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2026 U-20 Copa Libertadores

2026 U-20 Copa Libertadores
Copa CONMEBOL Libertadores Sub-20
Ecuador 2026
Tournament details
Host countryEcuador
Dates7–22 March 2026
Teams12 (from 10 associations)
← 2025
2027 →

The 2026 U-20 Copa CONMEBOL Libertadores (Spanish: Copa CONMEBOL Libertadores Sub-20 2026) will be the 10th edition of the U-20 CONMEBOL Libertadores (also referred to as the U-20 Copa Libertadores), South America's premier under-20 club football tournament organized by CONMEBOL. It will be held in Ecuador from 7 to 22 March 2026.[1][2]

The winners of the 2026 U-20 Copa Libertadores will earn the right to play against the winners of the 2025–26 UEFA Youth League in the 2026 Under-20 Intercontinental Cup.

Flamengo are the two-time defending champions, having won back-to-back titles in 2024 and 2025.

Teams

The competition will be contested by 12 teams: the title holders, the youth champions from each of the ten CONMEBOL member associations, and one additional team from the host association.[3]

Association Team Qualifying method App Previous best result
 Argentina Belgrano 2025 Cuarta División (U-20) champions[4][5] 2nd Third place (2025)
 Bolivia Bolívar 2025 U-19 Liga Nacional champions[6][7] 2nd Group stage (2016)
 Brazil Flamengo (holders) 2025 U-20 Copa Libertadores champions 5th Champions (2024, 2025)
Palmeiras 2025 Campeonato Brasileiro Sub-20 champions[8][9] 3rd Runners-up (2025)
 Chile Santiago Wanderers 2025 Campeonato Nacional de Fútbol Formativo U-20 champions[10][11] 1st —
 Colombia Independiente Medellín 2025 Supercopa Juvenil champions[12][13] 1st —
 Ecuador (hosts) LDU Quito (Ecuador 1) 2025 Campeonato Nacional de Categorías Formativas U-19 champions[14][15] 2nd Group stage (2022)
Universidad Católica (Ecuador 2) 2025 Campeonato Nacional de Categorías Formativas U-19 runners-up[14][16] 1st —
 Paraguay Olimpia 2025 Torneo Anual Juvenil champions[17][18] 3rd Group stage (2024, 2025)
 Peru Sporting Cristal 2025 Torneo Juvenil Sub-18 champions[19] 5th Group stage (2012, 2020, 2022, 2024)
 Uruguay Nacional 2025 Campeonato Uruguayo Juvenil Divisional A U-19 champions[20] 4th Champions (2018)
 Venezuela Estudiantes de Mérida 2025 U-21 Liga FUTVE Junior champions[21] 1st —

Squads

Each team could register a maximum of 20 and a minimum of 16 players, including at least 2 goalkeepers. Players born between 1 January 2005 and 31 December 2009 (ages 16 to 20) were eligible to compete in the tournament (Regulations Articles 48 and 51).[3]

Draw

The draw for the group stage was held on 10 February 2026, 12:00 PYT (UTC−3), at the CONMEBOL headquarters in Luque, Paraguay and was conducted according to the following guidelines:[22][23]

  • The defending champions Flamengo were automatically assigned to Group A, position A1.
  • The remaining 11 teams were seeded into four pots; one of two teams and three of three teams, based on the final placement of their national association's club in the previous edition of the tournament, in order to be drawn into three groups of four.
  • Teams from the two best associations (Brazil and Argentina) were seeded into Pot 1 and drawn to the first position of groups B or C. The first team drawn was placed into Group B and the second team drawn placed into Group C.
  • Teams from the next three associations (Uruguay, Peru and Colombia) were seeded into Pot 2 and drawn to the second position of groups A, B or C.
  • Teams from the next three associations (Paraguay, Chile and Bolivia) were seeded into Pot 3 and drawn to the third position of groups A, B or C.
  • Teams from the last two associations (Ecuador 1 and Venezuela) and the additional team from the host association (Ecuador 2) were seeded into Pot 4 and drawn to the fourth position of groups A, B or C.
  • From pots 2, 3 and 4, the first team drawn was placed into Group A, the second team drawn placed into Group B and the final team drawn placed into Group C. Teams from the same association could not be drawn into the same group.
Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4

The draw resulted in the following groups:[24]

Group A
Pos Team
A1 Brazil Flamengo
A2 Colombia Independiente Medellín
A3 Bolivia Bolívar
A4 Venezuela Estudiantes de Mérida
Group B
Pos Team
B1 Brazil Palmeiras
B2 Peru Sporting Cristal
B3 Paraguay Olimpia
B4 Ecuador Universidad Católica
Group C
Pos Team
C1 Argentina Belgrano
C2 Uruguay Nacional
C3 Chile Santiago Wanderers
C4 Ecuador LDU Quito

Group stage

The winners of each group and the best runner-up among all groups advanced to the semi-finals.

