It’s been a busy month for football in the Americas region, as the Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana set their knockout round teams for 2026, and the domestic leagues that play split seasons, determined their champions for the first half of the year. Here is your roundup of all the action across North and South American football.
Ecuador Sends Two Teams Into Libertadores Knockout Round
While Brazilian teams, with their significant financial and squad quality advantages, continue to make up the bulk of knockout round qualifiers for the 2026 Copa Libertadores, two of Ecuador’s best teams, Independiente Del Valle, and LDU Quito (a semifinalist last year), continued to show that Ecuador’s Liga Ecuabet has become a talent factory in its own right.
IDV, who won the domestic league last year, and were semifinalists in the Sudamericana, currently lead this year’s league, all while finishing their group with a 4-1-1 record that included closing out the group stage with a win over Argentina’s Rosario Central who finished second in the group and were also 4-1-1 overall. Veteran striker Carlos Gonzalez from Paraguay already has six goals in te competition. While teenage midfielder Justin Lerma is getting regular minutes along with 21-year-old Emerson Pata in what is promising young midfield for IDV.
LDU Quito are 5th in the domestic table and have an older age profile for their squad. 35-year-old Brazilian Deyverson has scored twice in the competition thus far as their 4-0-2 record was enough to edge Brazil’s Mirassol for the top of Group G after closing the group stage with wins over Lanus from Argentina, and Always Ready from Bolivia.
Cerro Porteno the Surprise of the Libertadores Group Stage
In a Copa Libertadores group that featured Colombian Champions Junior, Peru’s Sporting Cristal, and Brazilian powerhouse Palmerias, it was Cerro Porteno from Paraguay that topped group F with a 4-1-1 record, while Palmeiras finished second. While they sit third in Paraguay’s domestic table, a stunning 1-0 win over Palmeiras on May 20th was enough to top the group, after previously drawing with the Brazilian side in April. Cerro Porteno won their last three group stage games without conceding a goal.
Two teenagers, Cesar Bobadilla and Marcelo Chaparro see regular minutes in the midfield, while Aliseda Ignacio and Cecilio Dominguez have both scored fie goals in the competition.
The remaining group winners for the Libertadores group stage are Brazil’s Corinthians over Argentina’s Platense, Universidad Catolica from Chile upset a group that featured second place Cruzeiro from Brazil, third place Boca Juniors, and Ecuador’s Barcelona SC.
Group C was won by Independiente Rivadavia over Fluminense, Chile also sent a second team into the knockout phase as Coquimbo Unido, their defending champions, topped the group over Colombia’s Deportes Tolima. Brazil’s other big money squad, Flamengo, were undefeated in the group stage winning their group ahead of Estudiantes from Argentina.
Flamengo, Palmeiras, and Corinthians remain, on paper, the favorites to win this year’s Libertadores with the knockout matchups set to be announced. Those matches begin in August after the 2026 World Cup.
Copa Sudamericana Knockout Phase Set for 2026
South America’s second competition, the Copa Sudamericana also resolved their group stage in May. Eight teams from the Libertadores will drop down to join the tournament after their third place finish in their groups. Those teams are Universidad Central (Venezuela), Lanus and Boca Juniors from Argentina, Colombia’s Santa Fe and Independiente Medellin, Peru’s Sporting Cristal, Bolivia’s Bolivar, and Uruguay’s Nacional.
The top teams from the Sudamericana group stage include Ecuador’s Macara, who topped a group that had Tigre (Argentina) and America de Cali (Colombia) in it. Atletico Mineiro, Sao Paulo, and Botafogo from Brazil topped their groups. River Plate won Group H ahead of Red Bull Bragantino and went undefeated. Olimpia from Paraguay were group G winners ahead of Vasco da Gama from Brazil, Montevideo City Torque stunned in their group ahead of Gremio from Brazil. Santos with Neymar were second behind tiny Recoleta from Paraguay, in a group where the top two teams only managed a win each.
Similar to the Libertadores, Brazilian sides remain heavy favorites to lift this title, though River Plate, Lanus, and Boca Juniors will also fancy their chances.
Cruz Azul Lifts 2026 Liga MX Clausura
Cruz Azul have consistently been won of Liga MX’s best teams, and they lifted a 10th league title in May after finishing the regular season third in the table. Liga MX’s playoffs were impacted by the fact El Tri national team call ups for the World Cup were removed from their club rosters for the playoffs. That severely diminished the chances for second place finisher Chivas Guadalajara, who were defeated 4-3 across two legs in the semifinals, after a narrow win via seed advantage over Tigres UANL in the quarterfinals. Both of Chivas matches in the playoffs, were compelling regardless, especially their comeback from 3-1 down against Tigres, that saw two late second half goals in the second leg.
Cruz Azul went undefeated after April, they beat Atlas 4-2 across two games, edged Chivas, and then in a nip and tuck final, got past league leaders Pumas UNAM 2-1. The first leg of the final was scoreless, though Cruz Azul dominated offensively, limited Pumas to just 1 shot on goal, compared to five for their own side. In a winner take all second leg between the two CDMX sides, Carlos Rotondi scored a match winner in the 95th minute, a thrilling Golazo that will be in Liga MX highlight reels for decades to come. The drama aside, it’s hard to argue Cruz Azul didn’t outplay a Pumas side that surprisingly topped the league table this season, as interim manager Joel Huiqui celebrated a title. Huiqui, who was the youth team coach, took over for Nicolas Larcamon in April and then enjoyed a cinderella run. The 43-year-old played eight years with Cruz Azul as a defender.
