Atlético Mineiro 1-3  Botafogo: summary, score, goals, highlights | Copa Libertadores final

Botafogo: Libertadores champions

Botafogo are the kings of South America as Artur Jorge's side win their first ever Copa Libertadores trophy in the club's 120 year history and next week the Rio side can clinch the Brasileirao title too as they hold a two point advantage over Palmeiras with two games remaining.

Not even the most optimistic Fogão fan could have guessed the outcome after 30 seconds when Gregore was given a straight red card for a reckless challenge and the Rio based side were down to ten men.

Rather than being boosted by the numerical advantage, Mineiro failed to capitalize on the situation and as the half wore on it was Botafogo who adapted better to the circumstance.

By the interval, Fogão were 0-2 up with Luis Henrique striking in the 35th minute and Telles bagging the second from the spot ten minutes later.

Milito shuffled his deck at the break and Atletico came out after the break with a more positive dynamic and pulled one back as substitute Vargas headed home to bring the contest alive.

A pattern developed as Atletico Mineiro threw everything at the Fogão goal with Hulk at the heart of all Galo's creative play.

It wasn't to be and with the game in added time, Junior Santos secured a third for the ten men of Fogão as delerium ensued in the Botafogo sector of a packed Estadio Monumental.

Botafogo become the 32nd participants of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup and now head to Qatar as CONMEBOL representative in the forthcoming Intercontinental Cup.

Tears from Atletico players and fans as the Botafogo squad are jubilant and so they should be after winning a final played with ten men after the first minute when a rash challenge from Gregore left the Rio side with a man less.

A monumental performance from Artur Jorge's side.

Fogão campeão!

That's it.

The whistle sounds and for the first time in their 120 years, Botafogo are the champions of South America.

Santos is carded for his celebration.

Goooooool

Junior Santos wins the Copa Libertadores for Botafogo.

Kardec with a decent half chance but the substitute snaps at the effort and steers the ball wide.

Surely that's last chance saloon for Atletico?

Botafogo's Luis Henrique wins the CONMEBOL 'Hero of the final' award.

Allan carded for a professional foul..

Hulk carded too for dissent.

Tempers fraying here now as the clock ticks down.

Igor Jesus is subbed and yellow carded in the same spell of the game.

Allan is on for Fogão.

We'll have seven minutes of added time.

Enough time for Atletico to create at least one more chance.

Vargas is in again and this time the Chilean makes a meal of his finish as he goes for the lob and the ball drifts high and wide.

Two great chances for Mineiro in the space of two/three minutes as the tension mounts.

We're in the final five minutes of normal time. 

Atletico continue to lay siege to the Botafogo goal.

Vargas is in but he dips the ball centimetres over the ball. Was that the final chance for Atletico?

Botafogo have pretty much given up the idea of attacking now and are defending for their lives.

Great work again from Hulk (who has been the best player for Mineiro today) and his ball skips past Paulinho and drifts wide.

Into the final ten minutes but we'll have, I'd say 6-7 of added time.

Changes for Botafogo

On: Santos and Martins

Off: Luis Henrique and Almada

Mineiro change: Deyverson with Kardec his replacement.

We're into the final 15 with changes imminent.

The drama is high as the ten men of Botafogo defend for their lives as Mineiro launch wave after wave of attacks.

Twenty minutes left for Botafogo to hold out as they win a dangerous free kick with Igor Jesus held back.

Botafogo doing all in their powers now to interrupt the flow of the game.

The men in white are in no hurry to take any throw ins or free kicks. 

Hulk shoots with a fine left footed effort and John saves well palming the ball away for a corner.

Another corner for Mineiro. Galo pressing again....

Botafogo fans making the bulk of the noise in the stadium as they look to rally their ten man side.

We pass the hour mark in the 2024 Copa Libertadores final and Botafogo seem to have ridden out the storm with Atletico's impetus seeming to have dried up.

Changes for Botafogo: Telles and Savirno exit

Marçal and Barbosa on 

Ten minutes of the second have passed and Botafogo have yet to get the ball into the opposing half. 

Atletico almost bag a second as Hulk sends in a sublime ball and Deyverson and Vargas fail to communicate and the ball drifts wide.

