In the global ranking, Brazil’s beer and cachaça segments stand out. Leading brands include Skol, Brahma, Antarctica, Schin, and Ypióca. Notably, three out of the five brands mentioned are part of parent company AB InBev, the former Ambev brewery. Ambev, also known as Companhia de Bebidas das Américas originated in Brazil and is now one of the world’s largest beverage companies, solidifying its position as a dominant player in the Brazilian beer market.

Schin, the only non-Ambev beer brand included in the ranking, belongs to the former manufacturer Brasil Kirin, which was controlled by the Japanese group Kirin Holdings Company. Today, Schin is part of the product portfolio of Heineken.

In Brazil, the beer and cachaça markets are moving in different directions. The Brazilian beer market has experienced limited growth, or may even be considered to have declined, since 2016 as observed in more recent years.

On the other hand, the cachaça has untapped potential and has been growing steadily year-on-year. Currently, most cachaça producers operate informally, and there is a culture in Brazil of manufacturing these brands in stills in rural locations scattered across the country. There are further geographical indications that play a role in certifying the origin of cachaça, such as cachaça from the Micro Region of Abaíra, Paraty, and Salinas Region.

Looking at Brazil’s wine industry, we can also see growth as production has increased significantly in recent years. In terms of commercial spirits, these brands also appear to have improved market share, with notable emphasis on Ypióca cachaça, produced in Brazil by alcoholic beverage giant Diageo.

Brand Finance Alcoholic Drinks 2023

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Brand Finance's Global Soft Power Index 2023 ranking places Brazil 31st, a drop of three positions from the previous year. Despite a small increase in its Soft Power score from 43.4 to 46.2, this indicates that other countries are recognising the value of their brands in generating business, tourism, and international relations at a faster speed than Brazil. Evaluating brands is a useful management tool. 

Brazil is the 5^th largest country in the world by area, covering more than 8.5 million square kilometres, and the 6^th largest by population, with approximately 220 million inhabitants. It has been a democratic republic since 1989. Given its size and other attributes, getting to know Brazil is relatively easy. 

The Brazil brand ranks 12^th in the familiarity dimension, a position unchanged since 2021. Due to its size, Brazil finds it easier to leverage familiarity than smaller countries, but there is still potential to improve the Brazil country brand abroad. The country brand logo underwent a redesign in 2018, and this year the logo reverted to the previous design. These sudden changes, possibly due to political pressure, can reduce the effectiveness of Brazil's communication efforts. Nevertheless, Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina are the only Latin American brands among the top 30 in the familiarity index. 

The Brazil brand maintains its 31st position in the reputation KPI, with a score increase of 0.2 points, but this wasn't enough to improve its ranking. Despite this, Brazil has a strong global reputation, which protects it from short-term fluctuations and specific actions. However, no Latin American brands appear in the top 30 in this category. 

In the influence dimension, the Brazil brand fell to 26^th position, dropping seven places since the 2022 assessment. Although the Brazil brand influence index score increased by 0.1 points, other countries had a better performance, leading to the decline in Brazil's position. Last year's focus on presidential elections and internal politics likely contributed to Brazil's weaker influence. 

The Brazilian elections also highlighted opportunities for improvement in areas such as economics, taxes, logistics, and exchange rates. Many proposals for improvement were made, suggesting the potential for the influence index to further evolve. In the KPI business and trade, the Brazil brand fell nine positions to 38^th place. Although the brand score increased by 0.6 points, it wasn't sufficient to improve its ranking. 

Exposure to positive or negative news shapes a country's image, affecting its familiarity. Unfortunately, Brazil has been associated with predominantly negative news over the last year, such as poor public health management during the pandemic, human rights violations, Amazon deforestation, and foreign policy issues. 

In the governance dimension, the Brazil brand dropped 28 positions to 86^th place compared to the 2022 assessment. Although Brazil's score in this attribute increased by 0.7 points, it still has a long way to go to reach the top positions. 

Brazil's government has taken a severe political stance, resulting in the country becoming more closed off in recent years. This has led to problems in International Relations, lack of flexibility in dealings, and isolation from the world. In the international relations dimension, the Brazil brand dropped 10 places to 41^st position, compared to the 2022 ranking of 31^st place. Although the Brazil brand grew by 0.6 in this pillar, it was not enough to improve its ranking. A globalised, flexible policy that aligns with democratic values is needed to help Brazil in this area. 

Brazil's strongest dimension in its country brand is culture and heritage, maintaining its 9^th position in the 2022 assessment. The positive growth of 0.9 points in the score was enough to maintain the same position as before. Given Brazil's diverse mix of people and rich cultural heritage, it's not surprising that this is its top-performing dimension. 

