1961 Copa Libertadores

1961 Copa Libertadores

The 1961 Copa de Campeones de América was the second staging of the Copa de Campeones, South America's prized football tournament, known today as the Copa Libertadores. Nine teams entered, two more than the previous season, with Venezuela not sending a representative. In order to further enhance the competition, CONMEBOL maintained the criteria of having regional clashes in order to take advantage of the cross-border rivalries

Although Peñarol also won their national league, this became the first and, so far, only time the defending champions did not qualify automatically to the next edition. Nevertheless, the Mayas successfully defended their title by defeating Palmeiras in the final.