Tiebreakers

In the group stage, teams were ranked according to points earned (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss). If tied on points, tiebreakers were applied in the following order (Regulations Articles 20, 21):[3]

  1. Head-to-head result in games between tied teams;
    • Head-to-head points in the matches played among the tied teams;
    • Head-to-head goal difference in the matches played among the tied teams;
    • Head-to-head goals scored in the matches played among the tied teams;
  2. Goal difference;
  3. Goals scored;
  4. Fewest number of red cards received;
  5. Fewest number of yellow cards received;
  6. Drawing of lots.

All match times are local, PYT (UTC−3), as listed by CONMEBOL.

Group A

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Brazil Flamengo 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Semi-finals
2 Colombia Independiente Medellín 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Possible Semi-finals
3 Bolivia Bolívar 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 Venezuela Estudiantes de Mérida 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: 7 March 2026. Source: CONMEBOL
Flamengo BrazilMatch 1Venezuela Estudiantes de Mérida
Independiente Medellín ColombiaMatch 2Bolivia Bolívar
Bolívar BoliviaMatch 7Brazil Flamengo
Independiente Medellín ColombiaMatch 8Venezuela Estudiantes de Mérida
Flamengo BrazilMatch 13Colombia Independiente Medellín
Estudiantes de Mérida VenezuelaMatch 14Bolivia Bolívar

Group B

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Brazil Palmeiras 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Semi-finals
2 Peru Sporting Cristal 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Possible Semi-finals
3 Paraguay Olimpia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 Ecuador Universidad Católica 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: 8 March 2026. Source: CONMEBOL
Palmeiras BrazilMatch 3Ecuador Universidad Católica
Sporting Cristal PeruMatch 4Paraguay Olimpia
Olimpia ParaguayMatch 9Brazil Palmeiras
Sporting Cristal PeruMatch 10Ecuador Universidad Católica
Palmeiras BrazilMatch 15Peru Sporting Cristal
Universidad Católica EcuadorMatch 16Paraguay Olimpia

Group C

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Argentina Belgrano 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Semi-finals
2 Uruguay Nacional 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Possible Semi-finals
3 Chile Santiago Wanderers 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 Ecuador LDU Quito 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: 9 March 2026. Source: CONMEBOL
Belgrano ArgentinaMatch 5Ecuador LDU Quito
Nacional UruguayMatch 6Chile Santiago Wanderers
Santiago Wanderers ChileMatch 11Argentina Belgrano
Nacional UruguayMatch 12Ecuador LDU Quito
Belgrano ArgentinaMatch 17Uruguay Nacional
LDU Quito EcuadorMatch 18Chile Santiago Wanderers

Ranking of group runners-up

Pos Grp Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 A Group A runners-up 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Semi-finals
2 B Group B runners-up 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 C Group C runners-up 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: 7 March 2026. Source: CONMEBOL
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Fewest red cards; 5) Fewest yellow cards; 6) Drawing of lots (Regulations Article 22).[3]

Final stage

The final stage will be played on a single-elimination basis and consists of the semi-finals, third place match and the final. If a match was tied at the end of regular playing time, the winner would be decided directly by a penalty shoot-out (no extra time will be played) (Regulations Article 24). The semi-final matchups will be:[3]

  • Semi-final 1 (SF1): Group A winner vs. Best runner-up
  • Semi-final 2 (SF2): Group B winner vs. Group C winner

Bracket

 
Semi-finalsFinal
 
      
 
19 March
 
 
 Group A winners
 
22 March
 
 Best group runners-up
 
 Winners Match 19
 
19 March
 
 Winners Match 20
 
 Group B winners
 
 
 Group C winners
 
Third place
 
 
22 March
 
 
 Losers Match 19
 
 
 Losers Match 20

Semi-finals

Group A winners Match 19 Best group runners-up
Group B winners Match 20 Group C winners

