⚽ CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores 2026 - Discussion Thread

[Italian Panic]

The preliminary phase of the Copa Libertadores is coming to end and we are entering the decisive phase, the group stage, with the draw scheduled for 18 March and matches starting in April.

Above are the teams that have qualified for the 2026 edition, with the first teams already eliminated from the preliminary phase. The elimination of Argentinos Junior and Bahia is striking.

Facts to consider:
River Plate did not qualify for the Libertadores this year and will play in the Copa Sudamericana.
Flamengo is coming off an excellent victory in the 2025 Libertadores but has sacked its coach.
Boca is in great moment and is playing some excellent players from its academy (like Zeballos).

What do you think, guys? How will the next rounds go? Who has the potential to win?

[Italian Panic]

Really no one is interested in Copa Libertadores? It's like champions League but with some funny rules. For examples the qualifications in various state league and the historical match like argentinian teams versus brasilian teams, or flamengo vs timao, or boca versus river.

Come on guy, writing about your prevision and tell we about your bets!

[criptoevangelista]

Really no one is interested in Copa Libertadores? It's like champions League but with some funny rules. For examples the qualifications in various state league and the historical match like argentinian teams versus brasilian teams, or flamengo vs timao, or boca versus river.

Come on guy, writing about your prevision and tell we about your bets!

I care a lot about the Copa Libertadores, of course I do! For us Brazilians, it’s one of the most important tournaments of the year. The current champion is Flamengo, the team I support. Even though my team started this year on the wrong foot, including firing coach Filipe Luis, I’m still hopeful for another strong run and a title challenge...

It's also worth highlighting Mirassol's performance, they did really well in the Brasileirão. They’re a relatively new team on this stage, but they have everything it takes to become a powerhouse too!

[rdluffy]

Hey, I'm interested in the thread, as criptoevangelista said, we brazilians care about Libertadores hehe
I even made the thread some years, check here 2025 thread: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5532694.msg65083661#msg65083661

But it's hard to draw attention from people outside South America, they only care about Champions League

Libertadores is hard to bet, lot's of teams doing 101% to beat bigger teams, high altitudes, lots of red cards, Argentinians vs Brazilians etc 

Brazilians teams won the last 7 Libertadores 

[Italian Panic]

Main thread image updated!

In a surprise result, Barcelona knocked Botafogo out of the competition thanks to a goal from Milton Celiz that silenced the Nilton Santos stadium.

Tonight, Carabobo and Deportivo Tolima will attempt to overturn the first-leg result. The away teams are heavy underdogs with Betfair and Betano odds paying out more than 4 and 5 times the stake for a win by Carabobo and O'Higgins. A draw is around 3 times the stake.

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You are welcome!!

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Welcome you too!!

[Italian Panic]

Hi guys, the main image of the thread has been updated with yesterday's matches!

The bookies were right in their odds yesterday for the elimination of O'Higgins and Carabobo.

For Tolima, Junior Hernandez opened the scoring with a bombazo and El Tatay Gomez closed it out to eliminate O'Higgins. Carabobo lost only on penalties after winning the match 2-1, with five out of ten penalties missed in the shootout count. Carabobo and O'Higgins are relegated to the Copa Sudamericana, while Tolima and Sporting Cristal advance to the group stage of the Copa Libertadores (draw at 19 march).

To complete the setremains today match Independiente de Medellín vs Juventud. The bookies give Medellín the win with average odds of around 1.50, while a Juventud victory is quoted at an average of between 5.00 and 7.00, not bad in the event of a “miracle”.

See you soon!

[Italian Panic]

In the end, Independiente de Medellín also qualified for the group stage by eliminating Juventud from Uruguay. Palacios and Fydriszewsky led Independiente forward, cancelling out the good work done by the ever-excellent Barrandeguy.
Now we have the complete roster of the qualified teams and we will see how the pairings will be at the draw on 19 March.

[rdluffy]

Even though Brazil has been winning recent tournaments, it’s amazing how tough the Libertadores qualifiers are for Brazilian teams trying to secure those last few spots

My team, Corinthians, has already lost two or three times to teams that were previously unknown to me—teams that are supposedly smaller clubs 
This year, I was surprised that Bahia and Botafogo (which has previously won the Libertadores) were left out, having lost their matches to O’Higgins and Barcelona

The tournament is already proving hard to predict, as always

[Italian Panic]

Dear rdluffy, my team is Boca Juniors and I’m still sick about the final in Madrid against River Plate. Only the Libertadores can make that kind of atmosphere, passion and unpredictability.
I really like the Champions League too, but with the new format I don’t see the same meritocracy as there was in the old one.
Unfortunately, in the Libertadores there’s too big a gap between the Argentine and Brazilian teams and all the others. In Europe, at least the top teams come from 5 or 6 different countries.

[rdluffy]

Yesterday was the draw for the Libertadores groups
Here are the results:


Source

What did you think?
Did your team end up in a really tough group?

[Italian Panic]

What did you think?
Did your team end up in a really tough group?

