The Copa Argentina (English: Argentine Cup), officially known as the Copa Argentina "AXION energy" due to sponsorship reasons, is an official football cup competition organized by the Argentine Football Association (AFA).
The first editions of the championship were contested by teams playing in Primera División that did not earn eligibility to participate in the Copa Libertadores of the following year, and the best placed clubs playing in regional leagues.
The tournament was re-launched in 2011, with teams of all divisions that form the Argentine football league system taking part of the championship."Confirmaron el lanzamiento de la Copa Argentina", El Cronista, 18 May 2011"Presentaron la Copa Argentina" , Diario Uno, 19 May 2011 The winner of Copa Argentina qualifies for the Supercopa Argentina against the reigning champions of Primera División.
Boca Juniors is the most successful team with four titles won, the latest in 2019–20.
History Background The "Campeonato de la República" (or Copa General Pedro RamírezAsociación del Fútbol Argentino: Memoria y Balance General 1943, p. 135-137, AFA Library) had been the first Argentine cup contested by clubs playing not only in Primera División but in regional leagues as well, with a total of 35 teams in the first edition.1943 Campeonato de la RepúblicaCopa General Pedro Ramírez by José Carluccio The cup was held from 1943 to 1945.
A new international competition, "Copa Ganadores de Copa (also known as "Recopa Sudamericana"), organised by CONMEBOL in 1970 as a South American counterpart of UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, served as inspiration to the Argentine Association to create a new competition, with the winner team being eligible to play the 1970 edition of Copa Ganadores de Copa.
First edition: 1969
The competition was contested by 32 teams using a two-legged elimination format. Two points were awarded for winning a leg, one for a draw and null for a loss. The teams having more points would qualify to the next round. If both teams had the same number of points, it would be determined by the total number of goals, total number of goals conceded, and penalty shootout accordingly.
All teams in the Primera División Argentina participated in the competition with some top teams from the regional leagues, except teams that had already qualified to the Copa Libertadores, namely, Vélez Sársfield and River Plate, the winners and runners-up of 1968 Nacional respectively, and Estudiantes (LP), the champions of 1968 Copa Libertadores.1969 Copa Argentina – RSSSF
Boca Juniors and Atlanta entered the final. Boca won the tournament by defeating Atlanta 3–2 on aggregate after two matches were played.
However, as Boca later won the 1969 Nacional and qualified to the 1970 Copa Libertadores, Atlanta qualified to the 1970 "Copa Ganadores de Copa" as the runner-up.
Second edition: 1970
Apart from teams that had got the Copa Libertadores eligibility, namely Boca Juniors and River Plate, the champions and runners-up of Nacional 1969, and Estudiantes (LP), who won the Copa Libertadores 1969, all clubs in the Primera División Argentina participated this competition. The champions of Primera B, Ferro, also took part in the tournament, along with 13 top clubs from regional leagues.1970 Copa Argentina – RSSSF
Copa Argentina 1970 never finished. 32 teams played the competition and San Lorenzo and Vélez Sársfield entered the final. The tournament had been lasting for a long period in that year. Starting in March 1970, the first leg of the final was played in March 1971. At that time, the Copa Ganadores de Copa, which the winner of Copa Argentina would be qualifying for, had already started. Moreover, as Huracán Buceo and Deportes Concepción, the two other team in the same group with the Argentine representative in the Copa Ganadores de Copa, had not confirmed their participation, so the organizer announced the Copa Ganadores de Copa would become a friendly tournament.Recopa Sudamericana de Clubes 1971 Therefore, after the first leg of the Copa Argentina final was held, which the teams drew 2–2, the second leg was never played. No Argentine teams participated in the Copa Ganadores de Copa 1971.
Relaunch
The rescheduling of the Copa Argentina, officialized in 2011,, Notio, 2011-05-19 included 186 teams of 7 divisions of the Argentine football league system in a knock-out system competition. All the matches were disputed in neutral locations. The teams of the first division were included in rounds of 32. The champion of the tournament qualified for the next edition of Copa Sudamericana.
For the relaunching of the tournament, a new trophy was designed. The cup, made of aluminium, was manufactured at the Norberto Ambrosetti factory of Lobos, Buenos Aires.
