2020 Copa Libertadores

2020 Copa Libertadores
Copa CONMEBOL Libertadores 2020
The Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro hosted the final
Tournament details
Dates21 January 2020 – 30 January 2021
Teams47 (from 10 associations)
Final positions
ChampionsBrazil Palmeiras (2nd title)
Runners-upBrazil Santos
Tournament statistics
Matches played155
Goals scored405 (2.61 per match)
Top scorer(s)Ecuador Fidel Martínez
(8 goals)
Best player(s)Brazil Marinho
2019
2021

The 2020 Copa CONMEBOL Libertadores was the 61st edition of the CONMEBOL Libertadores (also referred to as the Copa Libertadores), South America's premier club football tournament organized by CONMEBOL.[1]

On 17 October 2019, CONMEBOL announced that the final would be played at the Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on 21 November 2020.[2] Brazilian club Palmeiras defeated fellow Brazilian club Santos by a 1–0 score in the final to win their second tournament title.[3] As champions, Palmeiras qualified for the 2020 FIFA Club World Cup in Qatar, and earned the right to play against the winners of the 2020 Copa Sudamericana in the 2021 Recopa Sudamericana. They also automatically qualified for the 2021 Copa Libertadores group stage. Flamengo were the defending champions, but were eliminated by Racing in the round of 16.

In March 2018, the Liga MX President, Enrique Bonilla, said that Liga MX and Major League Soccer (MLS) were open to start talks to have Mexican teams return and MLS teams from Canada and the United States to join if they could agree on terms with the CONMEBOL officials.[4] Teams from Mexico had withdrawn from the Copa Libertadores since 2017, but could return in the future if the issue of schedule conflicts could be solved.[5]

On 21 May 2019, CONMEBOL announced that clubs must pass certain eligibility requirements in order to compete in the 2020 Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana.[6] One of the original requirements was that teams must be in the top division of their member association, but this was removed after many associations stated that they had not adapted the regulations of their qualifying competitions for the 2020 Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana.[7]

The tournament was suspended after group stage matchday 2 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and resumed on 15 September 2020, ending with the final on 30 January 2021.[8][9]

  1. ^ "Manual de Clubes / Reglamento CONMEBOL Libertadores 2020" (PDF). CONMEBOL.com.
  2. ^ "El Maracaná (Río) y el Mario Kempes (Córdoba) sedes de las Finales Únicas de Libertadores y Sudamericana 2020". CONMEBOL.com. 17 October 2019.
  3. ^ "Palmeiras conquista por segunda vez la Gloria Eterna" (in Spanish). CONMEBOL.com. 30 January 2021.
  4. ^ "¿México regresa a la Libertadores? Estas son sus condiciones". PasionFutbol. 14 March 2018.
  5. ^ "México seguirá sin Copa Libertadores" (in Spanish). El Universal. 4 December 2017.
  6. ^ "Condiciones para elegibilidad de Clubes en la CONMEBOL Libertadores 2020 y CONMEBOL Sudamericana 2020". CONMEBOL.com. 21 May 2019.
  7. ^ "CONMEBOL actualiza criterios de elegibilidad de clubes para sus torneos del 2020". CONMEBOL.com. 22 May 2019.
  8. ^ "La Libertadores y la Sudamericana ya tienen fecha". CONMEBOL.com. 10 July 2020.
  9. ^ "Clubes reciben informe detallado sobre torneos de la CONMEBOL" (in Spanish). CONMEBOL.com. 23 November 2020.