2026 Copa Libertadores

Last updated
2026 Copa Libertadores
Copa CONMEBOL Libertadores 2026
Tournament details
Dates3 February – 28 November 2026
Teams47 (from 10 associations)
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The 2026 Copa CONMEBOL Libertadores will be the 67th edition of the CONMEBOL Libertadores (also referred to as the Copa Libertadores), South America's premier club football tournament organized by CONMEBOL. The competition will begin on 3 February and is scheduled to end on 28 November 2026, [1] with the final to be played in Montevideo, Uruguay. [2]

Contents

The winners of the 2026 Copa Libertadores will earn the right to play against the winners of the 2026 Copa Sudamericana in the 2027 Recopa Sudamericana. They will also automatically qualify for the 2026 FIFA Intercontinental Cup, the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup and the 2027 Copa Libertadores group stage.

Flamengo are the defending champions.

Teams

The following 47 teams from the 10 CONMEBOL member associations qualified for the tournament:

The entry stage is determined as follows:

AssociationTeam (Berth)Entry stageQualification method
Flag of Argentina.svg  Argentina
(6 + 1 berths)		 Lanús (Copa Sudamericana) Group stage 2025 Copa Sudamericana champions
Platense (Argentina 1) 2025 Apertura champions [3]
Estudiantes (Argentina 2) 2025 Clausura champions [3]
Independiente Rivadavia (Argentina 3) 2025 Copa Argentina champions [3]
Rosario Central (Argentina 4)2025 Liga Profesional aggregate table best team not yet qualified [3]
Boca Juniors (Argentina 5)2025 Liga Profesional aggregate table 2nd best team not yet qualified [3]
Argentinos Juniors (Argentina 6) Second stage 2025 Liga Profesional aggregate table 3rd best team not yet qualified [3]
Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg  Bolivia
(4 berths)		 Always Ready (Bolivia 1) Group stage 2025 División Profesional champions [4]
Bolívar (Bolivia 2)2025 División Profesional runners-up [4]
Nacional Potosí (Bolivia 3) Second stage 2025 Copa Bolivia champions [4]
The Strongest (Bolivia 4) First stage 2025 División Profesional best team not yet qualified [4]
Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil
(7 + 1 berths)		 Flamengo (Title holders) Group stage 2025 Copa Libertadores champions
Corinthians (Brazil 1) 2025 Copa do Brasil champions [5]
Palmeiras (Brazil 2) 2025 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A runners-up [5]
Cruzeiro (Brazil 3)2025 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 3rd place [5]
Mirassol (Brazil 4)2025 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 4th place [5]
Fluminense (Brazil 5)2025 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 5th place [5]
Botafogo (Brazil 6) Second stage 2025 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 6th place [5]
Bahia (Brazil 7)2025 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 7th place [5]
Flag of Chile.svg  Chile
(4 berths)		 Coquimbo Unido (Chile 1) Group stage 2025 Liga de Primera champions [6]
Universidad Católica (Chile 2)2025 Liga de Primera runners-up [6]
O'Higgins (Chile 3) Second stage 2025 Liga de Primera 3rd place [6]
Huachipato (Chile 4) 2025 Copa Chile champions [6]
Flag of Colombia.svg  Colombia
(4 berths)		 Santa Fe (Colombia 1) Group stage 2025 Apertura champions [7]
Junior (Colombia 2) 2025 Finalización champions [7]
Deportes Tolima (Colombia 3) Second stage 2025 Primera A aggregate table best team not yet qualified [7]
Independiente Medellín (Colombia 4)2025 Primera A aggregate table 2nd best team not yet qualified [7]
Flag of Ecuador.svg  Ecuador
(4 berths)		 Independiente del Valle (Ecuador 1) Group stage 2025 Serie A champions [8]
LDU Quito (Ecuador 2)2025 Serie A runners-up [8]
Barcelona (Ecuador 3) Second stage 2025 Serie A best team not yet qualified [8]
Universidad Católica (Ecuador 4) First stage 2025 Copa Ecuador champions [8]
Flag of Paraguay.svg  Paraguay
(4 berths)		 Cerro Porteño (Paraguay 1) Group stage 2025 Copa de Primera (Apertura or Clausura) champions with better record in aggregate table [9]
Libertad (Paraguay 2)2025 Copa de Primera tournament (Apertura or Clausura) champions with worse record in aggregate table [9]
Guaraní (Paraguay 3) Second stage 2025 Copa de Primera aggregate table best team not yet qualified [9]
2 de Mayo (Paraguay 4) First stage 2025 Copa Paraguay runners-up [Note PAR] [9]
Flag of Peru (state).svg  Peru
(4 berths)		 Universitario (Peru 1) Group stage 2025 Liga 1 champions [10]
Cusco (Peru 2) 2025 Liga 1 runners-up [10]
Sporting Cristal (Peru 3) Second stage 2025 Liga 1 3rd place [10]
Alianza Lima (Peru 4) First stage 2025 Liga 1 4th place [10]
Flag of Uruguay.svg  Uruguay
(4 berths)		 Nacional (Uruguay 1) Group stage 2025 Liga AUF Uruguaya champions [11]
Peñarol (Uruguay 2)2025 Liga AUF Uruguaya runners-up [11]
Liverpool (Uruguay 3) Second stage 2025 Liga AUF Uruguaya aggregate table best team not yet qualified [11]
Juventud (Uruguay 4) First stage 2025 Liga AUF Uruguaya aggregate table 2nd best team not yet qualified
Flag of Venezuela (state).svg  Venezuela
(4 berths)		 Universidad Central (Venezuela 1) Group stage 2025 Liga FUTVE champions [12]
Deportivo La Guaira (Venezuela 2)2025 Liga FUTVE aggregate table 1st place [12]
Carabobo (Venezuela 3) Second stage 2025 Liga FUTVE runners-up [12]
Deportivo Táchira (Venezuela 4) First stage 2025 Liga FUTVE aggregate table best team not yet qualified [12]
Notes
  1. Paraguay (PAR): Since the 2025 Copa Paraguay champions General Caballero (JLM) were relegated and therefore became ineligible to qualify for South American competitions, the Paraguay 4 berth was awarded to the Copa Paraguay runners-up, 2 de Mayo.

