# 2002 Categoría Primera A season

The 2002 Categoría Primera A season was the 54th season of Colombia's top-flight football league.

## Format

Starting from this year, the General Assembly of DIMAYOR approved the expansion of the tournament from 16 to 18 teams, adding to the league two of the three DIMAYOR "A-class" associates who were taking part of the Categoría Primera B at the time through a special promotion tournament. In addition to this, the league started awarding two championships per season, thus making the Apertura and Finalización tournaments independent championships within a single season.
For both the Apertura and Finalización tournaments, the 18 teams were first divided into three groups of six teams, playing five games, and then all teams in the league played each other once for a total of 22 matches. The semifinal round was played by the best eight teams at the end of the 22 matches, who were divided into two groups of four teams each according to their position at the end of the first stage: odd-ranked teams made up Group A, while even-ranked ones made up Group B. The winners of each group played the finals to decide the champions of each tournament.

## Torneo Apertura

The Torneo Apertura (officially the 2002 Copa Mustang I for sponsorship reasons) was the first tournament of the season. The tournament began on 3 February and ended on 19 June.

### First stage
#### Standings

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Deportivo Cali | 22 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 44 | 24 | +20 | 39 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 2 | Santa Fe | 22 | 10 | 8 | 4 | 26 | 13 | +13 | 38 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 3 | Atlético Nacional | 22 | 10 | 8 | 4 | 24 | 18 | +6 | 38 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 4 | Envigado | 22 | 10 | 6 | 6 | 21 | 18 | +3 | 36 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 5 | Deportivo Pasto | 22 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 29 | 27 | +2 | 34 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 6 | Atlético Bucaramanga | 22 | 9 | 6 | 7 | 24 | 22 | +2 | 33 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 7 | Unión Magdalena | 22 | 9 | 6 | 7 | 27 | 27 | 0 | 33 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 8 | América de Cali | 22 | 8 | 9 | 5 | 27 | 22 | +5 | 33 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 9 | Once Caldas | 22 | 9 | 5 | 8 | 36 | 29 | +7 | 32 | |
| 10 | Deportivo Pereira | 22 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 20 | 16 | +4 | 32 | |
| 11 | Deportes Quindío | 22 | 7 | 9 | 6 | 24 | 30 | −6 | 30 | |
| 12 | Junior | 22 | 7 | 5 | 10 | 19 | 25 | −6 | 26 | |
| 13 | Millonarios | 22 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 17 | 21 | −4 | 23 | |
| 14 | Atlético Huila | 22 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 21 | 32 | −11 | 22 | |
| 15 | Cortuluá | 22 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 16 | 25 | −9 | 21 | |
| 16 | Independiente Medellín | 22 | 4 | 9 | 9 | 26 | 32 | −6 | 21 | |
| 17 | Real Cartagena | 22 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 17 | 25 | −8 | 20 | |
| 18 | Deportes Tolima | 22 | 3 | 9 | 10 | 18 | 30 | −12 | 18 | |

### Semifinals
#### Group A

Standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Atlético Nacional | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 4 | +8 | 16 | Advanced to the Finals |
| 2 | Unión Magdalena | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 9 | +3 | 9 | |
| 3 | Deportivo Cali | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 11 | 13 | −2 | 8 | |
| 4 | Deportivo Pasto | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 13 | −9 | 1 | |
Results
| Home \ Away | NAC | CAL | PAS | MAG |
| Atlético Nacional | | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–1 |
| Deportivo Cali | 2–2 | | 3–1 | 4–1 |
| Deportivo Pasto | 0–2 | 1–1 | | 1–2 |
| Unión Magdalena | 0–1 | 6–0 | 2–1 | |

#### Group B

Standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | América de Cali | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 12 | Advanced to the Finals |
| 2 | Santa Fe | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 5 | +4 | 11 | |
| 3 | Envigado | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 4 | +2 | 8 | |
| 4 | Atlético Bucaramanga | 6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 10 | −6 | 2 | |
Results
| Home \ Away | AME | BUC | ENV | SFE |
| América de Cali | | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 |
| Atlético Bucaramanga | 0–1 | | 0–2 | 2–2 |
| Envigado | 2–0 | 1–1 | | 0–1 |
| Santa Fe | 2–0 | 3–1 | 0–0 | |

### Finals

| Date | City | Home | Score | Away |
| June 16 | Cali | América de Cali | 2–1 | Atlético Nacional |
| June 19 | Medellín | Atlético Nacional | 0–1 | América de Cali |
| América de Cali won 3–1 on aggregate score. |||||
* Champions América de Cali Twelfth Title

