South American Championship of Champions

The South American Championship of Champions, known in Spanish as the Campeonato Sudamericano de Campeones, was a club football tournament played in Santiago, Chile, between 11 February and 17 March 1948. It was the first continent-wide club competition in South America and is seen as the forerunner of the Copa Libertadores. The Chilean club Colo Colo hosted and organized it with the help of the then CONMEBOL president Luis Valenzuela. Seven clubs took part, each the reigning champion of its country, among them Colo Colo, River Plate, Nacional and Vasco da Gama. It was played as a round robin, and Vasco da Gama won it after a goalless draw with River Plate in the last round. The idea grew out of the earlier Copa Aldao between Argentine and Uruguayan champions. In 1996 CONMEBOL recognised it as the precursor of the Copa Libertadores, although it does not count it as an official CONMEBOL competition, and it later served as an inspiration for the European Cup.