The Copa Libertadores is the biggest tournament in South America, where every team in the competition faces off to see who is the best. It is important not only for the teams and players but base also for the fa. Most South American soccer players dream of winning a Libertadores with their childhood team – however, it is very difficult. Not even arguably the best player of all time, Lionel Messi, has won this Copa, so it is quite a big deal. So the fact that Peñarol, a club in such a small country like Uruguay, has 5 Copa Libertadores is remarkable considering only two other teams have more Liberatores than them, Boca Juniors and Independiente (Argentina). Even though it has almost been 40 years since their last Copa Libertadores, this year looked like it was going to be their year. They were beating teams with ease and even beat a Brazilian club team, but against Botafogo, they were unmatched.
For the past couple of years, the Argentine and Brazilian Leagues wound up battling for the Libertadores. Though it was clear the strength and advantage these Brazilian teams had throughout the tournament in 2024. In the quarter-finals, five out of the eight teams were Brazilian and dominated any non-Brazilian team they faced. Their stadiums, equipment, and players had made others stand no chance against them. Not to mention the pure talent some of the young starting players possess was incredible. So when playing against any other South American team, making it is impossible for others to compete.
Botafogo has been playing at a very high level in the Libertadores and is first in the Liga Brasileirão, so they were expected to go far in the competition. In the semis, Peñarol had to go against this monster team in Brazil’s Nilton Santos Olympic Stadium, making it a very tough game for them – so when they lost, it was expected, but losing 5-0 was excessive. Many people have their theories as to why they beat Peñarol by that margin but sometimes there are facts that people can not overlook. Even though historically Peñarol is more powerful, financially they cannot compete with a Brazilian team for three reasons. Brazilian teams have high-quality players, are economically strong, and are a powerhouse in the soccer industry. All these three things correlate with each other which put the Brazilian league on a completely different level to the other teams around South America.
Even though every country creates good players, the amount of Brazilians playing soccer around the world is unmatched. The talent that Brazil naturally generates is unlike any other country. As of May of 2023, about 1,300 Brazilians were playing internationally, and that number is only growing. The recognition these club teams have only made recruits go more toward them generating the club more money and power. Clubs like Peñarol are recognized but have nothing like the amount of coverage Brazilian teams have. By having coverage, more and more players want to play in the Brazilian league, making it more competitive and a force for their competitors in the Copa Libertadores.
I believe that Peñarol played a bad game in the second half where all five goals were scored, but also they were not fully prepared for who they were going to face. In comparison, Peñarol is economically in debt and does not have the resources all of these teams have. When they lost by that deficit I was disappointed, because I knew they could play better, but at the end of the day, they were not going to beat them. Many people thought because they beat Flamengo they would be able to beat Botafogo but the level of comparison between those teams is drastic. In conclusion, sometimes passion and fight cannot beat skill and power, no matter how good the other team plays that day. Peñarol now has to face Botafogo at home, which will be a quite predictable match – because no matter how hard they try, the five-goal deficit still stands. There are some positives that some players in Botafogo are out because of double yellow cards but this team is just too strong to let Peñarol win by that deficit and go to the finals. In sum, no matter how hard the team plays, they can not overcompensate for the power and resources these Brazilian clubs have. So, in the future, the other South American clubs will have to find ways to combat this obvious advantage and make things more difficult for a Brazilian team to win the Copa Libertadores.