### Top goalscorers

| Rank | Name | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Luis Zuleta | Unión Magdalena | 13 |
| 2 | José Herrera | Unión Magdalena | 12 |
| 2 | Jorge Agudelo | Atlético Nacional | 12 |
| 4 | Carlos Castillo | Deportivo Cali | 11 |
| 4 | Leonardo Mina Polo | Deportivo Cali | 11 |
| 4 | Carlos Vilarete | Unión Magdalena | 11 |
| 7 | Wilson Carpintero | Atlético Bucaramanga | 9 |
| 7 | Giovanni Hernández | Deportivo Cali | 9 |
| 7 | Léider Preciado | Once Caldas | 9 |

## Torneo Finalización

The Torneo Finalización (officially the 2002 Copa Mustang II for sponsorship reasons) was the second tournament of the season. It began on 7 July and ended on 22 December.

### First stage
#### Standings

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Deportivo Cali | 22 | 14 | 5 | 3 | 38 | 15 | +23 | 47 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 2 | Deportivo Pasto | 22 | 11 | 3 | 8 | 32 | 33 | −1 | 36 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 3 | Independiente Medellín | 22 | 9 | 8 | 5 | 25 | 16 | +9 | 35 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 4 | América de Cali | 22 | 10 | 4 | 8 | 26 | 24 | +2 | 34 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 5 | Atlético Bucaramanga | 22 | 9 | 6 | 7 | 34 | 29 | +5 | 33 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 6 | Unión Magdalena | 22 | 9 | 6 | 7 | 25 | 26 | −1 | 33 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 7 | Deportes Tolima | 22 | 8 | 9 | 5 | 30 | 26 | +4 | 33 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 8 | Atlético Nacional | 22 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 28 | 21 | +7 | 32 | Advanced to the Semifinals |
| 9 | Santa Fe | 22 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 35 | 30 | +5 | 32 | |
| 10 | Once Caldas | 22 | 7 | 11 | 4 | 23 | 17 | +6 | 32 | |
| 11 | Deportes Quindío | 22 | 8 | 4 | 10 | 18 | 23 | −5 | 28 | |
| 12 | Cortuluá | 22 | 8 | 4 | 10 | 21 | 27 | −6 | 28 | |
| 13 | Deportivo Pereira | 22 | 7 | 5 | 10 | 27 | 34 | −7 | 26 | |
| 14 | Real Cartagena | 22 | 7 | 4 | 11 | 20 | 30 | −10 | 25 | |
| 15 | Atlético Huila | 22 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 21 | 29 | −8 | 25 | |
| 16 | Millonarios | 22 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 25 | 31 | −6 | 23 | |
| 17 | Junior | 22 | 4 | 9 | 9 | 27 | 33 | −6 | 21 | |
| 18 | Envigado | 22 | 3 | 6 | 13 | 16 | 27 | −11 | 15 | |

### Semifinals
#### Group A

Standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Independiente Medellín | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 11 | Advanced to the Finals |
| 2 | Deportivo Cali | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 5 | +3 | 10 | |
| 3 | Atlético Bucaramanga | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 8 | −3 | 7 | |
| 4 | Deportes Tolima | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | −3 | 5 | |
Results
| Home \ Away | BUC | TOL | CAL | DIM |
| Atlético Bucaramanga | | 2–0 | 1–2 | 1–0 |
| Deportes Tolima | 1–1 | | 2–0 | 1–3 |
| Deportivo Cali | 4–0 | 1–0 | | 0–1 |
| Independiente Medellín | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | |

#### Group B

Standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Deportivo Pasto | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 5 | +2 | 11 | Advanced to the Finals |
| 2 | América de Cali | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 6 | +2 | 10 | |
| 3 | Unión Magdalena | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 8 | −2 | 7 | |
| 4 | Atlético Nacional | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 5 | |
Results
| Home \ Away | AME | NAC | PAS | MAG |
| América de Cali | | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–0 |
| Atlético Nacional | 0–0 | | 1–1 | 2–0 |
| Deportivo Pasto | 2–0 | 1–0 | | 3–1 |
| Unión Magdalena | 3–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | |

### Finals

| Date | City | Home | Score | Away |
| December 18 | Medellín | Independiente Medellín | 2–0 | Deportivo Pasto |
| December 22 | Pasto | Deportivo Pasto | 1–1 | Independiente Medellín |
| Independiente Medellín won 3–1 on aggregate score. |||||
* Champions Independiente Medellín Third Title

