# 2012 Copa Libertadores

The 2012 Copa Libertadores de América (officially the 2012 Copa Santander Libertadores for sponsorship reasons) was the 53rd edition of the Copa Libertadores de América, South America's premier international club football tournament organized by CONMEBOL. It ran from January 24 to July 4, 2012. Santos were the defending champions, but lost to Corinthians in the semifinals.
São Paulo-based club Corinthians won the competition, with an undefeated campaign, after defeating six-time champion Boca Juniors in the finals. It is Corinthians' first Libertadores title. By winning the competition, Corinthians won the right to play in the 2012 FIFA Club World Cup and the 2013 Recopa Sudamericana.

## Qualified teams

| Association | Team (Berth) | Entry stage | Qualification method |
| Argentina 5 berths | Vélez Sársfield (Argentina 1) | Second Stage | 2011 Clausura champion |
| Argentina 5 berths | Boca Juniors (Argentina 2) | Second Stage | 2011 Apertura champion |
| Argentina 5 berths | Lanús (Argentina 3) | Second Stage | 2011 tournaments aggregate table best non-champion |
| Argentina 5 berths | Godoy Cruz (Argentina 4) | Second Stage | 2011 tournaments aggregate table 2nd best non-champion |
| Argentina 5 berths | Arsenal (Argentina 5) | First Stage | 2011 Copa Sudamericana best performing team not yet qualified |
| Bolivia 3 berths | Bolívar (Bolivia 1) | Second Stage | 2011 Adecuación champion |
| Bolivia 3 berths | The Strongest (Bolivia 2) | Second Stage | 2011 Apertura champion |
| Bolivia 3 berths | Real Potosí (Bolivia 3) | First Stage | 2011 Adecuación runner-up |
| Brazil 5+1 berths | Santos (Brazil 1) | Second Stage | 2011 Copa Libertadores de América champion |
| Brazil 5+1 berths | Corinthians (Brazil 2) | Second Stage | 2011 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A champion |
| Brazil 5+1 berths | Vasco da Gama (Brazil 3) | Second Stage | 2011 Copa do Brasil champion |
| Brazil 5+1 berths | Fluminense (Brazil 4) | Second Stage | 2011 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 3rd place |
| Brazil 5+1 berths | Flamengo (Brazil 5) | First Stage | 2011 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 4th place |
| Brazil 5+1 berths | Internacional (Brazil 6) | First Stage | 2011 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 5th place |
| Chile 3 berths | Universidad de Chile (Chile 1) | Second Stage | 2011 Apertura champion and 2011 Copa Sudamericana champion |
| Chile 3 berths | Universidad Católica (Chile 2) | Second Stage | 2011 Primera División aggregate table best non-champion |
| Chile 3 berths | Unión Española (Chile 3) | First Stage | 2011 Primera División aggregate table 2nd best non-champion |
| Colombia 3 berths | Atlético Nacional (Colombia 1) | Second Stage | 2011 Apertura champion |
| Colombia 3 berths | Junior (Colombia 2) | Second Stage | 2011 Finalización champion |
| Colombia 3 berths | Once Caldas (Colombia 3) | First Stage | 2011 Primera A aggregate table best non-champion |
| Ecuador 3 berths | Deportivo Quito (Ecuador 1) | Second Stage | 2011 Serie A champion |
| Ecuador 3 berths | Emelec (Ecuador 2) | Second Stage | 2011 Serie A runner-up |
| Ecuador 3 berths | El Nacional (Ecuador 3) | First Stage | 2011 Serie A 3rd place |
| Paraguay 3 berths | Olimpia (Paraguay 1) | Second Stage | 2011 Primera División aggregate table best champion |
| Paraguay 3 berths | Nacional (Paraguay 2) | Second Stage | 2011 Primera División aggregate table 2nd best champion |
| Paraguay 3 berths | Libertad (Paraguay 3) | First Stage | 2011 Primera División aggregate table best non-champion |
| Peru 3 berths | Juan Aurich (Peru 1) | Second Stage | 2011 Descentralizado champion |
| Peru 3 berths | Alianza Lima (Peru 2) | Second Stage | 2011 Descentralizado runner-up |
| Peru 3 berths | Sport Huancayo (Peru 3) | First Stage | 2011 Descentralizado 3rd place |
| Uruguay 3 berths | Nacional (Uruguay 1) | Second Stage | 2010–11 Primera División champion |
| Uruguay 3 berths | Defensor Sporting (Uruguay 2) | Second Stage | 2010–11 Primera División runner-up |
| Uruguay 3 berths | Peñarol (Uruguay 3) | First Stage | 2010–11 Primera División aggregate table 3rd place |
| Venezuela 3 berths | Deportivo Táchira (Venezuela 1) | Second Stage | 2010–11 Primera División champion |
| Venezuela 3 berths | Zamora (Venezuela 2) | Second Stage | 2010–11 Primera División runner-up |
| Venezuela 3 berths | Caracas (Venezuela 3) | First Stage | 2010–11 Primera División aggregate table best non-finalist |
| Mexico (CONCACAF) 3 invitees | Guadalajara (Mexico 1) | Second Stage | 2011 Apertura classification phase best eligible team |
| Mexico (CONCACAF) 3 invitees | Cruz Azul (Mexico 2) | Second Stage | 2011 Apertura classification phase 2nd best eligible team |
| Mexico (CONCACAF) 3 invitees | UANL (Mexico 3) | First Stage | 2011 Apertura classification phase 3rd best eligible team |

