Starting from this season, teams must be in the top division of their member association to play in South American club competitions,[2] except for teams which are champions of the qualifying tournaments or cups.[3]
On 14 May 2020, CONMEBOL announced the candidate venues for the 2021, 2022 and 2023 club competition finals.[4][5] On 13 May 2021, CONMEBOL announced that the final would be played at the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo, Uruguay on 20 November 2021,[6] but on 27 July 2021 the final was eventually confirmed to have been rescheduled to 27 November 2021.[7]
Defending champions Palmeiras won their third Copa Libertadores title after beating fellow Brazilian club Flamengo by a 2–1 score after extra time in the final match.[8] As winners of the 2021 Copa Libertadores, Palmeiras qualified for the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup, and earned the right to play against the winners of the 2021 Copa Sudamericana in the 2022 Recopa Sudamericana. They also automatically qualified for the 2022 Copa Libertadores group stage.
Teams
The following 47 teams from the 10 CONMEBOL member associations qualified for the tournament:[9]
The Argentina 2 berth, originally awarded to the 2020 Copa de la Superliga champions, was awarded to the winner of a tournament to be played in the second semester of 2020, later confirmed to be the 2020 Copa de la Liga Profesional.
The Argentina 3 berth was awarded to the 2019–20 Copa Argentina champions, provided that government directives allowed for it to be concluded.
The Argentina 4, Argentina 5, and Argentina 6 berths were awarded to the three best teams of the 2019–20 Superliga Argentina and 2020 Copa de la Superliga aggregate table at the time of the suspension of the latter competition not yet qualified.
On 11 December 2020 it was confirmed that the 2019–20 Copa Argentina would not be completed in time to award its winner a berth into the 2021 Copa Libertadores, therefore the Argentina 3 berth was reallocated to the best team of the 2019–20 Superliga Argentina and 2020 Copa de la Superliga aggregate table not yet qualified.[14]
Bolivia (BOL): The 2020 Clausura tournament was not held due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Bolivia, therefore the Bolivia 2, Bolivia 3, and Bolivia 4 berths of the 2021 Copa Libertadores were reallocated to the 2020 Apertura runners-up, 3rd and 4th placed teams, respectively.
Chile (CHI): On 30 December 2020, the Council of Presidents of the ANFP decided that the Chile 4 berth, originally awarded to the 2020 Copa Chile champions, would be awarded to the 4th placed team of the 2020 Chilean Primera División given that the 2020 Copa Chile will not be held before the start of the 2021 Copa Libertadores.[15]
Colombia (COL):
On 25 July 2020, DIMAYOR decided that the 2020 Categoría Primera A season, suspended from 13 March due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Colombia, would only have a single tournament played for the remainder of the season. Therefore, the Colombia 1 berth of the 2021 Copa Libertadores, originally awarded to the 2020 Apertura champions, and the Colombia 2 berth, originally awarded to the 2020 Finalización champions, would instead be awarded to the champions and runners-up of that single tournament, respectively.[16]
On 9 September 2020, DIMAYOR confirmed the reallocation of the four Colombia berths of the 2021 Copa Libertadores as follows:[17]
The Colombia 1 berth was awarded to the 2020 Primera A champions.
The Colombia 2 berth was awarded to the 2020 Primera A runners-up.
The Colombia 4 berth, originally awarded to the 2020 Copa Colombia champions, was awarded to the 2020 Primera A aggregate table 2nd best team not yet qualified.
Uruguay (URU): Given that the 2020 Primera División was not concluded before the start of the 2021 Copa Libertadores qualifying stages due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Uruguay, on 14 January 2021 the League Council of the Uruguayan Football Association approved a temporary modification to the qualification method of Uruguayan teams. Since associations must formally inform CONMEBOL of the teams that will take part in international competition in advance to the start of competition, some international berths were decided based on deadlines set according to the dates the respective Copa Libertadores rounds were scheduled for as well as the placements of teams in the 2020 Primera División aggregate table at the time of those deadlines:[18]
The Uruguay 4 berth was awarded to the best eligible team of the 2020 Primera División aggregate table as of 7 February 2021, considering that the Copa Libertadores first stage was scheduled to begin on 23 February 2021. Liverpool (2020 Primera División aggregate table 5th place as of 7 February 2021) accepted the berth after the top four of the aggregate table at that moment (Nacional, Montevideo City Torque, Peñarol, and Rentistas) all declined to take the berth.[19]
The Uruguay 3 berth was awarded to the best eligible team of the 2020 Primera División aggregate table as of 21 February 2021, considering that the Copa Libertadores second stage was scheduled to begin on 9 March 2021. Montevideo Wanderers (2020 Primera División aggregate table 5th place as of 21 February 2021) accepted the berth after the top three of the aggregate table at that moment (Nacional, Montevideo City Torque, and Peñarol) all declined to take the berth, and 4th placed Liverpool was already qualified as Uruguay 4.[20]
Teams were offered the chance to accept or decline the berths they were eligible for at the time of the respective deadlines.