Schedule

The schedule of the competition will be as follows: [1] [13]

Schedule for 2026 Copa Libertadores
StageDraw dateFirst legSecond leg
First stage18 December 20253–5 February 202610–12 February 2026
Second stage17–19 February 202624–26 February 2026
Third stage3–5 March 202610–12 March 2026
Group stage18 March 2026
  • Matchday 1: 7–9 April 2026
  • Matchday 2: 14–16 April 2026
  • Matchday 3: 28–30 April 2026
  • Matchday 4: 5–7 May 2026
  • Matchday 5: 19–21 May 2026
  • Matchday 6: 26–28 May 2026
Round of 163 June 202611–13 August 202618–20 August 2026
Quarter-finals8–10 September 202615–17 September 2026
Semi-finals13–15 October 202620–22 October 2026
Final28 November 2026 in Montevideo, Uruguay

Draws

CONMEBOL laea location map without rivers.svg
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Buenos Aires
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La Paz
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Rio de Janeiro
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São Paulo
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Quito
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Asunción
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Lima
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Montevideo
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Caracas
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Caracas teams
Red pog.svg Deportivo La Guaira
Red pog.svg Universidad Central
Rio de Janeiro teams
White pog.svg Botafogo
Red pog.svg Flamengo
Red pog.svg Fluminense
São Paulo teams
Red pog.svg Corinthians
Red pog.svg Palmeiras
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Asunción teams
Red pog.svg Cerro Porteño
White pog.svg Guaraní
Red pog.svg Libertad
Greater Montevideo teams
White pog.svg Juventud
White pog.svg Liverpool
Red pog.svg Nacional
Red pog.svg Peñarol
Greater Buenos Aires teams
White pog.svg Argentinos Juniors
Red pog.svg Boca Juniors
Red pog.svg Lanús
Red pog.svg Platense
class=notpageimage|
Location of teams of the 2026 Copa Libertadores.
Red pog.svg Red: Group stage; White pog.svg White: Play-off rounds.