## Draw

The draw of the tournament was held on November 25, 2011, at 15:00 UTC−03:00, in Luque, Paraguay.
For the first stage, each of the six ties contains one team from each pot. For the second stage, each of the eight groups contains one team from each pot. Teams from the same association in Pots 1 and 3 cannot be placed in the same group. However, a first stage winner may be drawn with a team from the same association in the second stage.
As per agreement when deciding the seeding for the 2011 Copa Libertadores, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay all had their berth 1 teams be seeded teams for 2012 instead of the berth 1 teams from Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela for 2011.
First Stage :
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 |
| Arsenal$^†$ Flamengo$^†$ Internacional$^†$ Libertad$^†$ Peñarol UANL | Real Potosí$^†$ Unión Española$^†$ Once Caldas$^†$ El Nacional$^†$ Sport Huancayo$^†$ Caracas |
Second Stage :
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
| Santos Vélez Sársfield Boca Juniors$^†$ Corinthians$^†$ Bolívar Universidad de Chile Olimpia$^†$ Nacional | Atlético Nacional Junior$^†$ Deportivo Quito$^†$ Emelec$^†$ Juan Aurich$^†$ Alianza Lima$^†$ Deportivo Táchira Zamora | Lanús$^†$ Godoy Cruz$^†$ Vasco da Gama Fluminense$^†$ The Strongest$^†$ Universidad Católica$^†$ Nacional$^†$ Defensor Sporting | Arsenal$^†$ Flamengo$^†$ Peñarol Libertad$^†$ Internacional$^†$ Unión Española$^†$ Guadalajara Cruz Azul |
$^†$ Teams had not yet fully qualified to the specific berth when the draw took place.

## Schedule

All dates listed are Wednesdays, but matches may be played on the day before (Tuesdays) and after (Thursdays) as well.
| Stage | First leg | Second leg |
| First Stage | January 25 | February 1 |
| Second Stage | February 8, 15, 22 March 7, 14, 21, 28 April 4, 11, 18 | February 8, 15, 22 March 7, 14, 21, 28 April 4, 11, 18 |
| Round of 16 | April 25 May 2 | May 9 |
| Quarterfinals | May 16 | May 23 |
| Semifinals | June 13 | June 20 |
| Finals | June 27 | July 4 |

## First stage

The First Stage, played in home-and-away two-legged format, began on January 24 and ended on February 2. Team 1 played the second leg at home.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Sport Huancayo | 1–4 | Arsenal | 0–3 | 1–1 |
| Flamengo | 3–2 | Real Potosí | 1–2 | 2–0 |
| Caracas | 1–5 | Peñarol | 0–4 | 1–1 |
| Libertad | 4–2 | El Nacional | 0–1 | 4–1 |
| Once Caldas | 2–3 | Internacional | 0–1 | 2–2 |
| UANL | 2–3 | Unión Española | 0–1 | 2–2 |

## Second stage

The second stage, played in home-and-away round-robin format, began on February 7 and ended on April 19. The top two teams from each group advanced to the round of 16.

