While Argentina is overwhelmed by the celebrations for the third championship in the history of the national team, the football agenda continues its march. This Wednesday, the conmebol want the draws for the Copa Libertadores and Sudamericanathe two top continental competitions at club level which will start in 2023. The event will start at 12 (Argentine time) in Asunción and will be broadcast by ESPN and Star+.
After an unforgettable year for Argentine and South American football, which once again had a world champion after 20 years, there are less than two months left until the start of international competition at club level: the Libertadores will start on February 8 and the South Americans, on March 8.
Therefore, the draws for both tournaments will be held this Wednesday, in which 12 Argentine clubs participate. Huracán, River, Boca, Racing, Argentinos Juniors Y Patronage qualified for the Libertadores, while Gymnastics, Defense and Justice, Tiger, Newells, Students Y Saint Lawrence They did it to the South American.
Boca and River, in the Libertadores
Flamengo are the defending champions, but six Argentine teams dream of taking the throne from them. The hurricane will start that course earlier, in the repechagewhile River -who will start the year as the best on the continent, according to the Conmebol rankingbut without Marcelo Gallardo on the bench, Boca, Racing, Argentinos Juniors and relegated Patronato qualified for the group stage.
The first phase will start on February 8th with Nacional (Paraguay), El Nacional (Ecuador), Zamora (Venezuela), Sport Huancayo (Peru), Nacional Potosí (Bolivia) and Boston River (Uruguay). Rounds will be 15.
The three winners of those series will join the 13 teams classified in the second qualifying stage, including the hurricane. These 16 teams will play two elimination rounds until they secure four group stage tickets, adding to the 28 already qualified for the regular stage.
The 32 will be divided into eight groups, in a draw to be held on 22 March, and matches will begin to be played right April 5th and will last until the end of June.
The draw for the finals, however, will take place on 5 July, two weeks before the start of the round of 16. The next round, however, will be played at the end of August, the semi-finals at the end of September and the final on 11 November in a stadium to be confirmed. The seat is contested by Colombia, Brazil and Peru.
The drums of the group stage of the Libertadores
Bass Drum 1: River Plate (Argentina), Palmeiras (Brazil), Flamengo (Brazil), Boca Juniors (Argentina), Nacional (Uruguay), Athletico Paranaense (Brazil), Independiente del Valle (Ecuador) and Olimpia (Paraguay).
Bass Drum 2: Libertad (Paraguay), Atlético Nacional (Colombia), Internacional (Brazil), Barcelona (Ecuador), Racing Club (Argentina), Corinthians (Brazil), Colo Colo (Chile) and Fluminense (Brazil).
Drum 3: Bolívar (Bolivia), The Strongest (Bolivia), Melgar (Peru), Alianza Lima (Peru), Argentinos Jrs. (Argentina), Metropolitans (Venezuela), Aucas (Ecuador) and Monagas (Venezuela).
Bass Drum 4: Liverpool (Uruguay), Deportivo Pereira (Colombia), Ñublense (Chile), Patronato (Argentina) and the 4 qualifiers from the previous phase.
La Sudamericana, with a new format
Like the Libertadores, the Copa Sudamericana will be drawn this Wednesday at noon at the Conmebol headquarters in Asunción. But with something new: a new format “with the aim of creating a dynamic and demanding tournament”as reported by the Continental Body.
Is that the first stage of the tournament will be played between the week of 7 to 16 March in single games, by suppressing the round-trip mode. Furthermore, the teams that will reach the second position in their groups will no longer be eliminated directly, but will have the possibility of accessing the round of 16, playing a playoff with the clubs located in the third position of the Libertadores.
“With these changes, the competition maintains the number of matches, gaining more interest and appeal in the group stage and round of 16,” Conmebol summarized in a recent statement.
Total, There will be 32 clubs competing in that previous instance and half will advance to the group stage, in which the six Argentine and Brazilian clubs are already present. The rest of the institutions – four teams from Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela – will start in the preliminary knockout stage for the remaining 16 places.
Then, between the week of 5 April and 28 June, the six dates of the group stage will be played and the final will be played on 25 October, venue still to be defined.
The bolilleros of the first phase of the South American
Source: Clarin
Jason Root is the go-to source for sports coverage at News Rebeat. With a passion for athletics and an in-depth knowledge of the latest sports trends, Jason provides comprehensive and engaging analysis of the world of sports.