| Founded | 1969 Refounded 2011 |
|---|---|
| Region | Argentina |
| Number of teams | 186 |
| Television broadcasters | TV Publica |
| 2011–12 Copa Argentina | |
The Copa Argentina is an official tournament organized by Argentine Football Association (AFA), with the aim of qualifying clubs for the Copa Ganadores de Copa. It was contested by teams in Primera División Argentina that did not earn eligibility to participate in the Copa Libertadores of the following year, and by the best clubs in the regional leagues.
Only two editions were contested, namely in 1969 and 1970, although the last one did not finish. Therefore, the only champion of this competition was Boca Juniors, who defeated Atlanta in the final of 1969 edition.
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A new international competition, Copa Ganadores de Copa, would be held by CONMEBOL in 1970 as the South American equivalence of UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. AFA thus started a cup competition, the Copa Argentina, in 1969 and the winner would qualify for the Copa Ganadores de Copa 1970.
The competition was contested by 32 teams using a two-legged elimination format. Two points were awarded for winning a leg, one for a draw and null for a loss. The teams having more points would qualify to the next round. If both teams had same numbers of point, it would be determined by the total number of goals, total number of goal concealed, and penalty shootout accordingly.
All teams in the Primera División Argentina participated the competition with some top teams from the regional leagues, except teams that had already qualified to the Copa Libertadores, namely, Vélez Sársfield and River Plate, the winners and runners-up of Nacional 1968 respectively, and Estudiantes de La Plata, the champions of Copa Libertadores 1968[1].
Boca Juniors and Atlanta entered the final. Boca won the tournament by defeating Atlanta 2-0 in two legs.
However, as Boca later won the Nacional 1969 and qualified to the Copa Libertadores 1970, Atlanta qualified to the Copa Ganadores de Copa 1970 as the runners-up[1].
Apart from teams that had got the Copa Libertadores eligibility, namely Boca Juniors and River Plate, the champions and runners-up of Nacional 1969, and Estudiantes de La Plata, who won the Copa Libertadores 1969, all clubs in the Primera División Argentina participated this competition. The champions of Primera B, Ferro, also took part in the tournament, alongside with 13 top clubs from regional leagues[2].
Copa Argentina 1970 has never finished. 32 teams played the competition and San Lorenzo and Vélez Sársfield entered the final. The tournament had been lasting for a long period in that year. Starting in March 1970, the first leg of the final was played in March 1971. At that time, the Copa Ganadores de Copa, which the winner of Copa Argentina would be qualifying for, had already started. Moreover, as Huracán Buceo and Deportes Concepción, the two other team in the same group with the Argentine representiative in the Copa Ganadores de Copa, had not confirmed their particicpation, so the organizor announced the Copa Ganadores de Copa would become a friendly tournament[3]. Therefore, after the first leg of the Copa Argentina final was held, which the teams drew 2-2, the second leg was never played. No Argentine teams participated in the Copa Ganadores de Copa 1971.
The reschedule of the Copa Argentina was officialized in 2011, that include 186 teams of 7 divisions of the Argentine Football League system in a knock-out system competition. The champion of the tournament will qualified for the Copa Sudamericana in the next season. The teams of the first division are included in Round of 32. From the Round of 16 begins the two-legged elimination format until the semi-finals. The final match will be one leg only, and will take place in a neutral stadium.
| Season | Champion (title count) | Runner-up | Third Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | Boca Juniors (1) | Atlanta | Colón Rosario Central |
| 1970 |
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Vélez Sarsfield San Lorenzo |
All Boys (SR) Racing |
| 2011–12 |
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