### Group 1

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | SAN | INT | STR | AUR |
| 1 | Santos | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 5 | +7 | 13 | | 3–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 |
| 2 | Internacional | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 6 | +4 | 8 | 1–1 | | 5–0 | 2–0 |
| 3 | The Strongest | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 11 | −6 | 7 | 2–1 | 1–1 | | 2–1 |
| 4 | Juan Aurich | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 9 | −5 | 6 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 1–0 | |

### Group 2

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | LAN | EME | FLA | OLI |
| 1 | Lanús | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 6 | +5 | 10 | | 1–0 | 1–1 | 6–0 |
| 2 | Emelec | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 8 | −1 | 9 | 0–2 | | 3–2 | 1–0 |
| 3 | Flamengo | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 10 | +2 | 8 | 3–0 | 1–0 | | 3–3 |
| 4 | Olimpia | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 16 | −6 | 7 | 2–1 | 2–3 | 3–2 | |

### Group 3

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | UE | BOL | JUN | UC |
| 1 | Unión Española | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 10 | | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 |
| 2 | Bolívar | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 7 | +2 | 10 | 1–3 | | 2–1 | 3–0 |
| 3 | Junior | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 7 | 2–1 | 0–1 | | 3–0 |
| 4 | Universidad Católica | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 6 | 11 | −5 | 6 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–2 | |

### Group 4

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | FLU | BOC | ARS | ZAM |
| 1 | Fluminense | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 15 | | 0–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 |
| 2 | Boca Juniors | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 3 | +6 | 13 | 1–2 | | 2–0 | 2–0 |
| 3 | Arsenal | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 7 | −1 | 6 | 1–2 | 1–2 | | 3–0 |
| 4 | Zamora | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 8 | −8 | 1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | |

### Group 5

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | LIB | VAS | NAC | ALI |
| 1 | Libertad | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 7 | +4 | 13 | | 1–1 | 2–1 | 4–1 |
| 2 | Vasco da Gama | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 6 | +4 | 13 | 2–0 | | 1–2 | 3–2 |
| 3 | Nacional | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 7 | −2 | 6 | 1–2 | 0–1 | | 1–0 |
| 4 | Alianza Lima | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 12 | −6 | 3 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–0 | |

### Group 6

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | COR | CAZ | NAC | TAC |
| 1 | Corinthians | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 2 | +11 | 14 | | 1–0 | 2–0 | 6–0 |
| 2 | Cruz Azul | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 4 | +7 | 11 | 0–0 | | 4–1 | 4–0 |
| 3 | Nacional | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 13 | −7 | 4 | 1–3 | 1–2 | | 3–2 |
| 4 | Deportivo Táchira | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 15 | −11 | 3 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | |

### Group 7

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | VEL | QUI | DEF | GDL |
| 1 | Vélez Sársfield | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 6 | +4 | 12 | | 1–0 | 1–3 | 3–0 |
| 2 | Deportivo Quito | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 4 | +7 | 10 | 3–0 | | 2–0 | 5–0 |
| 3 | Defensor Sporting | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 7 | −1 | 9 | 0–3 | 2–0 | | 1–0 |
| 4 | Guadalajara | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 12 | −10 | 4 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | |

### Group 8

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | UCH | ATN | GOD | PEÑ |
| 1 | Universidad de Chile | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 6 | +5 | 13 | | 2–1 | 5–1 | 2–1 |
| 2 | Atlético Nacional | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 16 | 8 | +8 | 11 | 2–0 | | 2–2 | 3–0 |
| 3 | Godoy Cruz | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 10 | 16 | −6 | 5 | 0–1 | 4–4 | | 1–0 |
| 4 | Peñarol | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 13 | −7 | 4 | 1–1 | 0–4 | 4–2 | |

## Knockout stages

The last four stages of the tournament (round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals), played in home-and-away two-legged format, form a single-elimination tournament, contested by the sixteen teams which advance from the Second Stage.

