2026 Copa Libertadores qualifying stages

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The 2026 Copa Libertadores qualifying stages will be played from 3 February to 12 March 2026. [1] A total of 19 teams will compete in the qualifying stages to decide four of the 32 places in the group stage of the 2026 Copa Libertadores.

Contents

Draw

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. [2] [3]

Teams were seeded by their CONMEBOL Clubs ranking as of 15 December 2025 (shown in parentheses), [4] taking into account the following three factors: [5]

  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. [6]

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. [6]

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. [6]

Format

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).

Bracket

The qualifying stages are structured as follows:

The bracket was decided based on the first stage draw and second stage draw, which was held on 18 December 2025.

Winner G1

First stage Second stage Third stage
            
Flag of Uruguay.svg Juventud
Flag of Ecuador.svg Universidad Católica
Flag placeholder.svg E2
Flag of Paraguay.svg Guaraní
Flag placeholder.svg Winner C1 [†]
Flag placeholder.svg Winner C8 [†]
Flag of Uruguay.svg Liverpool
Flag of Colombia.svg Independiente Medellín

Winner G2

First stage Second stage Third stage
            
Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg Bolivia 4
Flag of Venezuela (state).svg Deportivo Táchira
Flag placeholder.svg E1
Flag of Colombia.svg Deportes Tolima
Flag placeholder.svg Winner C2 [†]
Flag placeholder.svg Winner C7 [†]
Flag of Chile.svg O'Higgins
Flag of Brazil.svg Bahia

Winner G3

First stage Second stage Third stage
            
Flag of Paraguay.svg 2 de Mayo
Flag of Peru (state).svg Alianza Lima
Flag placeholder.svg E3
Flag of Peru (state).svg Sporting Cristal
Flag placeholder.svg Winner C3 [†]
Flag placeholder.svg Winner C6 [†]
Flag of Venezuela (state).svg Carabobo
Flag of Chile.svg Huachipato

Winner G4

Second stage Third stage
        
Flag of Ecuador.svg Ecuador 3
Flag of Argentina.svg Argentinos Juniors
Flag placeholder.svg Winner C4 [†]
Flag placeholder.svg Winner C5 [†]
Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg Bolivia 3
Flag of Brazil.svg Botafogo
  1. † Order of legs to be decided, with the second stage winners with the higher CONMEBOL ranking hosting the second leg.

First stage

Summary

The first legs will be played on 3–5 February, and the second legs will be played on 10–12 February 2026. [7] [8]

Team 1 Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
Bolivia 4  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

Matches

Bolivia 4 Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg v Flag of Venezuela (state).svg Deportivo Táchira
Deportivo Táchira Flag of Venezuela (state).svg v Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg Bolivia 4

Winner advances to the second stage.

Juventud Flag of Uruguay.svg v Flag of Ecuador.svg Universidad Católica
Universidad Católica Flag of Ecuador.svg v Flag of Uruguay.svg Juventud

Winner advances to the second stage.

2 de Mayo Flag of Paraguay.svg v Flag of Peru (state).svg Alianza Lima
Alianza Lima Flag of Peru (state).svg v Flag of Paraguay.svg 2 de Mayo

Winner advances to the second stage.

Second stage

Summary

The first legs will be played on 17–19 February, and the second legs will be played on 24–26 February 2026. [7] [8]

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
Ecuador 3  Flag of Ecuador.svg C4 Flag of Argentina.svg   Argentinos Juniors 18 Feb 25 Feb
Bolivia 3  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

Matches

E2 Flag placeholder.svgv Flag of Paraguay.svg Guaraní
Guaraní Flag of Paraguay.svg vFlag placeholder.svg E2

Winner advances to the third stage (Match G1).

E1 Flag placeholder.svgv Flag of Colombia.svg Deportes Tolima
Deportes Tolima Flag of Colombia.svg vFlag placeholder.svg E1

Winner advances to the third stage (Match G2).

E3 Flag placeholder.svgv Flag of Peru (state).svg Sporting Cristal
Sporting Cristal Flag of Peru (state).svg vFlag placeholder.svg E3

Winner advances to the third stage (Match G3).

