Corinthians guarantees place and Libertadores could have four semi-finalists from Brazil

The 2026 edition of the Libertadores could be the first in which the four semifinalists are from the same country. To do this, it will be necessary for the four representatives from Brazil who are still competing in the main club tournament in South America to win the clashes they will face in the quarterfinals.

Corinthians' suffering classification made the scenario possible. On Thursday night (20), despite playing most of the second half with one less, Timão dispatched Rosario Central by winning 1-0 at the Neo Química Arena, in São Paulo. A week earlier, in Argentina, the teams played out a goalless draw and the Brazilians also had a player sent off: midfielder Allan, ten minutes from the end.

In the 12th minute of the final stage of the match in São Paulo, Alvinegro lost midfielder Raniele, who received a second yellow card after a foul on striker Enzo Copetti. Even so, at 35, it was the home team that found the net.

Upon his return to the team after a long contract renewal process, Dutch striker Memphis Depay took a free kick from mid-range on the left and midfielder Breno Bidon, well positioned, appeared in the small area and deflected the ball to score the qualifying goal.

Timão's rival in the next phase will be another Argentine, Estudiantes, who eliminated Universidad Católica (Chile). As the opponent's campaign is better, the Brazilian club will have to play the second leg away from home.

Us against them

In addition to Corinthians, the Libertadores quarterfinals bring together Flamengo, Palmeiras and Fluminense. Brazil still had two more representatives in the round of 16, but Cruzeiro was beaten precisely by Rubro-Negro and Mirassol lost on penalties to LDU de Quito (Ecuador).

Current champion and the only Brazilian team in the quarterfinals that will play the second leg at home, Flamengo could face Timão in a semifinal. In addition to the São Paulo team eliminating Estudiantes, the Rio de Janeiro natives will have to leave behind the winner of the clash between Independiente del Valle and Tolima, the only one in the round of 16 that remains to be defined.

Ecuadorians and Colombians will play the second game next Tuesday (25), at 9:30 pm (Brasília time), at the Banco Guayaquil Stadium, in Quito. Three days ago, in the first leg, Del Valle won 1-0 at the Manuel Murillo Toro Stadium, in the Colombian city of Ibagué. The duel is delayed due to the 7.4 magnitude earthquake that hit Colombia last week.

Palmeiras, runner-up in 2025, will face LDU. Just as happened with Mirassol, Verdão will have to decide the clash away from São Paulo, at 2,850 meters above sea level in Quito. The Ecuador team had a better campaign in the group stage.

If it passes, the Alviverde team could face Fluminense as its opponent. The next match for the Libertadores will be against another Argentine, Platense, who, like the Rio de Janeiro natives, needed penalties to defeat Coquimbo Unido (Chile).

Three at most

To date, the maximum number of clubs from the same country to reach the Libertadores semi-finals simultaneously has been three - which has only happened twice. In 1966, when this phase was played by seven clubs divided into two groups, Argentine football featured River Plate, Boca Juniors and Independiente alongside Uruguayans Peñarol and Nacional, Universidad Católica and Paraguayan Guaraní.

In 2021, in the current format of the competition, Atlético-MG, Flamengo and Palmeiras reached the top-4 alongside Barcelona de Guayaquil. The Ecuadorian team was the one who frustrated the possibility of 100% Brazilian semifinals by eliminating Fluminense in the quarterfinals of that edition.

Bota leaves Sula

Also last night, Botafogo beat Cienciano 1-0 at the Nilton Santos Stadium, in the round of 16 of the Copa Sudamericana. The result, however, was insufficient to classify the black and white team, which had lost at 3,400 meters in Peruvian Cusco, in the first game, 6-1.

Led on an interim basis by Rodrigo Bellão, under-20 coach, after the dismissal of Franclim Carvalho, Glorioso even opened the scoring early in Rio de Janeiro with striker Danilo Pereira, in the seventh minute. The home team pressed, created opportunities and had a goal disallowed by Danilo Santos, in the 35th minute, after the video referee (VAR) noticed a touch of the steering wheel's hand in the play.

In the final stage, at seven, the VAR also canceled a penalty against Vitinho, alleging a foul by the full-back at the origin of the shot. The need to score four more goals to at least take the decision to penalties was too much. Better for Cienciano, who celebrated qualifying and will face Montevideo City Torque (Uruguay) in the quarterfinals.

Just like in the Libertadores, Brazil still has four representatives in the South American. The difference is that two of them face each other in the quarterfinals: Atlético-MG and Santos. São Paulo will face Boca Juniors, while Vasco will face whoever advances between River Plate and Independiente Santa Fe (Colombia).