The draw for the qualifying stages was held on 18 December 2025, 12:00 PYT (UTC−3), at the CONMEBOL Convention Centre in Luque, Paraguay. [13] [14]

Teams were seeded by their CONMEBOL Clubs ranking as of 15 December 2025 (shown in parentheses), [15] taking into account the following three factors: [16]

  1. Performance in the last 10 years, taking into account Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana results in the period 2016–2025.
  2. Historical coefficient, taking into account Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana results in the period 1960–2015 and 2002–2015 respectively.
  3. Local tournament champion, with bonus points awarded to domestic league champions of the last 10 years.

For the first stage, the six teams were drawn into three ties (E1–E3), with the teams from Pot 1 hosting the second leg. [17]

First stage draw
Pot 1Pot 2
  1. † The identity of the team from Bolivia was not known at the time of the draw and it was seeded in Pot 2.

For the second stage, the 16 teams were drawn into eight ties (C1–C8), with the teams from Pot 1 hosting the second leg. Teams from the same association could not be drawn into the same tie, excluding the three winners of the first stage, which were seeded in Pot 2 and whose identity was not known at the time of the draw, and could be drawn into the same tie with another team from the same association. [17]

Second stage draw
Pot 1Pot 2
  1. † The identity of the teams from Bolivia and Ecuador was not known at the time of the draw and they were seeded in Pot 2.

For the third stage, the eight winners of the second stage were allocated without any draw into the following four ties (G1–G4), with the team in each tie with the higher CONMEBOL ranking hosting the second leg. [17]

Qualifying stages

In the qualifying stages, each tie is played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. If tied on aggregate, extra time will not be played, and a penalty shoot-out will be used to determine the winner (Regulations Article 2.4.3). The qualifying stages are structured as follows:

First stage

Team 1 Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
The Strongest   Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg E1 Flag of Venezuela (state).svg   Deportivo Táchira 3 Feb 10 Feb
Juventud   Flag of Uruguay.svg E2 Flag of Ecuador.svg   Universidad Católica 5 Feb 12 Feb
2 de Mayo   Flag of Paraguay.svg E3 Flag of Peru (state).svg   Alianza Lima 4 Feb 11 Feb

Second stage

Team 1 Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
E2C1 Flag of Paraguay.svg   Guaraní 19 Feb 26 Feb
E1C2 Flag of Colombia.svg   Deportes Tolima 19 Feb 26 Feb
E3C3 Flag of Peru (state).svg   Sporting Cristal 17 Feb 24 Feb
Barcelona   Flag of Ecuador.svg C4 Flag of Argentina.svg   Argentinos Juniors 18 Feb 25 Feb
Nacional Potosí   Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg C5 Flag of Brazil.svg   Botafogo 18 Feb 25 Feb
Carabobo   Flag of Venezuela (state).svg C6 Flag of Chile.svg   Huachipato 17 Feb 24 Feb
O'Higgins   Flag of Chile.svg C7 Flag of Brazil.svg   Bahia 18 Feb 25 Feb
Liverpool   Flag of Uruguay.svg C8 Flag of Colombia.svg   Independiente Medellín 17 Feb 24 Feb

Third stage

Team 1 Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
Winner C1G1 [†] Winner C8 3–5 Mar 10–12 Mar
Winner C2G2 [†] Winner C7 3–5 Mar 10–12 Mar
Winner C3G3 [†] Winner C6 3–5 Mar 10–12 Mar
Winner C4G4 [†] Winner C5 3–5 Mar 10–12 Mar
  1. † Order of legs to be decided, with the second stage winners with the higher CONMEBOL ranking hosting the second leg.