Yeah, well done adn thank you rdluffy for updating the thread. Not a bad draw, I would say, with all the Brazilian and Argentine teams in the mix, those fixtures were pretty much inevitable.
My Boca Juniors have a decent group; they should get through easily, but Cruzeiro are always a hard team.
It seems to me that Nacional de Montevideo, Lanús and Rosario Central have drawn well, whilst things haven’t gone so well for Flamengo and Palmeiras.

[r_victory]

What did you think?
Did your team end up in a really tough group?

I don't know, but I think that from Corinthians' group, only Club Atlético Peñarol seems to be a difficult opponent. To be honest, I don't know the other teams, so I can't say if they represent any danger in Corinthians' group.

[rdluffy]

Finally, yesterday my Corinthians managed to win in the Libertadores, playing in Argentina 
By the way, it was coach Fernando Diniz’s first game, since the team fired coach Dorival Jr. last week

Finally, a win, hehehe
But I didn’t bet yesterday, I thought it was too risky
Is no one else following the games?

I'll try to make a list of the matches played in first round

[Jossque]

In Group F, Palmeiras drew with Cerro Porteño. With this draw, Palmeiras moved up to 5 points, while Cerro Porteño moved up to 4 points. It looks like Palmeiras and Cristal will be the teams advancing from this group. Palmeiras was the better team in this match and was definitely closer to a win, but they just couldn’t find the goal that would secure the victory. Still, since their chances of advancing from the group are high, this won’t be a problem for them.
Barcelona SC suffered their third loss in Group D and look set to finish last in the group. All three teams have the same number of points, but Boca Juniors and Cruzeiro seem poised to be the teams advancing from the group. I think Cruzeiro is a better team than Católica.

[criptoevangelista]

In Group F, Palmeiras drew with Cerro Porteño. With this draw, Palmeiras moved up to 5 points, while Cerro Porteño moved up to 4 points. It looks like Palmeiras and Cristal will be the teams advancing from this group. Palmeiras was the better team in this match and was definitely closer to a win, but they just couldn’t find the goal that would secure the victory. Still, since their chances of advancing from the group are high, this won’t be a problem for them.
Barcelona SC suffered their third loss in Group D and look set to finish last in the group. All three teams have the same number of points, but Boca Juniors and Cruzeiro seem poised to be the teams advancing from the group. I think Cruzeiro is a better team than Católica.

Palmeiras is one of the best teams in South America and a serious contender for this year's Libertadores title. Because of that, I think this draw is actually a good result for the opposing team. On the other hand, Cruzeiro has also been doing very well in recent years and could pull off a surprise... Palmeiras' next match is on the 5th, away against Sporting Cristal. They’re struggling in the Peruvian league, so I think it’ll be a very easy win for the Brazilian side

[Jossque]

Barcelona SC will host Boca Juniors at home. Boca Juniors are the favorites to win this match, and I don’t think they’ll lose. Boca Juniors need to finish in the top two of this group. I’d say they’re perhaps the strongest team in the group. Barcelona SC might score a goal, and if they do, a draw is already likely.

In the match that will decide the leader of Group F, Sporting Cristal will host Palmeiras. Palmeiras is already the group favorite, and I expect them to win this match, even if it’s a tough one. They won the first match at home 2-1. I’m expecting another victory from them in this match. Cristal will likely score in this match as well; they’ve generally shown the ability to score in their home games.

[rdluffy]

Yesterday, Corinthians played in Colombia against Santa Fe
I had bet on a win, but I lost 

At least Corinthians managed to pull off a great draw in extra time, as always happens with Corinthians, it was full of drama and a last-minute goal

If anyone wants to see the highlights, it’s only 4 minutes long, hehe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TeIVtq-lIfM

And my team is well on its way to qualifying in first place

[Italian Panic]

I’m really pleased that this thread on the Libertadores has stayed alive; to be honest, I hadn’t held out much hope given the lack of interest in favour of the European Champions League, but it turns out that the beloved Copa Libertadores has a few fans even among bitcoiners.
What can I say? I’m really impressed by how difficult Fluminense are fighting, because losing to Bolívar was unexpected. I’m also disappointed in my beloved Boca, who are struggling to qualify, and I have to say that losing to Barcelona is unacceptable for a team aiming for victory.

[Jossque]

In Group E, Corinthians dropped points for the first time. Corinthians managed to secure a point with a last-minute goal in their away match against Santa Fe, bringing their total to 10 points, while Santa Fe moved up to 2 points. The goal for Santa Fe was scored by Hugo Rodallega, who has played for three teams in the Turkish league. He was truly a great striker, but to be honest, I didn’t expect him to still be playing at 40. It seems likely that he’ll retire after this season.

[criptoevangelista]

A rare event happened in the Flamengo match for the Copa Libertadores: the game was canceled right at the stadium due to protests from the home team's fans. I don't think I've ever witnessed something like this involving Flamengo. Now, we just have to wait for the 3 points from a walkover victory (W.O.). Imagine the massive financial loss these protests caused for Independiente Medellín.