The 2019 Copa Libertadores qualifying stages were played from 22 January to 28 February 2019.[1] A total of 19 teams competed in the qualifying stages to decide four of the 32 places in the group stage of the 2019 Copa Libertadores.[2]
The draw for the qualifying stages
Teams were seeded by their CONMEBOL ranking of the Copa Libertadores as of 15 December 2018 (shown in parentheses), taking into account the following three factors:[6] [7] [8]
For the first stage, the six teams were drawn into three ties (E1–E3), with the teams from Pot 1 hosting the second leg.
For the second stage, the 16 teams were drawn into eight ties (C1–C8), with the teams from Pot 1 hosting the second leg. Teams from the same association could not be drawn into the same tie, excluding the three winners of the first stage, which were allocated to Pot 2 and whose identity was not known at the time of the draw, and could be drawn into the same tie with another team from the same association.
For the third stage, the eight winners of the second stage were allocated without any draw into the following four ties (G1–G4), with the team in each tie with the higher CONMEBOL ranking hosting the second leg. As their identity was not known at the time of the draw, they could be drawn into the same tie with another team from the same association.
In the qualifying stages, each tie was played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. If tied on aggregate, the away goals rule was used. If still tied, extra time was not played, and a penalty shoot-out was used to determine the winner (Regulations Article 29).[2]
The qualifying stages were structured as follows:
The bracket was decided based on the first stage draw and second stage draw, which was held on 17 December 2018.
The first legs were played on 22–23 January, and the second legs were played on 29–30 January 2019.[9] [10] |}
----Delfín won 5–1 on aggregate and advanced to the second stage (Match C7).
----Tied 2–2 on aggregate, Deportivo La Guaira won on away goals and advanced to the second stage (Match C6).
----Defensor Sporting won 6–5 on aggregate and advanced to the second stage (Match C8).
The first legs were played on 5–7 February, and the second legs were played on 12–14 February 2019.[9] [10] [11] [12] |}
----Atlético Mineiro won 5–4 on aggregate and advanced to the third stage (Match G1).
----Melgar won 1–0 on aggregate and advanced to the third stage (Match G2).
----Libertad won 6–2 on aggregate and advanced to the third stage (Match G3).
----Tied 2–2 on aggregate, Palestino won on penalties and advanced to the third stage (Match G4).
----Talleres won 2–0 on aggregate and advanced to the third stage (Match G4).
----Atlético Nacional won 1–0 on aggregate and advanced to the third stage (Match G3).
----Tied 1–1 on aggregate, Caracas won on away goals and advanced to the third stage (Match G2).
----Defensor Sporting won 3–1 on aggregate and advanced to the third stage (Match G1).
The first legs were played on 19–21 February, and the second legs were played on 26–28 February 2019.[9] [10] [13] [14] |}
----Atlético Mineiro won 2–0 on aggregate and advanced to the group stage (Group E).
----Melgar won 3–2 on aggregate and advanced to the group stage (Group F).
----Tied 1–1 on aggregate, Libertad won on penalties and advanced to the group stage (Group H).
----Palestino won 4–3 on aggregate and advanced to the group stage (Group A).
The two best teams eliminated in the third stage entered the Copa Sudamericana second stage. Only matches in the third stage were considered for the ranking of teams.