page_title: Clube Atlético Mineiro in international club football
section_title: First titles and finals (1992–1998)
hierarchical_section_title: Clube Atlético Mineiro in international club football / History / First titles and finals (1992–1998)
caption_attribution_description: Português: Valdir de Moraes Filho, ex-atacante do Vasco.
context_page_description: The involvement of Clube Atlético Mineiro in international club football began in 1972, the year of its first appearance in an official competition at that level. Since then, the Brazilian club, based in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, has participated in 23 continental and one intercontinental tournament. Atlético Mineiro has won four official titles at the international level: the Copa Libertadores in 2013; the inaugural edition of the Copa CONMEBOL in 1992, and again in 1997; and the Recopa Sudamericana in 2014. In addition, the club finished as runner-up of the Copa CONMEBOL in 1995, the Copa de Oro in 1993, and the Copa Master de CONMEBOL in 1996.
  Prior to the existence of official continental football in South America, Atlético Mineiro had played against foreign clubs since 1929, and toured Europe in 1950. As Brazilian champion in 1971, the club qualified for the 1972 Copa Libertadores, its first continental tournament. Atlético Mineiro then debuted in the inaugural editions of the Copa CONMEBOL, in 1992, of the Copa de Oro, in 1993, and of the Copa Master de CONMEBOL, in 1996.
context_section_description: Atlético only returned to official international football in 1992, taking part in the inaugural edition of the Copa CONMEBOL, a new competition organised by the continental confederation; the club earned a berth in the competition by finishing third in the 1991 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A. Copa CONMEBOL was contested among 16 teams, which played two-legged knockout ties. In the first round, Atlético eliminated fellow Brazilian side Fluminense with an aggregate score of 6–3, after a 2–1 away loss and a 5–1 home victory. The team then faced Colombia's Atlético Junior in the quarter-finals, advancing with a 5–2 aggregate score. Ecuadorian side El Nacional was the opponent in the semi-finals, in which Atlético lost the first leg at Quito by 1–0 and won the second at home by 2–0 to advance. Olimpia, a team which Atlético had already faced in two Copa Libertadores tournaments, was the club's opposition in the finals. After a 2–0 home win with a brace by Negrini at the Mineirão, and a 1–0 away defeat at the Defensores del Chaco, Atlético won its first official international trophy. Aílton, an Atlético forward, scored six goals in the competition and was its top goalscorer.
  
  As the 1992 Copa CONMEBOL winner, Atlético Mineiro qualified for the following year's edition of the competition, and for the 1993 edition of the Copa de Oro, a new tournament organised by CONMEBOL, contested between the winners of all the continental competitions of the previous year: Copa Libertadores, Copa CONMEBOL, Supercopa Libertadores, and Copa Master de Supercopa. In the Copa de Oro, Atlético faced its biggest rivals Cruzeiro in the semi-final, played as a single match at the Mineirão, the home stadium for both clubs, in front of a crowd of both teams' fans. The game ended 0–0, and Atlético advanced to its second continental finals after winning a penalty shootout by 5–4. The team faced the Boca Juniors in the finals, and finished as runner-up after drawing the first leg 0–0 at the Mineirão, and losing the second 1–0 at La Bombonera. In the Copa CONMEBOL, Atlético again eliminated Fluminense in the first round (this time in a penalty shootout), and defeated Peru's Sipesa in the quarter-finals with an aggregate score of 2–1. Atlético club was eliminated in the semi-finals by Botafogo, the eventual winner of the tournament, after winning the first leg 3–1 at home, but losing the second 3–0.
  Absent from continental football for one season, Atlético Mineiro returned to the Copa CONMEBOL in the 1995 edition, qualifying after finishing fourth in the 1994 Brasileiro. The team eliminated Brazil's Guarani in the first stage with an aggregate score of 2–1, before defeating Venezuelan club Mineros de Guayana, with a club record home (6–0) and aggregate (10–0) win scores. In the semi-finals, Atlético faced Colombia's América de Cali, and advanced after winning a penalty shootout by 4–3, following a 4–3 away defeat, and a 1–0 home win. In its second Copa CONMEBOL final, Atlético faced Argentine side Rosario Central, and secured a significant advantage in the series with a 4–0 win at the Mineirão. However, in the second leg of the finals played in the Gigante de Arroyito, Atlético suffered a shocking 4–0 defeat, with a goal scored by Rosario at the 87th minute. The title was decided on penalties, with a 4–3 score favouring Central. In the following year, Atlético took part in the Copa Master de CONMEBOL, a single-edition competition contested in Cuiabá between the past winners of the Copa CONMEBOL: Atlético, Botafogo, São Paulo, and Rosario Central. Only a few months after the previous year's defeat, Atlético faced Central again, this time winning 10–9 on penalties after a 0–0 draw. Atlético lost to São Paulo 3–0 in the final match, played at the Verdão.
  After finishing third in the 1996 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, Atlético Mineiro qualified for the 1997 Copa CONMEBOL. Their opponent in the first stage was Série A runner-up Portuguesa, which had eliminated Atlético in the semi-finals of the national championship. This time, Atlético eliminated Portuguesa with
caption: Valdir, nicknamed Bigode ("Mustache"), was the top goalscorer of the 1997 Copa CONMEBOL with seven goals.
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