Rio de Janeiro hosts the Apuração, the Carnival ceremony where samba-school parade scores are read and the championship is determined.
“Apuração” means the official counting or tabulation of results. During the ceremony, judges’ scores in categories such as samba-enredo, bateria, harmony, evolution, and overall presentation are announced and added according to the competition rules.
The ceremony is part of Rio’s citywide Carnival calendar and concerns the samba schools that parade in the city’s Special Group and related divisions. It is separate from the Desfile das Campeãs, the later parade that features the highest-ranked schools after the results are known.
The location and broadcast arrangements can change between years, but the event remains tied to Rio de Janeiro’s Carnival competition. The ceremony is often dramatic because very small differences in points can decide the championship.