Ecuador 3 Flag of Ecuador.svg v Flag of Argentina.svg Argentinos Juniors
Argentinos Juniors Flag of Argentina.svg v Flag of Ecuador.svg Ecuador 3

Winner advances to the third stage (Match G4).

Bolivia 3 Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg v Flag of Brazil.svg Botafogo
Botafogo Flag of Brazil.svg v Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg Bolivia 3

Winner advances to the third stage (Match G4).

Carabobo Flag of Venezuela (state).svg v Flag of Chile.svg Huachipato
Huachipato Flag of Chile.svg v Flag of Venezuela (state).svg Carabobo

Winner advances to the third stage (Match G3).

O'Higgins Flag of Chile.svg v Flag of Brazil.svg Bahia
Bahia Flag of Brazil.svg v Flag of Chile.svg O'Higgins

Winner advances to the third stage (Match G2).

Independiente Medellín Flag of Colombia.svg v Flag of Uruguay.svg Liverpool

Winner advances to the third stage (Match G1).

Third stage

Summary

The first legs will be played on 3–5 March, and the second legs will be played on 10–12 March 2026.

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.

Matches

Lower-ranked Winner C1/C8 Flag placeholder.svgvFlag placeholder.svg Higher-ranked Winner C1/C8
Higher-ranked Winner C1/C8 Flag placeholder.svgvFlag placeholder.svg Lower-ranked Winner C1/C8

Winner advances to the group stage.

Lower-ranked Winner C2/C7 Flag placeholder.svgvFlag placeholder.svg Higher-ranked Winner C2/C7
Higher-ranked Winner C2/C7 Flag placeholder.svgvFlag placeholder.svg Lower-ranked Winner C2/C7

Winner advances to the group stage.

Lower-ranked Winner C3/C6 Flag placeholder.svgvFlag placeholder.svg Higher-ranked Winner C3/C6
Higher-ranked Winner C3/C6 Flag placeholder.svgvFlag placeholder.svg Lower-ranked Winner C3/C6

Winner advances to the group stage.

Lower-ranked Winner C4/C5 Flag placeholder.svgvFlag placeholder.svg Higher-ranked Winner C4/C5
Higher-ranked Winner C4/C5 Flag placeholder.svgvFlag placeholder.svg Lower-ranked Winner C4/C5

Winner advances to the group stage.

Notes

  1. ↑ Juventud will play their home match at Estadio Centenario, Montevideo instead of their regular stadium Estadio Parque Artigas Las Piedras, Las Piedras which did not meet CONMEBOL requirements.
  2. ↑ Guaraní will play their home match at Estadio Defensores del Chaco, Asunción instead of their regular stadium Estadio Rogelio Livieres, Asunción which is being rebuilt. [9]
  3. ↑ Sporting Cristal will play their home match at Estadio Nacional, Lima instead of their regular stadium Estadio Alberto Gallardo, Lima which did not meet CONMEBOL requirements.
  4. ↑ Liverpool will play their home match at Estadio Centenario, Montevideo instead of their regular stadium Estadio Belvedere, Montevideo which did not meet CONMEBOL requirements.

References

  1. ↑ "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 17 December 2025.
  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.
  3. ↑ "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.
  4. ↑ "Ranking de Clubes de la CONMEBOL 2026" [2026 CONMEBOL Clubs Ranking](PDF) (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 15 December 2025. Retrieved 17 December 2025.
  5. ↑ "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.
  6. 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.
  7. 1 2 "Fixture de Fase Preliminar de la CONMEBOL Libertadores 2026" [2026 CONMEBOL Libertadores Preliminary Stage Fixture] (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 18 December 2025. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
  8. 1 2 "CONMEBOL LIBERTADORES 2026 | PROGRAMA DE PARTIDOS - FASES PRELIMINARES | Departamento de Competiciones y Operaciones | Versión de 18/12/2025" (PDF) (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 18 December 2025. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
  9. ↑ "Remodelación del estadio, en marcha" [Remodeling of the stadium, underway] (in Spanish). La Nación. 24 July 2024. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
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