The 2026 Copa CONMEBOL Sudamericana is the 25th edition of the CONMEBOL Sudamericana (also referred to as the Copa Sudamericana), South America's secondary club football tournament organized by CONMEBOL. The competition began on 3 March and is scheduled to end on 21 November 2026, with the final to be played at Estadio Metropolitano Roberto Meléndez in Barranquilla, Colombia.
The winners of the 2026 Copa Sudamericana will earn the right to play against the winners of the 2026 Copa Libertadores in the 2027 Recopa Sudamericana. They will also automatically qualify for the 2027 Copa Libertadores group stage.
Argentine club Lanús were the titleholders, defending their title after placing third in their Copa Libertadores group, but they were eliminated by Cienciano in the knockout round play-offs.
Teams The following 44 teams from the 10 CONMEBOL associations qualified for the tournament: Argentina and Brazil: 6 berths each All other associations: 4 berths each
The entry stage was determined as follows: Group stage: 12 teams (teams from Argentina and Brazil) First stage: 32 teams (teams from all other associations)
AssociationTeam Entry stageQualification methodRiver Plate Group stage2025 Liga Profesional aggregate table best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresRacing 2025 Liga Profesional aggregate table 2nd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresDeportivo Riestra 2025 Liga Profesional aggregate table 3rd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresSan Lorenzo 2025 Liga Profesional aggregate table 4th best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresTigre 2025 Liga Profesional aggregate table 5th best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresBarracas Central 2025 Liga Profesional aggregate table 6th best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresSan Antonio Bulo Bulo First stage2025 División Profesional best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresBlooming 2025 División Profesional 2nd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresIndependiente Petrolero 2025 División Profesional 3rd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresGuabirá 2025 División Profesional 4th best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresSão Paulo Group stage2025 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresGrêmio 2025 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 2nd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresRed Bull Bragantino 2025 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 3rd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresAtlético Mineiro 2025 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 4th best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresSantos 2025 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 5th best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresVasco da Gama 2025 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 6th best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresUniversidad de Chile First stage2025 Liga de Primera best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresAudax Italiano 2025 Liga de Primera 2nd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresPalestino 2025 Liga de Primera 3rd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresCobresal 2025 Liga de Primera 4th best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresAtlético Nacional First stage2025 Copa Colombia championsAmérica de Cali 2025 Primera A aggregate table 2nd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresAtlético Bucaramanga 2025 Primera A aggregate table 3rd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresMillonarios 2025 Primera A aggregate table 4th best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresOrense First stage2025 Serie A best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresLibertad 2025 Serie A 2nd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresMacará 2025 Serie A second hexagonal winnersDeportivo Cuenca 2025 Serie A second hexagonal runners-upSportivo Trinidense First stage2025 Copa de Primera aggregate table best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresNacional 2025 Copa de Primera aggregate table 2nd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresRecoleta 2025 Copa de Primera aggregate table 3rd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresOlimpia 2025 Copa de Primera aggregate table 4th best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresAlianza Atlético First stage2025 Liga 1 aggregate table best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresMelgar 2025 Liga 1 aggregate table 2nd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresDeportivo Garcilaso 2025 Liga 1 aggregate table 3rd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresCienciano 2025 Liga 1 aggregate table 4th best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresDefensor Sporting First stage2025 Liga AUF Uruguaya aggregate table best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresBoston River 2025 Liga AUF Uruguaya aggregate table 2nd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresRacing 2025 Liga AUF Uruguaya aggregate table 3rd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresMontevideo City Torque 2025 Liga AUF Uruguaya aggregate table 4th best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresAcademia Puerto Cabello First stage2025 Clausura runners-up Monagas 2025 Liga FUTVE aggregate table 2nd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresCaracas 2025 Liga FUTVE aggregate table 3rd best team not qualified for 2026 Copa LibertadoresMetropolitanos 2025 Liga FUTVE aggregate table 4th best team not qualified for 2026 Copa Libertadores
A further 12 teams eliminated from the 2026 Copa Libertadores were transferred to the Copa Sudamericana, entering the group stage and the knockout round play-offs.
Teams eliminated in third stageEntry stage JuventudGroup stage O'Higgins Carabobo BotafogoThird-placed teams in group stageEntry stage Independiente MedellínKnockout round play-offs Nacional Bolívar Boca Juniors Santa Fe Sporting Cristal Lanús Universidad Central
Schedule The schedule of the competition is as follows:
+Schedule for 2026 Copa SudamericanaStageDraw dateFirst legSecond legFirst stage18 December 20253–5 March 2026Group stage19 March 2026Knockout round play-offsNo draw21–23 July 202628–30 July 2026Round of 1629 May 202611–13 August 202618–20 August 2026Quarter-finals8–10 September 202615–17 September 2026Semi-finals13–14 October 202620–21 October 2026Final21 November 2026 at Estadio Metropolitano Roberto Meléndez, Barranquilla
Draws
First stage
Group stage
Group A
Group B
Group C
Group D
Group E
Group F
Group G
Group H
Final stages
Seeding
Bracket
Knockout round play-offs
Round of 16
Quarter-finals
Semi-finals
Final
Statistics
Top scorers {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" !Rank !Player !Team ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Total |- !1 |align=left| Salomón Rodríguez |align=left| Montevideo City Torque | || ||1|| || ||1||1||bgcolor="silver" colspan=2 | || ||2|| ||2|| || || !7 |- !2 |align=left| Gabriel Barbosa |align=left| Santos |bgcolor="silver"| || || ||1|| ||1||1|| ||1||1|| || ||1||bgcolor="silver" colspan=3| !6 |- !3 |align=left| Rodrigo Contreras |align=left| Millonarios |2|| || || ||2|| ||1||bgcolor="silver" colspan=9| !5 |- !rowspan=3|4 |align=left| Bernard |align=left| Atlético Mineiro |bgcolor="silver"| || ||1|| || ||1||1||bgcolor="silver" colspan=2 | || || || ||1|| || || !rowspan=3|4 |- |align=left| Adson |align=left| Vasco da Gama |bgcolor="silver"| || || ||1|| || ||2|| || || ||1|| || || || || |- |align=left| Carlos Garcés |align=left| Cienciano | ||1||1|| || || || || ||2|| || || || ||bgcolor="silver" colspan=3| |} Source: CONMEBOL Sudamericana
See also 2026 Copa Libertadores
References
External links CONMEBOL Sudamericana CONMEBOL.com