There are many national football tournaments, but one of the most attractive, besides the World Cup held every four years, is the Copa America. This tournament brings together the South American national teams. Throughout history, it has gained increasing importance, and the countries that have lifted the South American trophy have written a golden page in football history.
The Copa America is the oldest national team tournament in the world and the one that has been held the most times. In this article, we will review the extensive list of champions of the South American tournament.
To celebrate the centenary of its independence, Argentina hosted a tournament between July 2 and 17, 1916, with Uruguay emerging as the champion. This "South American Championship of National Teams" would become the first edition of what is now known as the Copa America.
Uruguay and Chile inaugurated that edition, with a 4-0 victory for La Celeste over La Roja.
A total of 48 editions have been played, including the one currently taking place in the United States. Throughout its history, the tournament was previously called the South American Championship and has had multiple formats. It is currently held every four years.
With Argentina and Uruguay as the top winners of the tournament, here is the complete list of Copa America champions:
Uruguay and Argentina are the two teams that have won the Euro Cup the most times, with fifteen victories each.
The Uruguayans also have 6 runner-up finishes. The Argentinians, on the other hand, have lost the final on 14 occasions. The third most successful team in the tournament is Brazil, which has won the Copa America 9 times and accumulated 12 runner-up finishes.
The list continues with a significant gap between the top three and the fourth most successful team, which is Paraguay with 2 trophies and 6 runner-up finishes. Chile has the same number, winning back-to-back editions in 2015 and 2016 against Argentina. Peru has also lifted the cup twice. Colombia and Bolivia have each won it once.
Here is the list of the eight South American champions:
- Argentina (15)
- Uruguay (15)
- Brazil (9)
- Paraguay (2)
- Peru (2)
- Chile (2)
- Bolivia (1)
- Colombia (1)
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