### Seeding

The 16 qualified teams are seeded in the knockout stages according to their results in the second stage, with the group winners seeded 1–8, and the group runners-up seeded 9–16. The teams were ranked by: 1. Points (Pts); 2. Goal difference (GD); 3. Goals scored (GF); 4. Away goals (AG); 5. Drawing of lots.
Teams qualified as group winners :
| Teams qualified as group winners Seed Team Pts GD GF AG 1 Fluminense15+375 2 Corinthians14+11134 3 Santos13+7125 4 Universidad de Chile13+5112 5 Libertad13+4114 6 Vélez Sársfield12+4105 7 Lanús10+5113 8 Unión Española10+3105 | Teams qualified as group runners-up Seed Team Pts GD GF AG 9 Boca Juniors13+594 10 Vasco da Gama13+4104 11 Atlético Nacional11+8169 12 Cruz Azul11+7113 13 Deportivo Quito10+7111 14 Bolívar10+293 15 Emelec9−173 16 Internacional8+4102 |

### Bracket

| Round of 16 | Round of 16 | Round of 16 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | | Finals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| 2 | Corinthians | 0 | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 15 | Emelec | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 15 | Emelec | 0 | 0 | 2 | Corinthians | 0 | 1 | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | 10 | Vasco da Gama | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | |
| 7 | Lanús | 1 | 2 (4) | 10 | Vasco da Gama | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | |
| 10 | Vasco da Gama | 2 | 1 (5) | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 10 | Vasco da Gama | 2 | 1 (5) | | | | | 2 | Corinthians | 1 | 1 | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | 3 | Santos | 0 | 1 | | | | | |
| 3 | Santos | 1 | 8 | | | | | | | | | 3 | Santos | 0 | 1 | | | | | |
| 14 | Bolívar | 2 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 14 | Bolívar | 2 | 0 | 3 | Santos (p) | 0 | 1 (4) | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | 6 | Vélez Sársfield | 1 | 0 (2) | | | | | | | | | |
| 6 | Vélez Sársfield | 1 | 1 | 6 | Vélez Sársfield | 1 | 0 (2) | | | | | | | | | |
| 11 | Atlético Nacional | 0 | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 11 | Atlético Nacional | 0 | 1 | | | | | | | | | | 2 | Corinthians | 1 | 2 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | 9 | Boca Juniors | 1 | 0 |
| 4 | U. de Chile | 1 | 6 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 9 | Boca Juniors | 1 | 0 |
| 13 | Deportivo Quito | 4 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 13 | Deportivo Quito | 4 | 0 | 4 | U. de Chile (p) | 1 | 1 (5) | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | 5 | Libertad | 1 | 1 (3) | | | | | | | | | |
| 5 | Libertad | 1 | 2 | 5 | Libertad | 1 | 1 (3) | | | | | | | | | |
| 12 | Cruz Azul | 1 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 12 | Cruz Azul | 1 | 0 | | | | | 4 | U. de Chile | 0 | 0 | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | 9 | Boca Juniors | 2 | 0 | | | | | |
| 1 | Fluminense | 0 | 2 | | | | | | | | | 9 | Boca Juniors | 2 | 0 | | | | | |
| 16 | Internacional | 0 | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 16 | Internacional | 0 | 1 | 1 | Fluminense | 0 | 1 | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | 9 | Boca Juniors | 1 | 1 | | | | | | | | | |
| 8 | Unión Española | 1 | 2 | 9 | Boca Juniors | 1 | 1 | | | | | | | | | |
| 9 | Boca Juniors | 2 | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

