Chapecoense were the defending champions, but were eliminated by Flamengo in the round of 16. They qualified for the tournament after finishing third in their 2017 Copa Libertadores group.
Format changes
Starting from this season, the following format changes were implemented:[3][4][5][6][7][8]
The tournament was expanded from 47 to 54 teams.
A total of 44 teams directly entered the Copa Sudamericana, while a total of 10 teams eliminated from the Copa Libertadores (two best teams eliminated in the third stage of qualifying and eight third-placed teams in the group stage) were transferred to the Copa Sudamericana.[9]
The schedule of the tournament was extended to year-round so it would start in March and conclude in early December.
As the Copa Libertadores and the Copa Sudamericana would be held concurrently, no team would be able to qualify for both tournaments in the same year (except those which were transferred from the Copa Libertadores to the Copa Sudamericana).
The Copa Sudamericana champions would no longer directly qualify for the next edition as they would now directly qualify for the group stage of the Copa Libertadores (although they would still be able to defend their title if they finished third in the group stage).
Brazil would be allocated six berths, decreased from eight.
All teams directly entering the Copa Sudamericana would enter the first stage (previously teams from Argentina and Brazil entered the second stage).[9]
Although CONMEBOL proposed to change the format of the final to be played as a single match at a venue to be chosen in advance, they later decided to keep the two-legged home-and-away format.[10]
Teams
The following 44 teams from the 10 CONMEBOL associations qualified for the tournament, entering the first stage:[9][11]
Location of teams of the 2017 Copa Sudamericana. (L) Teams transferred from the 2017 Copa Libertadores
The draw for the first stage was held on 31 January 2017, 21:00 PYST (UTC−3), at the CONMEBOL Convention Centre in Luque, Paraguay.[25] For the first stage, the teams were divided into two pots according to their geographical zones:
Pot A (South Zone): 22 teams from Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay
Pot B (North Zone): 22 teams from Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela
The 44 teams were drawn into 22 ties (G1–G22) between a team from Pot A and a team from Pot B, with the teams from Pot B hosting the second leg in odd-numbered ties, and the teams from Pot A hosting the second leg in even-numbered ties. This distribution ensured that teams from the same association could not be drawn into the same tie.
The draw for the second stage was held on 14 June 2017, 20:00 PYT (UTC−4), at the CONMEBOL Convention Center in Luque, Paraguay.[26] For the second stage, the teams were allocated to two pots according to their previous results in this season:
Pot 1: 10 teams transferred from the Copa Libertadores and six best winners of the first stage from the Copa Sudamericana
Pot 2: 16 remaining winners of the first stage from the Copa Sudamericana
The 32 teams were drawn into 16 ties (O1–O16) between a team from Pot 1 and a team from Pot 2, with the teams from Pot 1 hosting the second leg. Teams from the same association could be drawn into the same tie.[27]
In the first stage, each tie was played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. If tied on aggregate, the away goals rule would be used. If still tied, extra time would not be played, and the penalty shoot-out would be used to determine the winner (Regulations Article 6.1).[2]
In the second stage, each tie was played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. If tied on aggregate, the away goals rule would be used. If still tied, extra time would not be played, and the penalty shoot-out would be used to determine the winner (Regulations Article 6.1).[2]
Each tie was played on a home-and-away two-legged basis, with the higher-seeded team hosting the second leg (Regulations Article 4.12).
In the round of 16, quarterfinals, and semifinals, if tied on aggregate, the away goals rule would be used. If still tied, extra time would not be played, and the penalty shoot-out would be used to determine the winner (Regulations Article 6.1).
In the finals, if tied on aggregate, the away goals rule would not be used, and 30 minutes of extra time would be played. If still tied after extra time, the penalty shoot-out would be used to determine the winner (Regulations Article 6.2).
Seeding
Starting from the round of 16, the teams were seeded according to the second stage draw, with each team assigned a "seed" 1–16 corresponding to the tie they won (O1–O16).[27][26]
Bracket
The bracket was decided based on the second stage draw, which was held on 14 June 2017.[26]