Atletico playing with a different intensity now and it's Botafogo who look to be struggling.

Credit to Milito for his changes with Vargas paying back the Argentine coach and his confidence within a matter of minutes.

Game on in Buenos Aires

Off for Atletico: Mariano, Bernard & Vargas

Replacements: Lyanco, Vera & Scarpa

We're back in action at El Monumental and it appears that Mineiro have made a few changes.

What a bizarre first 45 minutes at the Estadio Monumental with Botafogo going down to ten men after just 30 seconds of action.

Atletico Mineiro were in control of possession but failed to carve open the side from Rio who soon adapted to their situation better than their rivals.

A goal from Luis Henrique and a later spot kick from Telles have Botafogo ahead and deservedly so. 

A big 45 coming up ...what can Gabi Milito do on the Atletico bench to turn things around?

Botafogo looking solid at the break

Atletico Mineiro are a team without confidence currently as the whistle sounds for the interval.

Ten man Botafogo very good value for their 0-2 lead.

Botafogo: 2 strikes on target, 2 goals ... 100% efficiency !

Telles now carded as he takes out Hulk.

The former Man United and Sevilla man seems to have picked up a knock too.

Fausto now carded for Mineiro with the Galo players losing their cool.

Atletico Mineiro have failed to manager their emotions after being handed a massive advantage in the first minute and Gabi Milito has failed to transmit any form of tranquility to his side.

Credit to Artur Jorge and Botafogo.

6 minutes of time to be added.

Telles set to strike.

no problem from the spot... Fogão go 0-2.

Yes indeed... spot kick for the side from Rio.

What a bizarre turn of events here in Buenos Aires.

This should be a penalty for Fogão.

Possible shout for a penalty for Botafogo as the keeper crashes into Luis Henrique and the ref has been called to look at the VAR monitor.

Fogão take the lead

What a turnup for the books but, despite playing with ten men, Botafogo have had a game plan and once they adapted to the situation of playing with ten men, look the more organised team.

Hulk strikes and this time the ball strikes Barboza in the face and play is held up as the Botafogo player needs medical attention.

Card for Battaglia as he fouls Igor Jesus.

As we approach the half hour mark, it's no surprise that Mineiro dominate possession with stats of 82-18 (%) but as yet, barring two long range efforts from Hulk, Botafogo's goal has not really come under any serious threat.

Savarino shoots again and this ball heads straight to Row X in the second tier of the Monumental.

Botafogo will be delighted to maintain this pattern to the game with Atletico dominating the ball but lacking the guile and craft to carve open, what looks like a well drilled Botafogo rearguard.

Red card incident

Here's a video of the incident that has changed the dynamic of the final.

Correct call from the Argentine referee ?

Almost 20 minutes of the game have elapsed and to be honest, Mineiro have not really availed of the extra man as Botafogo seem to have adapted to the situation and are not being outclassed as we saw earlier by Galo.

Savarino gets a shot off for Fogão but the Venezuelan international blazes the ball well over the bar. 

To be honest, from a neutral perspective, seeing a team go down one player so early in the game does little from a spectacle point of view.

Botafogo's tag of pre game favoirite quickly dropped off after just 30 seconds and now the final is Atletico's to lose.

Hulk shoots again and this time John hangs onto the ball with Galo in total control now.

Atletico now dominating and a clear pattern already developing as the men in white are pegged back with the team from Belo Horizonte moving the ball around with added confidence.

No change from Artur Jorge despite the setback of losing a man in the first minute of the game.

What a strike from Hulk as he forces John into making a fine reflex save and already one can see the added space Mineiro have going forward.

What a start to the game and Botafogo now facing an almighty uphill task as they are forced to play the entire game with ten men.

The game is still held up with blood still spilling from Fausto Vera's head.

The player gets patched up and we're back in action.

Could we have a red card already ?

We're underway in Buenos Aires.

Atletico Mineiro get the game underway.

Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic is enlisted with helping in the pre game ceremony.

Atletico set to kick-off.

Milito already coming under fire for his starting line-up with many citing that it lacks balance.

All set as both captain's line up with the match official, Mr. Tello and we're all set.

