Estudiantes and Platense Draw Corinthians and Fluminense in Libertadores Quarterfinals

Seven of the eight Copa Libertadores quarterfinal matchups are now set, and Argentina drew about the toughest combination possible: the two national representatives still standing, Estudiantes and Platense, will each face a Brazilian opponent. Nothing too surprising, really, given how things have gone on the continent in recent years.

Estudiantes arrives in good form after eliminating Universidad Catolica with a 3-0 aggregate: a scoreless draw in La Plata followed by a rout in Chile to seal the tie. Now comes Corinthians, who knocked out Rosario Central, and the series carries an extra twist in its format: it opens at Estadio UNO and is decided at NEO Quimica Arena in Sao Paulo. If Estudiantes manages to pull off the upset, it would meet the winner of Flamengo against Independiente del Valle or Deportes Tolima in the semifinals, a tie that was pushed back a week because of the earthquake that struck Colombia.

Platense, for its part, had to go all the way to penalties to get past Coquimbo Unido after two scoreless draws in the series. The reward, if you can call it that, is Fluminense, who also advanced on penalties after eliminating Independiente Rivadavia. The second leg of that tie will be played in Vicente Lopez, so Platense will have home advantage in the decisive match. If the Calamar make it into the final four, waiting on the other side would be the winner between Liga de Quito and Palmeiras.

A weighty goal: stopping Brazil

Here lies the real challenge behind each individual matchup. In the entire history of the Libertadores, no country had ever won more than four titles in a row. That ceiling was shattered a while back: Brazil has taken the last seven editions of the tournament, with Flamengo winning in 2019, 2022 and 2025, Palmeiras in 2020 and 2021, Fluminense in 2023 and Botafogo in 2024. The last non-Brazilian champion was River, back in 2018.

And there's a detail that makes that dominance even more striking: five of those seven finals were all-Brazilian affairs. There were only two exceptions in between, and both ended badly for the Argentine sides: River fell to Flamengo in the 2019 final, and Boca lost to Fluminense in 2023.

With that history looming over them, Estudiantes and Platense have already accomplished something significant: reaching the continent's final eight. What comes next is far tougher. First, getting past Corinthians and Fluminense. Then, if all goes well, trying to snap a streak that keeps growing year after year and has made Brazil the near-absolute owner of South America's most important trophy. The final is set for November 28 at Estadio Centenario in Montevideo, and the road there looks like an uphill climb for both Argentine representatives.