2018 Copa Libertadores final stages


The 2018 Copa Libertadores final stages were played from 7 August to 9 December 2018. A total of 16 teams competed in the final stages to decide the champions of the 2018 Copa Libertadores.

Qualified teams

The winners and runners-up of each of the eight groups in the group stage advanced to the round of 16.
GroupWinnersRunners-up
A Grêmio Cerro Porteño
B Atlético Nacional Colo-Colo
C Libertad Atlético Tucumán
D River Plate Flamengo
E Cruzeiro Racing
F Santos Estudiantes
G Corinthians Independiente
H Palmeiras Boca Juniors

Seeding


Starting from the round of 16, the teams were seeded according to their results in the group stage, with the group winners seeded 1–8, and the group runners-up seeded 9–16.

Format


Starting from the round of 16, the teams played a single-elimination tournament with the following rules:
  • Each tie was played on a home-and-away two-legged basis, with the higher-seeded team hosting the second leg.
  • In the round of 16, quarterfinals, and semifinals, if tied on aggregate, the away goals rule would be used. If still tied, extra time would not be played, and the penalty shoot-out would be used to determine the winner.
  • In the [|finals], if tied on aggregate, the away goals rule would not be used, and 30 minutes of extra time would be played. If still tied after extra time, the penalty shoot-out would be used to determine the winner.

    Draw


The draw for the round of 16 was held on 4 June 2018, 20:00 PYT, at the CONMEBOL Convention Centre in Luque, Paraguay. For the round of 16, the 16 teams were drawn into eight ties between a group winner and a group runner-up, with the group winners hosting the second leg. Teams from the same association or the same group could be drawn into the same tie.

Bracket

The bracket starting from the round of 16 was determined as follows:
RoundMatchups
Round of 16
  • Match A
  • Match B
  • Match C
  • Match D
  • Match E
  • Match F
  • Match G
  • Match H
Quarterfinals
  • Match S1: Winner A vs. Winner H
  • Match S2: Winner B vs. Winner G
  • Match S3: Winner C vs. Winner F
  • Match S4: Winner D vs. Winner E
Semifinals
  • Match F1: Winner S1 vs. Winner S4
  • Match F2: Winner S2 vs. Winner S3
Finals
  • Winner F1 vs. Winner F2

The bracket was decided based on the round of 16 draw, which was held on 4 June 2018.

Round of 16

The first legs were played on 7–9 and 21 August, and the second legs were played on 28–30 August 2018.

Match A

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River Plate won 3–0 on aggregate and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Match B

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Tied 2–2 on aggregate, Colo-Colo won on away goals and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Match C

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Cruzeiro won 2–1 on aggregate and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Match D

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Tied 3–3 on aggregate, Grêmio won on penalties and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Match E

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Atlético Tucumán won 2–1 on aggregate and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Match F

----
Boca Juniors won 6–2 on aggregate and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Match G

----
Palmeiras won 2–1 on aggregate and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Match H

----
Independiente won 3–0 on aggregate and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Quarterfinals

The first legs were played on 18–20 September, and the second legs were played on 2–4 October 2018.

Match S1

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River Plate won 3–1 on aggregate and advanced to the semifinals.

Match S2

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Palmeiras won 4–0 on aggregate and advanced to the semifinals.

Match S3

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Boca Juniors won 3–1 on aggregate and advanced to the semifinals.

Match S4

----
Grêmio won 6–0 on aggregate and advanced to the semifinals.

Semifinals

The first legs were played on 23–24 October, and the second legs were played on 30–31 October 2018.

Match F1

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Tied 2–2 on aggregate, River Plate won on away goals and advanced to the finals.

Match F2

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Boca Juniors won 4–2 on aggregate and advanced to the finals.

Finals

In the finals, if tied on aggregate, the away goals rule would not be used, and 30 minutes of extra time would be played. If still tied after extra time, the penalty shoot-out would be used to determine the winner.
The first leg was played on 11 November, and the second leg was played on 9 December 2018.

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River Plate won 5–3 on aggregate.