### Round of 16

The Round of 16 began on April 25 and ended on May 10. Team 1 played the second leg at home.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Fluminense | 2–1 | Internacional | 0–0 | 2–1 |
| Corinthians | 3–0 | Emelec | 0–0 | 3–0 |
| Santos | 9–2 | Bolívar | 1–2 | 8–0 |
| Universidad de Chile | 7–4 | Deportivo Quito | 1–4 | 6–0 |
| Libertad | 3–1 | Cruz Azul | 1–1 | 2–0 |
| Vélez Sársfield | 2–1 | Atlético Nacional | 1–0 | 1–1 |
| Lanús | 3–3 (4–5 p) | Vasco da Gama | 1–2 | 2–1 |
| Unión Española | 3–5 | Boca Juniors | 1–2 | 2–3 |

### Quarter-finals

The Quarter-finals began on May 16 and ended on May 24. Team 1 played the second leg at home.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Fluminense | 1–2 | Boca Juniors | 0–1 | 1–1 |
| Corinthians | 1–0 | Vasco da Gama | 0–0 | 1–0 |
| Santos | 1–1 (4–2 p) | Vélez Sársfield | 0–1 | 1–0 |
| Universidad de Chile | 2–2 (5–3 p) | Libertad | 1–1 | 1–1 |

### Semi-finals

The Semifinals began on June 13 and ended on June 21. Team 1 played the second leg at home.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Corinthians | 2–1 | Santos | 1–0 | 1–1 |
| Universidad de Chile | 0–2 | Boca Juniors | 0–2 | 0–0 |

### Finals

The Finals were played over two legs, with the higher-seeded team playing the second leg at home. If the teams were tied on points and goal difference at the end of regulation in the second leg, the away goals rule would not be applied and 30 minutes of extra time would be played. If still tied after extra time, the title would be decided by penalty shootout.
Corinthians won on points 3–1.
* Copa Libertadores de América 2012 Champion
* Corinthians First Title

## Top goalscorers

| Pos | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Matías Alustiza | Deportivo Quito | 8 |
| 1 | Neymar | Santos | 8 |
| 3 | Dorlan Pabón | Atlético Nacional | 7 |
| 4 | Junior Fernándes | Universidad de Chile | 6 |
| 4 | Leandro Damião | Internacional | 6 |
| 6 | Emerson | Corinthians | 5 |
| 6 | Emanuel Herrera | Unión Española | 5 |
| 6 | Javier Orozco | Cruz Azul | 5 |
| 9 | Danilo | Corinthians | 4 |
| 9 | Ángelo Henríquez | Universidad de Chile | 4 |
| 9 | Alan Kardec | Santos | 4 |
| 9 | Luis Fernando Mosquera | Atlético Nacional | 4 |
| 9 | José Ariel Núñez | Libertad | 4 |
| 9 | Mariano Pavone | Lanús | 4 |
| 9 | Mario Regueiro | Lanús | 4 |
| 9 | Matías Rodríguez | Universidad de Chile | 4 |
Source:

## Awards
### Player of the week

| Week | Player | Team |
| Jan 31 – Feb 2 | Andrés D'Alessandro | Internacional |
| Feb 7–9 | Javier Orozco | Cruz Azul |
| Feb 14–16 | Pablo Escobar | The Strongest |
| Feb 21–23 | Dorlan Pabón | Atlético Nacional |
| Mar 6–8 | Deco | Fluminense |
| Mar 13–15 | Leandro Damião | Internacional |
| Mar 20–22 | Mario Regueiro | Lanús |
| Mar 27–29 | Sergio Órteman | Olimpia |
| Apr 3–5 | Luciano Figueroa | Emelec |
| Apr 10–12 | Darío Cvitanich | Boca Juniors |
| Apr 17–19 | Matías Alustiza | Deportivo Quito |
| May 1–3 | Fidel Martínez | Deportivo Quito |
| May 8–10 | Juan Román Riquelme | Boca Juniors |
| May 16–17 | Iván Obolo | Vélez Sársfield |
| May 23–24 | Johnny Herrera | Universidad de Chile |

### Fair play award

The Samsung Fair Play Trophy was awarded to Brazilian club Corinthians.