Brought up with Flamengo, before moving to Europe, Felipe Melo played for other two historical Brazilian teams: Cruzeiro and Gremio. In 2005 he crossed the ocean to move to Maiorca where he only spent a few months. Two seasons spent with Racing Santander and one with Almeria made him known to the public.

In the summer of 2008 he joined Fiorentina with whom he made his debut in the Champions League (preliminaries) and in the Serie A against Juventus on the first match day. The excellent performances with the viola won him the call-up with Dunga’s Brazilian national team soon becoming a strong point. He made his debut in February against Italy and England and won the satisfaction of winning, as a protagonist, the Confederations Cup in South Africa in July.