The 2016 Copa Libertadores de América (officially the 2016 Copa Bridgestone Libertadores for sponsorship reasons) was the 57th edition of the Copa Libertadores de América, South America's premier club football tournament organized by CONMEBOL.
In the finals, Colombian club Atlético Nacional defeated Ecuadorian club Independiente del Valle by an aggregate score of 2–1 to win their second tournament title in team history and qualify for the 2016 FIFA Club World Cup in Japan, their first appearance in the FIFA Club World Cup. They also earned the right to play against the winners of the 2016 Copa Sudamericana in the 2017 Recopa Sudamericana. They also automatically qualified for the 2017 Copa Libertadores group stage.
River Plate were the defending champions, but were eliminated by Independiente del Valle in the round of 16.
Teams The following 38 teams from 11 associations (the 10 CONMEBOL members plus Mexico which were invited to compete) qualified for the tournament: Title holders Argentina and Brazil: 5 berths each All other associations: 3 berths each
The entry stage was determined as follows: Second stage: 26 teams (top four teams from Argentina and Brazil, and top two teams from all other associations) First stage: 12 teams (team with the lowest berth from each association, plus team with the second lowest berth from association of title holders)
AssociationTeam Entry stageQualification method ArgentinaRiver Plate Second stage2015 Copa Libertadores championBoca Juniors 2015 Primera División championSan Lorenzo 2015 Primera División runner-upRosario Central 2014–15 Copa Argentina runner-upRacing First stage2015 Primera División Liguilla Pre-Libertadores winnerHuracán 2015 Copa Sudamericana best Argentine team not yet qualified BoliviaBolívar Second stage2014 Apertura champion and 2015 Clausura championThe Strongest 2014–15 Primera División aggregate table best team not yet qualifiedOriente Petrolero First stage2014–15 Primera División aggregate table 2nd best team not yet qualified BrazilCorinthians Second stage2015 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A championPalmeiras 2015 Copa do Brasil championAtlético Mineiro 2015 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A runner-upGrêmio 2015 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 3rd placeSão Paulo First stage2015 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 4th place ChileCobresal Second stage2015 Clausura championColo-Colo 2015 Apertura championUniversidad de Chile First stage2015 Copa Chile champion ColombiaDeportivo Cali Second stage2015 Apertura championAtlético Nacional 2015 Finalización championSanta Fe First stage2015 Copa Sudamericana champion EcuadorEmelec Second stage2015 Serie A championLDU Quito 2015 Serie A runner-upIndependiente del Valle First stage2015 Serie A aggregate table best team not yet qualified MexicoPumas UNAM Second stage2015 Apertura classification table best team not qualified for 2015–16 CONCACAF Champions LeagueToluca 2015 Apertura classification table 2nd best team not qualified for 2015–16 CONCACAF Champions LeaguePuebla First stage2015 Supercopa MX champion ParaguayCerro Porteño Second stage2015 tournament (2015 Apertura or 2015 Clausura) champion with better record in aggregate tableOlimpia 2015 tournament (2015 Apertura or 2015 Clausura) champion with worse record in aggregate tableGuaraní First stage2015 Primera División aggregate table best team not yet qualified PeruMelgar Second stage2015 Descentralizado championSporting Cristal 2015 Descentralizado runner-upUniversidad César Vallejo First stage2015 Descentralizado 3rd place UruguayNacional Second stage2014–15 Primera División championPeñarol 2014–15 Primera División runner-upRiver Plate First stage2014–15 Primera División aggregate table best team not yet qualified VenezuelaDeportivo Táchira Second stage2014–15 Primera División championTrujillanos 2014–15 Primera División runner-upCaracas First stage2014–15 Primera División aggregate table best team not yet qualified
Draw
The draw of the tournament was held on 22 December 2015, 20:30 PYST (UTC−3), at the CONMEBOL Convention Centre in Luque, Paraguay.
Starting from this season, teams were seeded by the newly established CONMEBOL ranking of the Copa Libertadores (except for teams from Mexico which were not ranked and thus seeded last in all draws), taking into account of the following three factors: Performance in the last 10 years, taking into account Copa Libertadores results in the period 2006–2015 Historical coefficient, taking into account Copa Libertadores results in the period 1960–2005 Local tournament champion, with bonus points awarded to domestic league champions of the last 10 years
Schedule The schedule of the competition was as follows (all dates listed were Wednesdays, but matches could be played on Tuesdays and Thursdays as well). There was a one-month break between the quarterfinals and semifinals due to the Copa América Centenario held in June.
StageFirst legSecond legFirst stage3 February10 FebruarySecond stage17, 24 February2, 9, 16 March6, 13, 20 AprilRound of 1627 April4 MayQuarterfinals11, 18 May18, 25 MaySemifinals6 July13 JulyFinals20 July27 July
Notes
First stage
Second stage
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
Group 4
Group 5
Group 6
Group 7
Group 8
Final stages
Seeding
Bracket
Round of 16
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Finals
Statistics Top goalscorers RankPlayerTeamGoals1 Jonathan Calleri São Paulo92 Marco Ruben Rosario Central8 Ismael Sosa Pumas UNAM84 José Enrique Angulo Independiente del Valle6 Junior Sornoza Independiente del Valle66 Ramón Ábila Huracán5 Miguel Borja Atlético Nacional5 Michael Santos River Plate5 Carlos Tévez Boca Juniors5 Fernando Uribe Toluca5
Top assists RankPlayerTeamAssists1 Ganso São Paulo4 Marlos Moreno Atlético Nacional4 Jorge Alberto Rojas Deportivo Táchira4 Luis Manuel Seijas Santa Fe4 Alejandro Silva Olimpia46 Orlando Berrío Atlético Nacional3 Matías Britos Pumas UNAM3 Javier Cortés Pumas UNAM3 Cristian Espinoza Huracán3 Luís Leal Cerro Porteño3 Luan Grêmio3 Ángel Mena Emelec3 Gabriel Mercado River Plate3 Michel Bastos São Paulo3 Luis Quiñones Pumas UNAM3 Mario Rizotto Independiente del Valle3 Óscar Romero Racing3 Macnelly Torres Atlético Nacional3
Prize money dispute In January 2016, several clubs threatened to withdraw from the competition due a disagreement regarding prize money. CONMEBOL had offered a 40% increase on what was given in the 2015 edition but clubs wanted a 150% increase. On 2 February, CONMEBOL announced that the prize money paid to each club was doubled from the previous amount.
See also 2016 FIFA Club World Cup 2016 Copa Sudamericana 2017 Recopa Sudamericana
References
External links
Copa Libertadores 2016, CONMEBOL.com