Summary
The 2026 Copa Libertadores is South America's premier club football tournament where top club teams (47 total) from all 10 CONMEBOL F/As (football associations) are represented. It is the equivalent of the UEFA Champions League. The 2026 winner will play in the 2027 Recopa Sudamericana (against the winner of the 2026 Copa Sudamericana), the 2027 FIFA Intercontinental Cup, and 2029 FIFA Club World Cup.
Each F/A is given a minimum of 4 berths, while Argentina and Brazil are given 6 berths. Flamengo (BRA1) won the 2025 Copa Libertadores and CA Lanús (ARG1) won the 2025 Copa Sudamericana, so Brazil and Argentina received one additional berth. Stage entry is based on cummulative historical relative performance of each F/A against the other F/As.
After the Group Stage and before the Final, if teams are tied on Aggregate, teams will do directly to a penalty shoot-out. For the one match Final, if the score is tied at the end of regulation time, 30 minutes of extra time will be played. If still tied at the end of extra time, a penalty shoot-out will be held.
The one match Final will be played on 21 November 2026.
More Info...
| F/A | COPALIB Teams | COPASUD Teams |
|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 7 | 6 |
| Boliva | 4 | 4 |
| Brazil | 8 | 6 |
| Chile | 4 | 4 |
| Colombia | 4 | 4 |
| Ecuador | 4 | 4 |
| Paraguay | 4 | 4 |
| Peru | 4 | 4 |
| Uruguay | 4 | 4 |
| Venezuela | 4 | 4 |
Competition Structure
| Stage | # Teams | New Teams Entering This Round | Teams From Previous Round | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Stage | 6 |
| 3 sets of Home/Away matches, highest aggregate goals advances | |
| Second Stage | 16 |
| 3 winners from First Stage | 8 sets of Home/Away matches, highest aggregate goals advances |
| Third Stage | 8 | None | 8 winners from Second Stage | 4 sets of Home/Away matches, highest aggregate goals advances (4 losers go to 2026 COPASUD Group Stage) |
| Group | 32 |
| 4 winners from Third Stage | 8 groups of 4 with Home/Away matches against each team in group, top 2 teams with most points (win = 3 pts, draw = 1 pt) in each group advance |
| Round of 16 | 16 | None | 8 group winners, 8 group runners-up | 8 sets of Home/Away matches, highest aggregate goals advances |
| Quarterfinals | 8 | None | 8 winners from Round of 16 | 4 sets of Home/Away matches, highest aggregate goals advances |
| Semifinals | 4 | None | 4 winners from Quarterfinals | 2 sets of Home/Away matches, highest aggregate goals advances |
| Final | 2 | None | 2 winners from Semifinals | Home/Away matches, highest aggregate goals wins |
2nd Stage
| Date | Home | Status | Road | Venue | ||||
| Aggregate | Carabobo FC (VEN1) | 00 | CD Huachipato (CHI1) |
| 17.02.26 |  | CD Huachipato | Estadio Polideportivo Misael Delgado |
| 24.02.26 | | Carabobo FC | Estadio CAP |
| Aggregate | Liverpool FC (URU1) | 00 | Independiente Medellín (COL1) |
| 17.02.26 |  | Independiente Medellín | Estadio Belvedere |
| 24.02.26 | | Liverpool FC | Estadio Atanasio Giradot |
| Aggregate | O'Higgins FC (CHI1) | 00 | EC Bahia (BRA1) |
| 18.02.26 |  | EC Bahia | Estadio Parque El Teniente |
| 25.02.26 | | O'Higgins FC | Casa de Apostas Arena Fonte Nova |
| Aggregate | Barcelona SC (ECU1) | 00 | Argentinos Juniors (ARG1) |
| 18.02.26 |  | Argentinos Juniors | Estadio Monumental Banco Pichincha |
| 25.02.26 | | Barcelona SC | Estadio Diego Armando Maradona |
| Aggregate | CA Nacional Potosí (BOL1) | 00 | Botafogo (RJ) (BRA1) |
| 18.02.26 |  | Botafogo (RJ) | Estadio Víctor Agustín Ugarte |
| 25.02.26 | | CA Nacional Potosí | Engenhão |
1st Stage
| Date | Home | Status | Road | Venue | ||||
| Aggregate | Club The Strongest (BOL1) | 00 | Deportivo Táchira FC (VEN1) |
| 03.02.26 |  | Deportivo Táchira FC | Estadio Hernando Siles |
| 10.02.26 | | Club The Strongest | Estadio Polideportivo de Pueblo Nuevo |
| Aggregate | Club 2 de Mayo (PAR1) | 00 | Alianza Lima (PER1) |
| 04.02.26 |  | Alianza Lima | Estadio Monumental Río Parapití |
| 11.02.26 | | Club 2 de Mayo | Estadio Alejandro Villanueva |
| Aggregate | CA Juventud (URU1) | 00 | CD Univ Católica (ECU1) |
| 05.02.26 |  | CD Univ Católica | Estadio Parque Artigas (Las Piedras) |
| 12.02.26 | | CA Juventud | Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa |