different Iris that’s there. It’s a stratospheric level of emotion—I can’t even put it into words. It’s pure joy.”

Once spread over two nights with six schools per parade, Rio’s elite ‘special group’ competition now takes place over three nights, featuring four schools each evening.

The Sambadrome, an iconic venue since the 1980s, remains the heart of Brazil’s Carnival, where the country’s top samba schools compete in a spectacular celebration of culture, music, and dance.

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