However, in the people and values dimension, the Brazil brand fell from 19^th to 25^th position, losing 6 places despite growing by 0.7 points. Other country brands have shown even greater growth in this dimension, resulting in Brazil's relative decline. 

The Brazil brand's position in the media and communication dimension also suffered, falling by 17 places to the 43^rd position. Although the brand only had a slight decrease of 0.1 points, this caused a significant drop in the competitive and dynamic country brand market. The ongoing conflict between the government and the media, along with the rise of fake news, has led to constant questioning of the media. However, Brazil has demonstrated that it has an independent and free media. 

The country brand Brazil experienced a significant drop in the education and science key performance indicator, falling from 35^th to 73^rd position in 2023. The score in this category also dropped by 0.3 points. While Brazil has great potential for education initiatives, there has been a lack of investment in this area over the last year. Despite having the best university in Latin America, the University of São Paulo, education in Brazil remains concentrated in a small portion of the population. Government incentives are necessary to improve basic education in the country and support Brazil's development in the future. 

In the sustainability indicator, the country brand Brazil is ranked 55^th, with a score of 4.3 points. The top-ranking countries score 7.0, leaving Brazil with significant room for improvement in this category. As a country with areas of great importance for tourism, pharmaceuticals, and biodiversity, Brazil needs to pay attention to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) actions to improve its position in the ranking. 

Among the 120 nations ranked, there are 17 other Latin American countries included in the ranking, including Brazil (31^st), Argentina (42^nd), Mexico (44^th), Chile (54^th), Colombia (58^th), Uruguay (63^rd), Cuba (66^th), Panama (70^th), Costa Rica (72^nd), Paraguay (73^rd), Peru (77^th , Dominican Republic (80^th), Bolivia (81^st), Ecuador (90^th), Honduras (104^th), Venezuela (106^th), Trinidad and Tobago (118^th), and Guatemala (120^th). 

The following graph shows a comparison of the general variables among Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, and Chile, which are the most populous countries in Latin America. 

Global Soft Power Index 2023

Explore the findings of the world's most comprehensive research study on perceptions of nation brands, presented in a downloadable report and an interactive dashboard.

In 2022, Brazil rose 6 positions in the Global Soft Power Index, from 34^th to 28^th, one place behind its 27^th rank achieved in 2020. There was an improvement in its overall country brand index measured by the soft power index, but other nations grew faster as they managed to rebound from COVID-19. Brazil earned an overall score of 43.4, up +5.3 points this year. 

This has not been the best year for the nation brand image of Brazil, but even so, the world recognizes that there has been an improvement. There were mismatches between public health and the economy, which now seem to be managed better. The management of the COVID-19 pandemic is perceived to have improved with public health actions better coordinated. Consequently, the vaccination rate is increasing, deaths are decreasing, and the economy is showing signs of improvement in several sectors. 

In the ‘Familiarity’ pillar, Brazil grew by +0.7 points, reaching a score of 7.6, which places it in 12^th  position alongside Australia and India. In the ‘Influence’ pillar, Brazil remained steady, with a positive increase of +0.1 points, from 4.2 to 4.3, and staying in 19^th position, below Australia and above the Netherlands in this measure. In both pillars, Brazil led Latin America. 

In the ‘Reputation’ pillar, Brazil does not rank as highly as in the previous dimensions, appearing only in the 30^th position. Brazil, with its score of 6.1, is alongside Poland and Qatar, with scores above global average of 5.75. Even so, Brazil is the best-positioned Latin American nation in this criterion. 

In the ‘Business and Trade’ pillar, Brazil appears only in 29^th position with a score of 4, equal with Ireland, South Africa and Thailand, but remains the highest-ranked Latin American nation. Cultural and bureaucratic factors make Latin countries complex and difficult to do business compared to other jurisdictions, and Latin American nation brands are harmed as a result. 

The ‘Governance’ pillar is the second lowest dimension evaluated for Brazil. The country is in 58th position, with a rating similar to the Czech Republic, Egypt, Indonesia, Uruguay and Mauritius. This position shows a dimension that the Brazilian nation can improve a lot. In ‘Governance’, Panama and the Dominican Republic rank higher than Brazil. Corruption measurement indices show that countries in Latin America, Africa and Asia tend to be more corrupt, with Brazil needing to improve significantly in this pillar. 

For ‘International Relations,’ Brazil again does not appear among the 20 largest brands in the world. With a score of 3.3, with countries such as Egypt, South Africa and Iceland, Brazil is positioned as the 31^st nation. No country in Latin America surpasses this position, again demonstrating another dimension that Latin American nations can improve on. 

