- Finalists in the 2024 CONMEBOL Libertadores and the 2025 CONMEBOL Sudamericana, the ‘Galo’ have reached the continental Semi-finals for the third year in a row, their sixth time in the 21st century.
- The Belo Horizonte side will face Montevideo City Torque with the Final in Barranquilla as their goal and an international title that has eluded them since the 2014 Recopa.
There is a way of telling Atlético Mineiro's last three years that hurts and another that brings hope. The one that hurts: 30 November 2024, Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires, CONMEBOL Libertadores Final, Botafogo down to ten men from the start after Gregore's red card, and still 3-1 to the Rio de Janeiro side. A year later, 22 November 2025, Defensores del Chaco, CONMEBOL Sudamericana Final, 0-0 with Lanús after 120 minutes and a 5-4 defeat on penalties. Two consecutive continental finals, two defeats.
The one that brings hope is the same story told the other way round: few clubs on the continent have reached the decisive stages so often in this period. Atlético Mineiro have reached the Semi-finals of a continental competition for the third year in a row. It is their sixth appearance at this stage in the 21st century, after 2013, 2019, 2021, 2024 and 2025. Nobody can say the ‘Galo’ have stopped trying.
The 2024 campaign brought the greatest hope. They won their group with 15 points and knocked out San Lorenzo in the Round of 16, Fluminense in the Quarter-finals and River Plate in the Semi-finals. The Final against Botafogo had everything to be theirs: the ‘Galo’ played with an extra man from the first minute and, after going 2-0 down in the first half to goals from Luiz Henrique and an Alex Telles penalty, Eduardo Vargas pulled one back two minutes after the restart, leaving them the entire second half to chase an equalizer. It was not enough: Júnior Santos sealed the 3-1 in stoppage time.
2025 was the campaign of obsession. Second in their group behind Cienciano, the Belo Horizonte side knocked out Bucaramanga on penalties in the play-offs, Godoy Cruz in the Round of 16, Bolívar in the Quarter-finals and Independiente del Valle in the Semi-finals. Ahead of the Final, Hulk had made it clear: ‘We have to learn from our mistakes. Last year we were in two finals [Galo lost the 2024 Copa do Brasil final to Flamengo] that could have meant a spectacular year. Unfortunately, it ended the way everyone already knows, without any title’. In Asunción, Losada saved Hulk's penalty, Gabriel Teixeira's and, the decisive one, Vitor Hugo's. ‘More than anything, what remains is the sadness of having come so close’, Everson summed up.
2026 began with two major changes. Jorge Sampaoli was sacked on 12 February, after ten matches with just two wins that year, and Eduardo Domínguez arrived from Estudiantes on a contract until December 2027. And on 1 May, Hulk, the biggest idol of the recent era, terminated his contract and joined Fluminense, with whom he will play in this year's CONMEBOL Libertadores Semi-finals, after 311 matches and 140 goals.
Without their top scorer and with a new coach, the ‘Galo’ repeated the pattern that defines them: suffering in the group stage, clinching first place in the last two matchdays, getting past Red Bull Bragantino with two goals from Tomás Cuello and overturning a 0-2 deficit against Santos with a 4-2 win at the Arena MRV and three penalties saved by Gabriel Delfim, Everson's understudy.
The sense of redemption also has a component of identity. Atlético Mineiro have an eventful international trophy cabinet: the Copa CONMEBOL in 1992 and 1997, the 2013 Libertadores won at the Mineirão with Victor saving an Olimpia penalty in the shootout, and the 2014 Recopa decided against Lanús with two own goals in extra time. They have played nine continental finals in their history, the last two without a trophy, and the CONMEBOL Sudamericana remains the big regional title they are missing: in 2019 they went out in the Semi-finals to Colón on penalties, and in 2025 they fell at the final hurdle.
Standing in their way will be Montevideo City Torque, the revelation of this edition, who overturned a 0-2 deficit against Cienciano with a 3-0 win at the Centenario. The first leg will be played on Wednesday, 14 October at the Arena MRV, where Domínguez has lost only once in 17 matches (12 wins and four draws), and the second leg on Wednesday, 21 October at the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo.
For that tie, the Argentine coach is hoping to have Everson, who has a foot injury, and Gustavo Scarpa, who has not played since 16 September due to a muscle injury. If the ‘Galo’ reach Barranquilla on 21 November, it will be their third continental Final in three years and their tenth international final. In Belo Horizonte, they dream of ending 2026 with a ‘Great Conquest’.
