Copa Libertadores 2026: from the knockouts to Montevideo, betting from Algeria
The Copa Libertadores, officially CONMEBOL Libertadores, is South America's leading club competition ⚽. Its organiser, CONMEBOL, also runs a second tournament, the Copa Sudamericana. The 2026 edition brought together 47 clubs from ten countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela.
Qualifying is played over three knockout phases, all two-legged: six clubs in phase 1, sixteen in phase 2 and eight in phase 3, where the four winners join the groups and the four losers drop into the Sudamericana. The group stage then has 32 clubs in eight groups of four. Each plays six games, the top two go through to the round of 16 and third place moves to the Sudamericana knockout play-offs. From the round of 16 to the semi-finals, everything is decided over two games. If the aggregate score is level, the shoot-out comes immediately: there is no extra time, and away goals carry no extra weight. The final is one match; if it is level, extra time comes first, then penalties.
The 2026 calendar
Stage | Dates |
|---|---|
Qualifying phase 1 | 3 to 12 February 2026 |
Qualifying phase 2 | 17 to 26 February 2026 |
Qualifying phase 3 | 3 to 12 March 2026 |
Group-stage draw | 19 March 2026, in Luque (Paraguay) |
Group stage | 7 April to 28 May 2026 |
Round of 16 | 11 to 13 August, then 18 to 20 August 2026 |
Quarter-finals | 8 to 10 September, then 15 to 17 September 2026 |
Semi-finals | 14 and 15 October, then 21 and 22 October 2026 |
Final | Saturday 28 November 2026, in Montevideo (Estadio Centenario) |
The CONMEBOL Council picked Montevideo on 19 March 2026, and the stadium was confirmed on 9 May. The time of the final is not known yet. Semi-final kick-offs are set for 21:30 South American time, deep into the night for bettors in Algeria, so anyone following from Algiers should plan for late finishes.
Round of 16: the full bracket
Through | Knocked out | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|
Estudiantes de La Plata (Argentina) | Universidad Católica (Chile) | 4:1 |
LDU Quito (Ecuador) | Mirassol (Brazil) | 1:1, 5-4 on penalties |
Fluminense (Brazil) | Independiente Rivadavia (Argentina) | 1:1, 5-4 on penalties |
Independiente del Valle (Ecuador) | Deportes Tolima (Colombia) | 4:1 |
Flamengo (Brazil) | Cruzeiro (Brazil) | 3:2 |
Platense (Argentina) | Coquimbo Unido (Chile) | 1:1, 7-6 on penalties |
Palmeiras (Brazil) | Cerro Porteño (Paraguay) | 2:1 |
Corinthians (Brazil) | Rosario Central (Argentina) | 1:0 |
Three of the eight ties went to penalties, and Corinthians against Rosario Central produced a single goal in 180 minutes. In the quarter-finals, Brazil placed three clubs in the last four: Palmeiras went through on penalties against LDU Quito (3:3 on aggregate, then 4-3), Platense fell to Fluminense (2:3 on aggregate), while Independiente del Valle lost to Flamengo 1:3 over the two games. Estudiantes, 2:1 winners over Corinthians, are Argentina's only survivors.
The October semi-finals
On one side of the bracket, Fluminense and Palmeiras: first leg at the Maracanã on Wednesday 14 October, second leg in São Paulo a week later. On the other, Estudiantes de La Plata host Flamengo on Thursday 15 October, at a ground CONMEBOL has not yet named, then travel to the Maracanã on 22 October. The two clubs have already crossed paths in this season's group stage, as they did in the 2025 edition. As for honours, Flamengo and Estudiantes have four titles each, Estudiantes winning in 1968, 1969, 1970 and 2009; Palmeiras won in 1999, 2020 and 2021, and Fluminense in 2023.
Betting on Copa Libertadores from Algeria
Before each semi-final, the markets cover the outcome of the game, the number of goals, handicap lines and the option where both clubs find the net. In the return games, the first-leg result changes everything: a team behind has to score, and a level aggregate sends both clubs to a shoot-out. A bet on who lifts the trophy stays open as an outright until the evening of 28 November, so a pick made before the semi-finals runs through both rounds.
During these South American nights, live football updates the odds as the game unfolds. The Football section also lists the Algerian league and the European club competitions, and the whole pre-match line is there to build an accumulator.
Stakes are settled in dinars (DZD) 💳: BaridiMob and RedotPay on the banking side, Binance Pay and USDT on the crypto side. A 1xBet account lets you follow the semi-finals and then the final in Montevideo.
Montevideo, a Libertadores city
The first match in the competition's history was played in Montevideo on 19 April 1960, and the very first final, that same year, saw Peñarol face Olimpia at the Estadio Centenario. It was also at the Centenario that Nacional became, in 1988, the last Uruguayan club to win the tournament. In the most recent final played there, on 27 November 2021, Palmeiras beat Flamengo 2:1, Deyverson scoring in extra time. Flamengo, for their part, lost this year's Recopa to Lanús, 4:2 on aggregate.