In ‘Culture and Heritage,’ Brazil is ranked ahead of most countries with a score of 4.6, despite a fall of -0.5 points this year. Brazil equals China in this measurement criterion after China improved by +0.5 points in this area to 4.6. Brazil is clearly ranked highest in Latin America in this area. With a pluralistic, diversified and open culture, Brazil has a lot of potential and effectiveness in this criterion. From important classical music artists like Heitor Villa-lobos and Carlos Gomes, to internationally renowned musicians like Tom Jobim and Sergio Mendes, Hollywood actors like Rodrigo Santoro and Alice Braga, Brazil is prominent in the global arts world. 

In the ‘Media and Communication,’ pillar, Brazil is in 26^th position, similar to Saudi Arabia, but is again the nation with the best score in Latin America. Seeking an impartial, democratic, and true media, Brazil is home to substantially open and lively media with freedom of expression, important points for a free and democratic country. 

In the ‘Education and Science’ pillar, Brazil is in the 35^th position, below Thailand and above Hungary. Brazil and Mexico lead Latin America with the highest number of papers published in relevant journals. Despite low schooling scores when compared to more developed countries, South American countries are improving basic education, higher education and technical training. 

In the evaluation of the ‘Covid score,’ Brazil has its worst performance, being the 109th nation in the ranking in 2022. In the company of nations such as Cameroon, Brazil demonstrates to the world that it did not deal well with the public health crisis. In general, Latin American countries surpassed Brazil in this criterion, and few countries had worse scores. This  

In an analysis of the 120 nations ranked, there are seventeen other Latin American countries in the ranking: (1) Argentina in 38^th position (2) Mexico 42^nd (3) Colombia 48^th (4) Cuba 53^rd (5) Panama 54^th (6) Chile 55^th (7) Dominican Republic 61^st (8) Uruguay 66^th (9) Costa Rica 67^th (10) Paraguay 80^th (11) Peru 82^nd (12) Venezuela 89^th (13) Bolivia 92^nd  (14) Ecuador 98^th (15) Guatemala 111^th (16) Honduras 118^th and (17) Trinidad and Tobago 120^th. 

The following graph shows the average of the general variables compared with the larger Latin American countries: Brazil, Argentina, Mexico and Colombia. 

Global Soft Power Index 2022

Explore the findings of the world's most comprehensive research study on perceptions of nation brands, presented in a downloadable report and an interactive dashboard.

While Brazil saw a slight dip in its Culture & Heritagescore, the nation still ranked 8^th overall for this metric, excelling in several variables such as art and entertainment, food, cultural tradition, lifestyle, and sports. Colonisation led to a national melting pot of cultures – mainly Portuguese and African – but also French, Dutch, and Spanish, later followed by mass immigration of Italians, Germans, Turks, and Japanese, which mixed with the culture of Brazilian natives, culminated in a rich and diverse culture in the arts, music, entertainment, food, lifestyle and sports.

Moreover, Brazilian artists hold their own on the international stage, from Tom Jobim’s MPB to Anitta’s 2021 New Year's Eve show in Times Square. Our cuisine is internationally awarded – from traditional Brazilian bean and pork food "feijoada" to Alex Atala’s D.O.M. restaurant with 2 Michelin stars, and Brazil has been awarded prizes in international competitions such as the Olympics across several sports, including football and judo.

Unfortunately, an improvement of 0.7-points across the board for Business & Trade, International Relations, and Media & Communication, wasn’t enough to raise Brazil's overall ranking in the Index.

While Brazil is a country rich in natural beauty, with the potential to greatly improve its position in the ranking, there are various factors holding Brazil back, namely the chaotic way it dealt with the pandemic – from confusing statements by government officials, to problematic public health control activities – little investment in international promotion and communication actions, a lack of representation in global brand rankings, as well as the need for technological innovation and products with higher market value.

Despite the nation’s drop in the overall Index score, Brazil maintained perceptions of Influence and Reputation, scoring 22^nd – up 0.2-points to 4.2 out of 10 – and 27^th, up from 32^nd with a 0.1-point increase to 6.1 out of 10, for these metrics respectively.

With a strong presence among several economic blocs – including Mercosur, the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP) and BRICS (Brazil-Russia-India- China-South Africa Group) – in addition to important international organisations, such as the United Nations – Brazil maintains global Influence and Reputation.

With beautiful beaches, mountains, and rivers – as well as a year-round warm climate – Brazil has a lifestyle envied by other nations and celebrated by tourists.

Brand Finance Global Soft Power Index 2021

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