Brazil sets the pace again
The biggest party in South American football is back. The 2026 Copa Libertadores starts this week and, as in recent years, everything happens through Brazil. Flamengo and Palmeiras not only defend the title, but also carry the responsibility of extending a historic streak: seven consecutive championships for Brazilian clubs.
It is an overwhelming domain. And the numbers back it up. Between them they have four of the last six titles. The ‘Mengão’, current champion, arrives reinforced and with a winning base. Meanwhile, Palmeiras wants to avenge the final lost in Lima.
“We maintain the base of the team that gave us the fourth star,” is the slogan in Rio.
But be careful, the continent does not give up. Boca Juniors, with its hierarchy and six cups in the showcase, returns after two years away. He is the great candidate to break the green-yellow hegemony.
Who can stop Brazil?
The format is known: eight groups of four teams. Six dates of pure passion between April and May. The first two in each zone advance to the round of 16. Then there will be a break for the World Cup and the action will return in August.
The final will be on November 28 in Montevideo. And the prize is historic: 25 million dollars for the champion, with a total that can exceed 40 million.
Flamengo will debut at the height of Cusco, a trial by fire from the beginning. It arrives with changes: without Filipe Luis on the bench, but with Leonardo Jardim and a luxury signing: Lucas Paquetá, who returned for a record amount.
Palmeiras trusts in its stars: ‘Flaco’ López, top scorer in the last tournament, and Jhon Arias. His path begins in Barranquilla against Junior.
On the Argentine side, all eyes are on Boca and its Group D, the most even. The youthful jewel Tomás Aranda is the great xeneize hope, endorsed even by Scaloni.
There will also be Di María with Rosario Central and a Lanús that has just made history by winning the Sudamericana and the Recopa.
There are stories everywhere: Fluminense returns to the tournament it won in 2023 with its goalkeeper Fábio, three games away from a historic record. Nacional from Uruguay will play its 53rd appearance. And there will be debuting teams like Mirassol.
The question is on the table: will someone take the crown from Brazil? The path to answering it begins now.
