Vasco face tough foreign rivals in Copa Sudamericana draw, date here | OneFootball

The international path presents gigantic challenges right at the starting line. Vasco secured its place in pot 2 of the group stage draw for the 2026 Copa Sudamericana. Conmebol confirmed the final list with the 32 qualified clubs this week, shortly after Juventud was eliminated by Independiente Medellín in the preliminary phases of the competition.

The exact definition of the groups will occur next Thursday (19th). The official event will start at 8 PM, Brasília time, directly from the headquarters of the South American football governing body, located in the city of Luque, Paraguay. The ceremony will also organize the main draw for the Libertadores on the same night.

+ Vasco's Path in the Sudamericana May Include Libertadores Champions in the Group

Vasco's Possible Opponents

The draw rule prevents matches between teams from the same country in the group stage, narrowing down Vasco's options. The Rio team will necessarily fall into the group of one of the four foreign clubs heading pot 1. The squad will face River Plate or Racing, both from Argentina, Olimpia from Paraguay, or América de Cali from Colombia.

Brazil has seven representatives competing for the title. Atlético-MG, São Paulo, Grêmio, and Santos occupy pot 1 as group leaders. Red Bull Bragantino is in pot 2 alongside Vasco. Botafogo ended up in pot 4 due to coming from the preliminary eliminatory phase, a detail that nullifies the national restriction and allows the rival to face other Brazilian teams right away.

The Official Calendar and the Quest for the Trophy

The official schedule sets the start of the first round between April 7 and 9. The group stage will demand a lot of stamina from the teams and will extend until the end of May. Teams advancing in second place will compete in the playoffs in July, while the leaders go straight to the round of 16 in August. The quarterfinals will occur in September, followed by the semifinals in October, leading up to the grand final in a single match scheduled for November 21.

The sports institution's goal is to achieve maximum glory and inherit the crown that currently belongs to Lanús. The Argentine team holds the status of current champion but is competing in the Libertadores this season precisely as a reward for this previous achievement, leaving the Sudamericana trophy vacant.

Vasco's football management awaits the draw to expedite the logistics of international travel and assess the real difficulty of the group in the quest for the unprecedented title.

Spinelli is one of Vasco's key players for the Sudamericana – Photo: Jorge Rodrigues/AGIF

+ Follow Papo na Colina's social media: Thread, Bluesky, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, Tiktok and Google News.

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