Venezuela (VEN): On 15 May 2020, the Venezuelan Football Federation decided the permanent suspension of the 2020 Venezuelan Primera División season and the voiding of the standings and results recorded due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Venezuela.[21][22] The allocation of the four Venezuela berths of the 2021 Copa Libertadores would be announced at a later time, with the FVF confirming a will to organize a new tournament in which sporting merit, club licensing requirements, and medical protocols were applied.[23] The definitive berth allocations were confirmed by the FVF on 18 September 2020.[24]
Schedule
The schedule of the competition will be as follows:[25][26]
On 4 February 2021, CONMEBOL announced a rescheduling for the qualifying stages.[27]
Location of teams of the 2021 Copa Libertadores. Brown: Group A; Red: Group B; Orange: Group C; Yellow: Group D; Green: Group E; Blue: Group F; Purple: Group G; Pink: Group H; White: Play-off rounds.
The draw for the qualifying stages was held on 5 February 2021, 12:00 PYST (UTC−3), at the CONMEBOL Convention Centre in Luque, Paraguay.[28][31]
Teams were seeded by their CONMEBOL Clubs ranking as of 1 February 2021 (shown in parentheses),[32][33] taking into account the following three factors:[34]
Performance in the last 10 years, taking into account Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana results in the period 2011–2020.
Historical coefficient, taking into account Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana results in the period 1960–2010 and 2002-2010 respectively.
Local tournament champion, with bonus points awarded to domestic league champions of the last 10 years
For the first stage, the six teams were drawn into three ties (E1–E3), with the teams from Pot 1 hosting the second leg.
URU The identity of the team Uruguay 4 was not known at the time of the draw, and was seeded in Pot 2.
For the second stage, the 16 teams were drawn into eight ties (C1–C8), with the teams from Pot 1 hosting the second leg. Teams from the same association could not be drawn into the same tie, excluding the three winners of the first stage, which were seeded in Pot 2 and whose identity was not known at the time of the draw, and could be drawn into the same tie with another team from the same association.
URU The identity of the team Uruguay 3 was not known at the time of the draw, and was seeded in Pot 2.
For the third stage, the eight winners of the second stage were allocated without any draw into the following four ties (G1–G4), with the team in each tie with the higher CONMEBOL ranking hosting the second leg. As their identity was not known at the time of the draw, they could be drawn into the same tie with another team from the same association.
Second stage winner C1 vs. Second stage winner C8
Second stage winner C2 vs. Second stage winner C7
Second stage winner C3 vs. Second stage winner C6
Second stage winner C4 vs. Second stage winner C5
The draw for the group stage was held on 9 April 2021, 12:00 PYT (UTC−4), at the CONMEBOL Convention Centre in Luque, Paraguay.[29][35]
For the group stage, the 32 teams were drawn into eight groups (Groups A–H) of four containing a team from each of the four pots. Teams from the same association could not be drawn into the same group, excluding the four winners of the third stage, which were seeded in Pot 4 and whose identity was not known at the time of the draw, and could be drawn into the same group with another team from the same association.
The draw for the round of 16 was held on 1 June 2021, 12:00 PYT (UTC−4), at the CONMEBOL Convention Center in Luque, Paraguay.[30] For the round of 16, the 16 teams were drawn into eight ties (A–H) between a group winner (Pot 1) and a group runner-up (Pot 2), with the group winners hosting the second leg. Teams from the same association or the same group could be drawn into the same tie (Regulations Article 2.2.3.2).[1][36]
In the qualifying stages, each tie is played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. If tied on aggregate, the away goals rule will be used. If still tied, extra time will not be played, and a penalty shoot-out will be used to determine the winner (Regulations Article 2.4.3).[1]
The qualifying stages are structured as follows:
First stage (6 teams): The three winners of the first stage advance to the second stage to join the 13 teams which are given byes to the second stage.
Second stage (16 teams): The eight winners of the second stage advance to the third stage.
Third stage (8 teams): The four winners of the third stage advance to the group stage to join the 28 direct entrants. The four teams eliminated in the third stage enter the Copa Sudamericana group stage.
In the group stage, each group is played on a home-and-away round-robin basis. The teams are ranked according to the following criteria: 1. Points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, and 0 points for a loss); 2. Goal difference; 3. Goals scored; 4. Away goals scored; 5. CONMEBOL ranking (Regulations Article 2.4.2).[1]
In the round of 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals, each tie is played on a home-and-away two-legged basis, with the higher-seeded team hosting the second leg (Regulations Article 2.2.3.2). If tied on aggregate, the away goals rule will be used. If still tied, extra time will not be played, and a penalty shoot-out will be used to determine the winners (Regulations Article 2.4.3).
The final is played as a single match at a venue pre-selected by CONMEBOL, with the higher-seeded team designated as the "home" team for administrative purposes (Regulations Article 2.2.3.5). If tied after regulation, 30 minutes of extra time will be played. If still tied after extra time, a penalty shoot-out will be used to determine the winners (Regulations Article 2.4.4).
Qualified teams
The winners and runners-up of each of the eight groups in the group stage advanced to the round of 16.
Starting from the round of 16, the teams are seeded according to their results in the group stage, with the group winners (Pot 1) seeded 1–8, and the group runners-up (Pot 2) seeded 9–16.