Group stage

The following 32 teams will be involved in the group stage (with their CONMEBOL clubs ranking as of 15 December 2025 shown in parentheses): [15]

Notes
  1. ^
    TH The defending Copa Libertadores champions will be seeded in Pot 1 and automatically allocated to Group A and the position A1.
  2. ^
    CS The defending Copa Sudamericana champions will be seeded in Pot 2.
  3. ^
    Q3 The third stage winners will be seeded in Pot 4.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Calendario de la CONMEBOL Libertadores, CONMEBOL Sudamericana y CONMEBOL Recopa 2026" [Schedule for the 2026 CONMEBOL Libertadores, CONMEBOL Sudamericana and CONMEBOL Recopa] (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 28 July 2025. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  2. ↑ "Alejandro Domínguez confirmó la sede de la final de la CONMEBOL Libertadores 2026" [Alejandro Domínguez confirmed the venue for the 2026 CONMEBOL Libertadores final] (in Spanish). ESPN. 30 November 2025. Retrieved 30 November 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Reglamento de Torneos de la Temporada 2025 Primera División Liga Profesional de Fútbol de AFA" [Liga Profesional de Fútbol de AFA – Tournament Regulations for the 2025 First Division Season](PDF) (in Spanish). Liga Profesional de Fútbol. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Bolivian Football Federation (29 March 2025). "Convocatoria Torneos de División Profesional 2025" [2025 División Profesional Tournaments Callup]. futboldebolivia.net (in Spanish). Fútbol Boliviano. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Regulamento Específico da Competição Brasileiro Série A 2025" [Specific Regulations for the 2025 Brasileiro Série A Competition](PDF) (in Brazilian Portuguese). Brazilian Football Confederation. 12 February 2025. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Bases Campeonato Nacional de Primera División Temporada 2025" [Campeonato Nacional de Primera División 2025 Season Regulations] (in Spanish). ANFP . Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "Reglamento Liga BetPlay DIMAYOR 2025" [2025 Liga BetPlay DIMAYOR Regulations](PDF) (in Spanish). Dimayor . Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  8. 1 2 3 4 "Así se juega el campeonato ecuatoriano de fútbol 2025. ¿Cómo es el sistema?" [This is how the 2025 Ecuadorian football championship is played. How is the system?] (in Spanish). Bendito Fútbol. 24 August 2025. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  9. 1 2 3 4 "Reglamento de la División de Honor 2025" [2025 División de Honor Regulations](PDF) (in Spanish). Paraguayan Football Association . Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "Reglamento Liga 1 Te Apuesto 2025" [2025 Liga 1 Te Apuesto Regulations](PDF) (in Spanish). Peruvian Football Federation . Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  11. 1 2 3 "Régimen de disputa de los torneos oficiales - vigente desde el 2018" [Regime of play for official tournaments – in force since 2018] (in Spanish). Uruguayan Football Association . Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  12. 1 2 3 4 "Guía completa de la Liga FUTVE 2025: equipos, formato y clasificación a las copas" [Complete guide to the 2025 Liga FUTVE: teams, format, and cup qualification] (in Spanish). DSports. 24 January 2025. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  13. 1 2 "Conmebol sorteará las fases preliminares de Libertadores y Sudamericana 2026 el 18 de diciembre" [CONMEBOL will draw the preliminary rounds of the 2026 Libertadores and Sudamericana on 18 December] (in Spanish). El Universo. 10 December 2025. Retrieved 10 December 2025.
  14. ↑ "Cruces definidos para la Fase Preliminar de la CONMEBOL Libertadores 2026" [Matchups set for the 2026 CONMEBOL Libertadores' Preliminary Stage] (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 18 December 2025. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
  15. 1 2 "Ranking de Clubes de la CONMEBOL 2026" [2026 CONMEBOL Clubs Ranking](PDF) (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 15 December 2025. Retrieved 17 December 2025.
  16. ↑ "RANKING DE CLUBES DE LA CONMEBOL 2021 SISTEMA DE PUNTAJE" (PDF) (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 2 February 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 August 2021.
  17. 1 2 3 "Pautas de sorteo para la CONMEBOL Libertadores y CONMEBOL Sudamericana 2026" [Draw guidelines for the 2026 CONMEBOL Libertadores and CONMEBOL Sudamericana] (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 17 December 2025. Retrieved 17 December 2025.
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