About Copa Sudamericana

Copa Sudamericana (Spanish: [ˈkopa suðameɾiˈkana]; Portuguese: Copa Sul-Americana [ˈkɔpɐ ˈsuw ɐmeɾiˈkɐnɐ]) is an annual international football club competition organized by CONMEBOL. Also known as the South American Club Cup or Copa Sudamericana de Clubes, it is an annual international football club event hosted by CONMEBOL and the second-largest club cup competition in South America, similar to the UEFA Europa League in Europe. A key difference, however, is that a single club can participate in both the Copa Libertadores and the Copa Sudamericana as long as it meets the competition format requirements. Matches are scheduled from August to December in the second half of the year, completely stagger from the timing of the Copa Libertadores.

Cup History

The Copa Sudamericana was established in 2002, but its origins can be traced back to competitions such as the CONMEBOL Cup (founded in 1992) and the Copa Mercosur (launched in 1998). When the Copa Sudamericana was officially founded in 2002, Brazilian football clubs did not participate in that year’s tournament. In 2003, Japanese automaker Nissan began sponsoring the event, and Brazilian teams started to take part.