Toluca and Tigres to Contest CONCACAF Champions Cup Final
The 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup Final is an all Liga MX contest after Toluca rolled past LAFC 5-2 in the semifinals, while Tigres were 2-0 winners over Nashville SC. Both teams defeated three MLS opponents each to reach the final which is set to be played in Toluca.
Toluca seek a third Champion Cups title, having last made the final in 2014, while Tigres won their only title in this competition in 2020. Toluca have been the ascendant side in Liga MX in recent seasons, and beat Tigres in a recent domestic final last year. They will be without the services of midfielder Marcel Ruiz, however, along with a couple of other first choice players. The key man for Toluca is Portugese international Paulinho, arguably the best player in Liga MX. Tigres will see the career of Andre-Pierre Gignac, the legendary French striker, come to a conclusion in this match. This is a veteran side that has underperformed but remains talented, though they are underdogs away.
Belgrano Shockingly Lift Liga Argentina Apertura Title
Belgrano’s 3-2 upset of River Plate saw them lift their first ever club title. A side that finished 5th in their group in the domestic table, they were heavy underdogs against a more expensive and pedigreed River Plate side but that didn’t matter. Despite trailing most of the match, Belgrano substitue Nicolas ‘Uvita’ Fernandez scored a penalty in the 84th minute, and then scored once more in the dying minutes to make Belgrano champions by a margin of 3-2. Belgrano defeated Talleres Cordoba, Union de Santa Fe, and Argentinos Juniors on penalties to reach the final. Among their standouts are former MLS and Liga MX star Lucas Zelarayan, now 33.
Colombia’s Dimayor Final Pits Atletico Nacional against Junior de Barranquilla
Colombia’s Liga Betplay Dimayor final will pit table leaders Atletico Nacional, against defending champions (and second place on the table) Junior de Barranquilla. Playing a direct knockout playoff to determine a champion this season, Junior needed penalties to get past Santa Fe in the semifinals. Atletico Nacional have been an offensive powerhouse in these playoffs, despite slumping to finish the regular season. They beat Internacional de Bogota (owned by Ryan Reynolds) 9-2 across two games, scoring seven goals at home in a game where Bogota’s starting goalkeeper became injured. In the semifinal they vanquished Deportes Tolima 4-1.
They play the second leg of the final at home on June 8th, the first leg is played in Cartagena, not Barranquilla, on June 2nd. They will be without starting goalkeeper David Ospina, who was called up for the World Cup and is retiring from football after. Teenage midfielder Juan Rengifo is a revelation however, along with veteran players like Andres Felipe Roman and Alfredo Morelos.
Junior still seeks inspiration from veteran international Teo Guiterrez, and believe they can defend their title.
Independiente Medellin Fans Riot and Libertadores Game is cancelled
While their city rivals Atletico Nacional are in a tournament final, the struggles of Independiente Medellin to win a title reached a boiling point in recent weeks. After the club was eliminated from the Liga Betplay Dimayor playoffs due to a home defeat to Aguilas. The club president Raul Giraldo was seen walking off the field drunkenly taunting the teams supporters after the defeat.
The dramatic provocation, and Medellin’s poor form this season, in part sparked by the club’s sale of key players, led to a riot in the subsequent home game, a Copa Libertadores group stage clash against Brazil’s Flamengo. The game was cancelled just three minutes after kickoff, as Medellin fans set off fireworks and smoke bombs, threatened players, and smashed up portions of the stadium to protest club management and recent results.
Medellin will now compete in the Copa Sudamericana, but will also face sanctions for the conduct of the fans.
News and Notes from The Rest of South America
Brazil’s Serie A after 16 games has Palmeiras 7 points ahead of Flamengo, with Fluminense third and eight behind. Palmeiras is the only side in Brazil to have only lost one domestic game, though theirpoints Libertadores form was lacking. The biggest surprise in the table on the downside is Corinthians, who sit 15th, while RB Bragantino and Club Atletico Paranaense are surprisingly third and fourth.
Colo Colo are 8 points clear after 13 games in Chile’s league. Club Olimpia are 7 points clear with a game in hand in Paraguay over Nacional, while Alianza Lima lead in Peru by 6 points.
Inter Miami’s MLS Regular Season Continues to be Chaos
In MLS, it’s Nashville SC (10-3-1) and Vancouver Whitecaps (10-2-2), alongside San Jose Earthquakes who are leading their respective conferences, but the chaos of Inter Miami’s play continues to be a major talking point in the league. Inter Miami are sitting second in the Eastern Conference (9-4-2) but they have done it while conceding 28 goals and struggling in their new stadium at home. By contrast, they have scored a league leading 39 goals and are effectively playing “fast break” football, leaving gaps in the backline but able to rush forward and generate chances at will.
Lionel Messi has scored 12 goals and assisted on 7 this season. He is now preparing for the World Cup with Argentina, while Mexico international German Berterame has 7 goals, but has struggled to convert all of his scoring chances this season. It’s likely Inter Miami will be a playoff team once more, but the defending MLS champions are rolling the dice with their hectic style of play.
Main Photo Credit: Smartframe Images
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