Third place match

Losers Match 19 Match 21 Losers Match 20

Final

Winners Match 19 Match 22 Winners Match 20

References

  1. ^ "Calendario de Competiciones: Torneos CONMEBOL 2026" [Competitions Schedule: 2026 CONMEBOL Tournaments] (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 28 July 2025.
  2. ^ "Ecuador será la casa de la Copa Libertadores sub-20 2026" [Ecuador to host the 2026 U-20 Libertadores] (in Spanish). El Comercio. 11 December 2025.
  3. ^ a b c d e "REGLAMENTO CONMEBOL Libertadores Sub20 2026" (PDF) (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 16 December 2025.
  4. ^ "ASOCIACIÓN DEL FÚTBOL ARGENTINO BOLETÍN ESPECIAL Nº 6640 REGLAMENTO DEL TORNEO DE CATEGORÍAS JUVENILES DE LA LIGA PROFESIONAL DE FÚTBOL DE LA AFA TEMPORADA 2025 TROFEO "SALVADOR CAPIZZI"" (PDF) (in Spanish). Argentine Football Association. 7 March 2025.
  5. ^ "¡Vamos los pibes! La cuarta división de Belgrano se consagró campeona y jugará la Copa Libertadores" [Come on, guys! Belgrano's fourth division team won the championship and will play in the Copa Libertadores] (in Spanish). La Voz del Interior. 8 November 2025. Retrieved 21 December 2025.
  6. ^ "Bolívar y Oriente Petrolero disputarán la final de la Liga Nacional Sub-19" [Bolívar and Oriente Petrolero will compete in the final of the U-19 Liga Nacional] (in Spanish). Bolivian Football Federation. 18 December 2025.
  7. ^ "Premiación Liga Nacional Sub-19" (in Spanish). Bolivian Football Federation. 19 December 2025.
  8. ^ "Regulamento Específico da Competição Brasileiro Masculino Série A Sub-20 2025" (PDF) (in Brazilian Portuguese). Brazilian Football Confederation. 25 February 2025.
  9. ^ "No dia do aniversário do clube, Palmeiras é tetracampeão do Brasileirão Sub-20" [On the club's anniversary, Palmeiras wins their fourth Under-20 Brasileirão title] (in Brazilian Portuguese). Brazilian Football Confederation. 26 August 2025.
  10. ^ "FÚTBOL FORMATIVO BASES CAMPEONATO NACIONAL FUNDACIÓN COLLAHUASI CATEGORIAS SUB 15, SUB 16, SUB 18 Y SUB 20 - VARONES TEMPORADA 2025" (PDF) (in Spanish). Santiago: Asociación Nacional de Fútbol Profesional. 13 February 2025.
  11. ^ "Copa Libertadores Sub 20: Flamengo, Olimpia o Bolívar, posibles rivales de Wanderers" [Under-20 Copa Libertadores: Flamengo, Olimpia, or Bolívar, possible opponents for Wanderers] (in Spanish). SoyChile. 23 December 2025.
  12. ^ "Reglamento Supercopa Juvenil FCF 2025" (PDF) (in Spanish). Bogotá: Colombian Football Federation. 19 February 2025 [Approved on 7 February 2025].
  13. ^ "Resultado Final Vuelta de la Super Copa Juvenil 2025: FCF felicita al Independiente Medellín por coronarse campeón" [2nd leg final result of the 2025 Supercopa Juvenil: FCF congratulates Independiente Medellín on becoming champions] (in Spanish). Colombian Football Federation. 24 November 2025.
  14. ^ a b "REGLAMENTO DE LOS CAMPEONATOS NACIONALES DE CATEGORIAS FORMATIVAS 2025" (PDF) (in Spanish). Guayaquil: Ecuadorian Football Federation. 14 April 2025 [Approved on 14 April 2025].
  15. ^ "Festejó el Albo: ¡Liga de Quito fue campeón y jugará la Copa Libertadores!" [Albo celebrated: Liga de Quito won the championship and will play in the Copa Libertadores!] (in Spanish). Olé. 6 December 2025.
  16. ^ "Ecuador recibirá la Copa Libertadores Sub‑20 2026" [Ecuador will host the 2026 U-20 Copa Libertadores] (in Spanish). El Universo. 11 December 2025.
  17. ^ "REGLAMENTO OFICIAL TORNEO ANUAL 2024 DIVISIONES FORMATIVAS DE LA DIVISIÓN DE HONOR ASOCIACIÓN PARAGUAYA DE FUTBOL" (PDF) (in Spanish). Paraguayan Football Association. 15 February 2024.
  18. ^ "Juvenil: Olimpia es el campeón del Torneo Anual 2025" [Youth category: Olimpia are the champion of the 2025 Torneo Anual] (in Spanish). Paraguayan Football Association. 12 August 2025.
  19. ^ Figueroa Loayza, Diego (20 December 2025). "Sporting Cristal goleó a Alianza Lima en la final del Torneo Juvenil Sub 18 y clasificó a la Copa Libertadores Sub 20" [Sporting Cristal defeated Alianza Lima in the final of the Torneo Juvenil Sub 18 and qualified for the Under-20 Copa Libertadores] (in Spanish). Radio Programas del Perú.
  20. ^ "Juveniles: Nacional fue campeón en tres categorías y clasificó a la Libertadores sub-20" [Youth teams: Nacional won three categories and qualified for the U-20 Copa Libertadores] (in Spanish). Montevideo Portak. 13 December 2025.
  21. ^ "La Liga FUTVE Junior 2025 ya tiene a sus campeones" [2025 Liga FUTVE Junior has its champions] (in Spanish). Venezuelan Football Federation. 12 December 2025.
  22. ^ "Sorteo de grupos para la CONMEBOL Libertadores Sub20 2026" (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 21 January 2026.
  23. ^ "SORTEO DE LA CONMEBOL LIBERTADORES SUB20 2026" (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 10 February 2026 – via YouTube.
  24. ^ "Grupos definidos para la CONMEBOL Libertadores Sub20 2026" (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 10 February 2026.
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