Corinthians aim to match 2003 for second-best Libertadores start | OneFootball

Corinthians host Uruguay’s Peñarol on Thursday night (30) at 9 p.m. (Brasília time) at Neo Química Arena, in a match valid for the third round of the 2026 Conmebol Libertadores group stage. The Alvinegro currently lead Group E with six points, having beaten Platense-ARG and Santa Fe-COL, both by 2-0 scores, in the first two rounds — in 1996 and 2016, Timão also won their first two matches.

If they beat the Uruguayans on Thursday night, the club from Parque São Jorge will match its second-best start in the history of the international competition. In 2003, Corinthians won their first three group-stage matches, defeating Mexico’s Cruz Azul (1-0), Uruguay’s Fénix (2-1) and Bolivia’s The Strongest (4-1).

Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

Fernando Diniz’s side can also aim to match Corinthians’ best-ever Libertadores start when, in 2015, then coached by Tite, they took three points in the first four rounds: São Paulo (2-0), Argentina’s San Lorenzo (1-0) and Uruguay’s Danubio (2-1 and 4-0).

If they win, Corinthians can also take a big step toward reaching the round of 16, something that has not happened since 2022, when they were knocked out by Flamengo in the quarterfinals. In 2023 and 2025, Timão were eliminated in the group stage and the preliminary stage, respectively. The three points could take the Alvinegro to nine points. With Santa Fe having lost to Platense in Argentina by 2-1, Peñarol could find themselves in trouble in the race for a knockout-stage spot, as they could only reach 10 points.

It is worth remembering that Corinthians are seeking an international title for the first time since 2013, when they beat São Paulo 4-1 on aggregate in the final of that year’s Recopa Sudamericana. In the Libertadores, the Alvinegro are looking to win it again 14 years after their only title in the tournament so far (2012).

Corinthians’ best Libertadores starts:

2015

Corinthians 4 x 0 Danubio – 04/01/2015 – Libertadores 2015 Danubio 1 x 2 Corinthians – 03/17/2015 – Libertadores 2015 San Lorenzo 0 x 1 Corinthians – 03/04/2015 – Libertadores 2015 Corinthians 2 x 0 São Paulo – 02/18/2015 – Libertadores 2015

2003

Corinthians 4 x 1 The Strongest – 03/11/2003 – Libertadores 2003 Fénix-URU 1 x 2 Corinthians – 02/19/2003 – Libertadores 2003 Corinthians 1 x 0 Cruz Azul – 02/05/2003 – Libertadores 2003

1996

Universidad Católica 2 x 3 Corinthians – 03/19/1996 – Libertadores 1996 Corinthians 3 x 0 Botafogo – 03/13/1996 – Libertadores 1996

2016

Corinthians 1 x 0 Independiente Santa Fe – 03/02/2016 – Libertadores 2016 Cobresal 0 x 1 Corinthians – 02/17/2016 – Libertadores 2016

2026

Corinthians 2 x 0 Independiente Santa Fe – 04/15/2026 – Libertadores 2026 Platense 0 x 2 Corinthians – 04/09/2026 – Libertadores 2026

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