The 2012 final between Boca and Racing was scheduled many times due to fixture congestion. The match was finally played on August 8, 2012, at the Estadio del Bicentenario in San Juan.2012 fixture Boca Juniors won its second trophy after defeating Racing by 2–1."Boca se sacó la espina y pegó el grito de campeón", Clarín, 8 August 2012
The 2012–13 Copa Argentina was scheduled to begin October 23, 2012 in a new two-phase knock-out competition."Se larga la segunda edicion" , 18 October 2012 Arsenal defeated San Lorenzo and won its first trophy of this competition.
Champions The following is the list of Copa Argentina winners with the finals played:Campeones (Primera División y Copas Nacionales) on AFA website
YearChampion Score(s)Runner-upVenue(s)City 1969 Boca Juniors Atlanta Gasómetro Buenos Aires 1970 Estadio Atlanta Buenos Aires 2011–12 Boca Juniors Racing Bicentenario San Juan 2012–13 Arsenal San Lorenzo Bicentenario Catamarca 2013–14 Huracán Rosario Central Bicentenario San Juan 2014–15 Boca Juniors Rosario Central Mario A. Kempes Córdoba 2015–16 River Plate Rosario Central Mario A. Kempes Córdoba 2016–17 River Plate Atlético Tucumán Malvinas Argentinas Mendoza 2017–18 Rosario Central Gimnasia y Esgrima (LP) Malvinas Argentinas Mendoza 2018–19 River Plate Central Córdoba (SdE) Malvinas Argentinas Mendoza 2019–20 Boca Juniors Talleres (C) Madre de Ciudades Santiago del Estero 2020–21 2021–22 Patronato Talleres (C) Malvinas Argentinas Mendoza 2023 Estudiantes (LP) Defensa y Justicia Ciudad de Lanús Lanús 2024 Central Córdoba (SdE) Vélez Sarsfield 15 de Abril Santa Fe 2025 Argentinos Juniors Monumental Presidente Perón Córdoba 2026 Notes:
Titles by club RankClubTitlesRunners-upSeasons wonSeasons runner-up Boca Juniors 4 — 1969, 2011–12, 2014–15, 2019–20 — River Plate 3 — 2015–16, 2016–17, 2018–19 — Rosario Central 1 3 2017–18 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16 Central Córdoba (SdE) 1 1 2024 2018–19 Arsenal 1 — 2012–13 — Huracán 1 — 2013–14 — Patronato 2021–22 — Estudiantes (LP) 2023 — Independiente Rivadavia 2025 — Talleres (C) — 2 — 2019–20, 2021–22 Atlanta — 1 — 1969 Racing — 1 — 2011–12 San Lorenzo — 1 — 2012–13 Atlético Tucumán — 1 — 2016–17 Gimnasia y Esgrima (LP) — 1 — 2017–18 Defensa y Justicia — 1 — 2023 Vélez Sarsfield — 1 — 2024 Argentinos Juniors — 1 — 2025
Top Scorers By season Source:Argentina – List of Topscorers – Domestic Cups by Pablo Kersevan and Pablo Ciullini on the RSSSF Ed. Player Goals Club 1969 Daniel Quevedo Lanús 1970 Rubén Ayala San Lorenzo 2011–12 Ramón Ábila Sarmiento (J) 2012–13 Daniel Bazán Vera Tristán Suárez2013–14 Mariano Gorosito Luján Walter Ibáñez Sanjustino (Santa Fe) 2014–15 Luis Luna Vélez Sársfield (SdE) 2015–16 Lucas Alario River Plate 2016–17 Maximiliano Tunessi Sol de Mayo (Viedma) 2017–18 Héctor M. Rueda Dep. Rincón (Neuquén) Luis A. Silba Sarmiento (R) 2018–19 Christian Duma Douglas Haig 2019–20 Michael Santos Talleres (C) 2021–22 Jesús Dátolo Banfield Marcelo L. Estigarribia Patronato 2023 Gabriel Ávalos Argentinos Juniors Enzo A. Fernández Almagro Miguel Merentiel Boca Juniors 2024 Rodrigo Atencio Central Córdoba (S) Edinson Cavani Boca Juniors 2025 Tomás Molina Argentinos Juniors
All-time Rank. Player Goals Ramón Ábila Martín Cauteruccio Ignacio Scocco Ignacio Fernández Nicolás Blandi Darío Benedetto José Sand
See also List of Argentine football national cups Argentine Primera División Supercopa Argentina
References
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