- Fluminense, Estudiantes, Platense, Palmeiras, Flamengo, Liga de Quito and Corinthians secured their places among the final eight teams in the 2026 CONMEBOL Libertadores.
- The final spot will be decided on Tuesday, August 25, when Independiente del Valle host Deportes Tolima with the advantage earned in Colombia.
The parity that had defined the opening week of the Round of 16 gave way to a week packed with decisive matches. Three ties required penalty shootouts, four were settled by victories in the second legs, and seven teams already know their next challenge on the road to ‘Eternal Glory’.
Fluminense, Palmeiras, Flamengo and Corinthians maintained Brazil’s strong presence in the competition; Estudiantes and Platense progressed for Argentina; while Liga de Quito returned to the continent’s final eight. The Quarter-final lineup will be completed on Tuesday, August 25, when Independiente del Valle and Deportes Tolima meet in the final match of the round.
Independiente Rivadavia 1-1 Fluminense (1-1 on aggregate, 4-5 on penalties)
Fluminense had to endure an extraordinary night to keep their campaign alive. Agustín Canobbio’s dismissal 12 minutes into the second half left the Brazilian side with ten men, but Marcão’s substitutions produced an immediate response. Kevin Serna came off the bench and opened the scoring after an assist from Hércules.
Independiente Rivadavia kept pushing until the very last action and found the equalizer through a penalty converted by Álex Arce, the competition’s leading scorer, in the 97th minute. The outcome was then left in Fábio’s hands: the goalkeeper saved the attempts from José Florentín and Rodrigo Atencio to seal a 5-4 shootout victory. The 2023 champions will face Platense in the Quarter-finals.
Universidad Católica 0-3 Estudiantes (1-4 on aggregate)
Estudiantes carried into Santiago the superiority they had shown for long stretches of the first leg and this time managed to reflect it on the scoreboard. Joaquín Correa replaced the injured Tiago Palacios and opened the scoring before half-time with a finish at the near post.
Guido Carrillo completed the victory with two goals in the second half. He first headed home a cross from Eros Mancuso before getting in front of his marker inside the box to make it 3-0. The captain reached 14 goals for Estudiantes in the competition, surpassing Juan Ramón Verón and Mauro Boselli to become the club’s all-time leading scorer in the CONMEBOL Libertadores. ‘El Pincha’ will face Corinthians in the Quarter-finals.
Deportes Tolima 0-1 Independiente del Valle: the only tie still to be decided
The tie, rescheduled following the earthquake in Colombia, began with an away victory. Independiente del Valle made the most of their first clear opportunity in Ibagué: Emerson Pata broke down the right and Arón Rodríguez arrived inside the box to head home.
Deportes Tolima took the initiative after conceding and created chances to equalize, but Aldair Quintana responded whenever called upon, while Junior Hernández struck the post with a free kick. The Ecuadorian side thus became the only team to win the first leg among the eight Round of 16 ties and will host their opponents in Quito on Tuesday, August 25. The winner of the tie will face Flamengo.
Coquimbo Unido 0-0 Platense (0-0 on aggregate, 6-7 on penalties)
The tie between two of the tournament’s surprise packages remained evenly balanced throughout the 180 minutes. Coquimbo Unido looked to take the initiative in front of their home supporters, while Platense defended with discipline and also found spaces to threaten. Nicolás López came close to settling the tie before the final whistle, but his effort struck the crossbar.
All seven of ‘El Calamar’s’ penalty takers converted in the shootout. Juan Pablo Cozzani even stepped up to take the sixth penalty before saving Salvador Cordero’s attempt to seal the tie. Platense, making their first-ever appearance in international competition, advanced to the Quarter-finals, where they will face Fluminense.
Cerro Porteño 0-1 Palmeiras (1-2 on aggregate)
Palmeiras found the difference they needed through their captain to overcome a highly demanding tie. Gustavo Gómez headed home a corner delivered by Jhon Arias in the 41st minute of the first half to score the only goal of the night at La Nueva Olla.
Cerro Porteño pushed higher up the pitch after the break and searched for an equalizer deep into stoppage time. Carlos Miguel preserved the lead with a decisive save from Pablo Vegetti, allowing Abel Ferreira’s side to seal a 2-1 aggregate victory. Palmeiras will meet Liga de Quito again in the Quarter-finals, after facing them in the 2025 Semi-finals.
Flamengo 2-1 Cruzeiro (3-2 on aggregate)
The defending champions had to draw on their quality to settle another all-Brazilian tie. Giorgian De Arrascaeta opened the scoring after combining with Pedro in a quick one-two, but Cruzeiro responded early in the second half through a powerful strike from Lucas Romero outside the box.
The deadlock lasted just eleven minutes. Pedro was involved in the build-up once again, setting up Samu Lino, who beat his marker before finishing past Otávio to make it 2-1. Flamengo completed a 3-2 aggregate victory and will face the winner of Independiente del Valle-Deportes Tolima.
Liga de Quito 0-0 Mirassol (1-1 on aggregate, 5-4 on penalties)
Mirassol managed to contain the Ecuadorian side for much of the afternoon and created the more dangerous chances in the closing stages. Gonzalo Valle responded to the visitors’ attempts and produced a decisive save from Daniel Borges in stoppage time.
The goalkeeper extended his influence into the shootout by saving Mirassol’s first penalty, taken by Victor Luis. All five Liga players converted their spot kicks, with Fernando Cornejo sealing the 5-4 victory with the final attempt. The 2008 champions advanced to the Quarter-finals for the second consecutive edition, where they will have another chance against Palmeiras.
Corinthians 1-0 Rosario Central (1-0 on aggregate)
Corinthians had to play much of the second half with ten men following Raniele’s dismissal. Rosario Central then had the opportunity to take the lead, but Enzo Copetti was unable to convert a one-on-one chance against Hugo Souza.
Fernando Diniz’s side found the breakthrough with ten minutes remaining. Memphis Depay, who had just come off the bench, delivered a cross from the left and Breno Bidon got in front of his marker inside the box to make it 1-0. Hugo Souza preserved the advantage with a late save from Alan Rodríguez and confirmed the Brazilian side’s place in the Quarter-finals, where they will face Estudiantes for a spot in the Semi-finals.
