1976 Copa Libertadores finals
Event1976 Copa Libertadores
2–2 on points
Cruzeiro won after a play-off
First leg
Date21 July 1976
VenueMineirão, Belo Horizonte
RefereeVicente Llobregat (Venezuela)
Second leg
Date28 July 1976
VenueEstadio Monumental, Buenos Aires
RefereeJosé Martínez Bazán (Uruguay)
Play-off
Date30 July 1976 (1976-07-30)
VenueEstadio Nacional, Santiago
RefereeAlberto Martínez (Chile)
Attendance35,182

The 1976 Copa Libertadores finals was the final two-legged tie to determine the 1976 Copa Libertadores champion. It was contested by Argentine club River Plate and Brazilian club Cruzeiro Esporte Clube. The first leg of the tie was played on 21 July at Cruzeiro' home field, with the second leg played on 28 July at River'. Cruzeiro and Boca Juniors played in their 1st Copa Libertadores finals.[1]

Cruzeiro won the series after winning a tie-breaking playoff 3–2 at Santiago's Estadio Nacional, with the winning goal by Joaozinho being scored by the end of the match.[2]

Qualified teams

Team Previous finals appearances (bold indicates winners)
Brazil Cruzeiro None
Argentina River Plate 1966

Stadiums

Mineirao
Monumental
Nacional de Santiago
Mineirão, Monumental and Nacional de Santiago, venues of the final series

Rules

The finals were played over two legs; home and away. The team that accumulated the most points —two for a win, one for a draw, zero for a loss— after the two legs would be crowned the champion. In case of two teams tied on points after the second leg a playoff at a neutral venue would be played to crown a champion, with goal difference used as a last resort.

Route to the finals

Cruzeiro qualified to the 1976 Copa Libertadores as the 1975 Copa Brasil runners-up, defeated by Internacional 1-0 in the final match. River Plate qualified as champions of both 1975 Metropolitano and 1975 Nacional.

Cruzeiro Round River Plate
Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA GD
Brazil Cruzeiro 116510209+11
Brazil Internacional 76312108+2
Paraguay Olimpia 46123711-4
Paraguay Sportivo Luqueño 26105514-9

Group stage
Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA GD
Argentina River Plate 106501103+7
Argentina Estudiantes 96411113+8
Venezuela Portuguesa 56213811-3
Venezuela Deportivo Galicia 06006315-12

Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA GD
Brazil Cruzeiro 8440018315
Ecuador LDU Quito 24103410-6
Peru Alianza Lima 24103413-9
Semi-finals
Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA GD
Argentina River Plate 5421141+3
Argentina Independiente 5421321+1
Uruguay Peñarol 2410315-4

Group stage

River Plate was drawn into Group 1 alongside Estudiantes de La Plata, runners-up of the 1975 Metropolitano Championship, and Venezuelan sides Portuguesa and Deportivo Galicia. The millonarios cruised to the Semifinals after winning five of six matches, and losing just one. River won the three matches played at your home ground, scoring seven goals and suffering just two. River also won the two matches in Venezuela, against Portuguesa and Deportivo Galicia, by 2-0 and 1-0 respectively. The only defeat was against Estudiantes, in La Plata, by 0-1.

Cruzeiro was drawn into Group 3. They were joined by fellow Brazilian club Internacional and Paraguayan outfits Olimpia and Sportivo Luqueño. Like River Plate, Cruzeiro made a campaign with five wins in six matches, with the difference that the Brazilian club tied a game instead of losing. Cruzeiro won the three matches played at your home ground scoring thirteen goals and suffering six. Cruzeiro also won Internacional in Porto Alegre and Sportivo Luqueño in Luque, but tied 2-2 against Olimpia in Asunción.

Semi-finals

The Semifinals round was another group phase. Cruzeiro were drown in Group 1 alongside LDU Quito and Alianza Lima. This time, Cruzeiro won all their four matches including the historic 7-1 drubbing against Alianza Lima. It was the first game after the death of striker Roberto Batata, killed in an automobile accident. To honor his companion, players of Cruzeiro scored seven goals, which is the number of the shirt that was worn by Batata. Cruzeiro advanced to the finals with a 100% success.

In the Semifinals, River Plate played against defending champions Independiente and the Uruguayan club Peñarol. The two Argentine clubs finished tied on stage five points apiece, necessitating a playoff, where River Plate won Independiente by 1-0.

Matches

First leg

First leg
Cruzeiro Brazil4–1Argentina River Plate
Nelinho 22'
Palhinha 29', 40'
Valdo 80'
Más 63'
Attendance: 58,720
Referee: Vicente Llobregat, Venezuela
Cruzeiro
River Plate

Second leg

Second leg
River Plate Argentina2–1Brazil Cruzeiro
López 10'
González 76'
Palhinha 48'
Attendance: 90,000
Referee: José Martínez Bazán (Paraguay)
River Plate
Cruzeiro

Playoff

Playoff
Cruzeiro Brazil3–2Argentina River Plate
Nelinho 24'
Eduardo 55'
Joãozinho 88'
Más 59'
Urquiza 64'
Attendance: 35,182
Referee: Alberto Martínez (Chile)
Cruzeiro
River Plate

References

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