Corinthians draw biggest crowd of 2026 on Libertadores qualifying night | OneFootball

The victory over Rosario Central of Argentina did more than just secure Corinthians’ place in the Conmebol Libertadores quarterfinals. The match played on Thursday night (20) at Neo Química Arena also set a new attendance record for the club in the 2026 season.

In total, 46,552 fans watched Corinthians’ 1-0 win from the stands. Breno Bidon scored the only goal of the match in the 35th minute of the second half, a result that put Timão back among the eight best teams in the continental competition.

Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

The presence of the Fiel surpassed the crowd recorded in the 0-0 draw against Palmeiras in the Brazilian Championship, which until then held the top spot among the club’s highest attendances of the year. In that Derby, played in April, 46,263 paying fans were at Neo Química Arena.

Another derby against their green-clad rivals comes next in the ranking. In the Campeonato Paulista in February, 45,209 fans watched Corinthians’ 1-0 defeat. That means the club’s three highest home attendances in Itaquera this season have all surpassed the 45,000 paying fans mark.

Besides taking the lead in attendance, the match against Rosario Central also ranked among the club’s biggest box-office revenues in 2026. The Libertadores clash generated R$ 3,818,916.00, the second-highest figure recorded by Timão this year.

In that category, the highest revenue still belongs to the Derby played in the Campeonato Paulista. The meeting with Palmeiras on February 8 brought in R$ 3,854,774.00 for the club’s coffers. The difference between the two totals was just over R$ 35,000.

The huge crowd came for one of Corinthians’ most important matches of the season so far. After a 0-0 draw in the first leg at Gigante de Arroyito, the black-and-white side hosted Rosario Central needing a win to advance directly. Breno Bidon’s goal sealed the 1-0 victory and prevented the spot from being decided on penalties.

With the qualification, Corinthians return to the Libertadores quarterfinals after four years. The last time the club had reached this stage was in 2022. Now, they will once again face Argentine opposition, with Estudiantes next in the black-and-white side’s path. The matches are scheduled for September 9 and 16.

After securing their Libertadores spot, Corinthians now turn their attention to the Brazilian Championship. Next Sunday (23), at 7:30 p.m. Brasília time, Fernando Diniz’s team will visit Coritiba at Couto Pereira Stadium for the 24th round.

Timão are currently ninth in the national tournament with 32 points. Their campaign includes eight wins, eight draws, and seven defeats, as well as 25 goals scored and 22 conceded.

See Corinthians’ ten highest attendances at Neo Química Arena in 2026

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.