### Top goalscorers

| Rank | Name | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Orlando Ballesteros | Atlético Bucaramanga | 13 |
| 1 | Milton Rodríguez | Deportivo Pereira | 13 |
| 3 | Léider Preciado | Deportivo Cali | 11 |
| 3 | Pablo Jaramillo | Deportivo Pasto | 11 |
| 5 | Ricardo Ciciliano | Deportes Tolima | 10 |
| 5 | Jairo Patiño | Deportivo Pasto | 10 |

## Aggregate table

An aggregate table including all games that a team played during the year was used to determine berths to both the Copa Libertadores and the Copa Sudamericana. The best-placed non-champion qualified for the 2003 Copa Libertadores along with both champions of the season, while the second and third best-placed non-champions qualified for the 2003 Copa Sudamericana.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Deportivo Cali | 56 | 30 | 14 | 12 | 101 | 57 | +44 | 104 | 2003 Copa Libertadores |
| 2 | América de Cali (C) | 58 | 27 | 14 | 17 | 63 | 58 | +5 | 95 | 2003 Copa Libertadores |
| 3 | Atlético Nacional | 58 | 24 | 19 | 15 | 68 | 49 | +19 | 91 | 2003 Copa Sudamericana |
| 4 | Deportivo Pasto | 58 | 23 | 14 | 21 | 73 | 81 | −8 | 83 | 2003 Copa Sudamericana |
| 5 | Unión Magdalena | 56 | 23 | 13 | 20 | 70 | 70 | 0 | 82 | |
| 6 | Santa Fe | 50 | 21 | 18 | 11 | 70 | 48 | +22 | 81 | |
| 7 | Atlético Bucaramanga | 56 | 20 | 15 | 21 | 67 | 69 | −2 | 75 | |
| 8 | Independiente Medellín (C) | 52 | 17 | 20 | 15 | 61 | 53 | +8 | 71 | 2003 Copa Libertadores |
| 9 | Once Caldas | 44 | 16 | 16 | 12 | 59 | 46 | +13 | 64 | |
| 10 | Envigado | 50 | 15 | 14 | 21 | 43 | 49 | −6 | 59 | |
| 11 | Deportivo Pereira | 44 | 15 | 13 | 16 | 47 | 50 | −3 | 58 | |
| 12 | Deportes Quindío | 44 | 15 | 13 | 16 | 42 | 53 | −11 | 58 | |
| 13 | Deportes Tolima | 50 | 12 | 20 | 18 | 53 | 64 | −11 | 56 | |
| 14 | Cortuluá | 44 | 13 | 10 | 21 | 37 | 52 | −15 | 49 | |
| 15 | Junior | 44 | 11 | 14 | 19 | 46 | 58 | −12 | 47 | |
| 16 | Atlético Huila | 44 | 11 | 14 | 19 | 42 | 61 | −19 | 47 | |
| 17 | Millonarios | 44 | 11 | 13 | 20 | 42 | 52 | −10 | 46 | |
| 18 | Real Cartagena | 44 | 11 | 12 | 21 | 37 | 55 | −18 | 45 | |

## Relegation

| Pos | Team | Pld | Pts | Avg | Relegation |
| 1 | América de Cali | 132 | 221 | 1.674 |
| 2 | Deportivo Cali | 132 | 221 | 1.674 |
| 3 | Santa Fe | 132 | 207 | 1.568 |
| 4 | Once Caldas | 132 | 205 | 1.553 |
| 5 | Atlético Nacional | 132 | 193 | 1.462 |
| 6 | Deportes Tolima | 132 | 188 | 1.424 |
| 7 | Millonarios | 132 | 180 | 1.364 |
| 8 | Deportivo Pasto | 132 | 176 | 1.333 |
| 9 | Junior | 132 | 173 | 1.311 |
| 10 | Independiente Medellín | 132 | 172 | 1.303 |
| 11 | Envigado | 132 | 170 | 1.288 |
| 12 | Cortuluá | 132 | 165 | 1.25 |
| 13 | Deportivo Pereira | 132 | 159 | 1.205 |
| 14 | Unión Magdalena | 132 | 154 | 1.167 |
| 15 | Atlético Bucaramanga | 132 | 154 | 1.167 |
| 16 | Deportes Quindío | 132 | 153 | 1.159 |
| 17 | Atlético Huila | 132 | 142 | 1.076 |
| 18 | Real Cartagena | 132 | 142 | 1.076 | Relegated to the Categoría Primera B |
Rules for classification: 1st average; 2nd wins; 3rd goal difference; 4th number of goals scored; 5th away goals scored.