Corinthians seal 2026 Libertadores last-16 spot with games to spare | OneFootball

By Fabio Luigi / Central do Timão Editorial Team

On the night of this Thursday (7), Corinthians secured, in advance, their place in the round of 16 of the 2026 Conmebol Libertadores. The confirmation came after the 1-1 draw between Platense of Argentina and Peñarol of Uruguay on Argentine soil. As a result, just like Santa Fe-COL, the Uruguayans can only reach a maximum of eight points by the end of the group stage.

The runner-up is Platense itself, with seven points and only remote chances of being eliminated. It is worth noting that the club from Parque São Jorge leads Group E outright with 10 points — three wins and one draw — seven goals scored and one conceded. So far, Timão have beaten Platense-ARG (A), Santa Fe-COL (H) and Peñarol-URU, all by a score of 2-0.

Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

Besides Corinthians, the other team already qualified for the knockout stage is Independiente Rivadavia of Argentina, who have 10 points and lead Group C — where Fluminense sit bottom with two points. Until the end of the group stage, Alvinegro will look to maintain the best overall campaign in the international tournament and will face Peñarol-URU (A) and Platense-ARG (H) on May 21 and 27, respectively, to keep that status.

Fernando Diniz’s men will also seek Corinthians’ best Conmebol Libertadores campaign since the unbeaten title run in 2012 — still the club’s only title in the tournament’s history, when Timão beat Boca Juniors of Argentina in the final. Since then, Timão were eliminated in the round of 16 in 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2018. In 2022, they were knocked out in the quarterfinals. In 2023, they exited in the group stage. Finally, in 2020 and 2025, they were eliminated in the preliminary stage.

After the draw against Santa Fe of Colombia at El Campín Stadium in the Libertadores group stage, Corinthians now turn their attention back to the Brazilian Championship. That is because next Sunday (10), Alvinegro will host São Paulo at Neo Química Arena at 6:30 p.m. (Brasília time) in the 15th round of the national competition. Currently, Timão are the first team inside the relegation zone with 15 points — three wins, six draws and five losses — 10 goals scored and 13 conceded.

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