The teams take to the pitch. Botafogo in all white and At. Mineiro in their classic black and white stripes. 

The Brazilian national anthem gets an airing with the emotion all too much for many with players and several fans in tears !

Less than ten minutes to kick-off in Buenos Aires for the fourth all Brazilian final in five years.

Galo looking a second 'Gloria Eterno' win after their 2013 glory and Botafogo looking for, what would be their first ever Libertadores win. 

The pre-match ceremony is underway as legions of dancers decked out in black and white perform tango related dances.

Not as sunny as it was with a small blanket of cloud now blocking out the sunshine.

Copa Libertadores

Keys to the Libertadores final: how Miguel Ángel Ramírez sees Atlético Mineiro-Botafogo

Favourites 'Fogão' with upper hand

In the two domestic games this season, both sides played out a 0-0 draw recently with Botafogo recording a 3-0 win earlier in the season when both finalists met in Rio de Janeiro.

Tonight's game also offers two bonus incentives to the winners as either Atletico MG or Botafogo will be the final side to take their place at the new expanded FIFA Club World Cup which is set to be staged in the US next summer.

The champions too will be jetting off to Doha imminently to participate in the 2024 FIFA Intercontinental Cup and will face Liga MX side Pachuca with the winner of that game facing Al Ahly in the semi-final.

A reminder of how the teams line up tonight in Buenos Aires with kick-off just over 30 minutes away.

The Artur Jorge impact

Earlier this year (April 2024), Artur Jorge became head coach of Botafogo who paid €2 million to acquire his services from Sporting Braga in his native Portugal.

Despite recording a defeat in his opening game, the Portugal coach has steered his team to the cusp of glory as they stand two games from recoring a Brasileiro league win and Copa Libertadores triumph which would be the club's first major honours since 1995.

The Estadio Monumental is a sea of black and white as fans from both clubs continue to make their way into the iconic stadium with over 80,000 supporters expected tonight for the 2024 Libertadores final.

Player to watch: Igor Jesus (Botafogo)

The Fogão striker moved to the Rio club last July following a move from the Emirates domestic league.

By October he was the Brazilian national team's first choice striker and at the age of 23, surely it's only a question of time before a big money move to Europe beckons.

Tonight's man in the middle

Argentine Facundo Tello, is in charge of overseeing the Copa Libertadores final tonight.

It will be the first Cup final that Tello will referee, who already has experience in major international events, such as the 2022 Qatar World Cup, UEFA's European Championship and two finals of the Recopa Sudamericana. 

At the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, he officiated three matches in which he showed seven yellow cards and one red card. Tello was the main referee in the Switzerland-Cameroon and South Korea-Portugal group stage matches and in the Morocco-Portugal quarter-final match.

We're approximately ten minutes or so away from discovering the team news for tonight's final...

What happens if tonight's game is tied after 90 mins?

Should tonight's Copa Libertadores final be level at the end of full time, then an extra time phase will be played of two 15-minute periods.

If the game remains level after 120 minutes of football, then penalty kicks will be used to determine the winner.

Textor's investment close to pay-day

US businessman John Textor has invested millions in the Brazilian club and is close to reaching the summit with what would be the first Libertadores in Botafogo's 120 year history.

After big investment in signings with well-known faces such as former Betis player Luiz Henrique, Jefferson Savarino and world champion Thiago Almada coming in, Botafogo are on the verge of completing an historic double (Serie A and Copa Libertadores).

Tactical headache for Milito

Gabriel Milito has only won two of his last 14 matches between Brasileirão, Copa Libertadores and Copa do Brasil and the Argentine oversaw his side to defeat in the Copa do Brasil final.

However, he has steered his side to the cusp of continental glory and faces a major doubt tonight. 

Should he employ a attacking trio of Deyverson, Hulk and Paulinho or use caution against the Botafogo high tempo?

Time has shown that the Rio based side can be fragile as we saw last season in the league run-in and following a 5-0 first leg over Peñarol, the Brazilian side seemed overwhelmed by the second leg as the Montevideo side moved into a 3-0 lead at one stage of the game.

Global times for Libertadores final

Wondering what time the game kicks-off wherever you are in the world?

The nice folk at CONMEBOL have this handy social media post outlining the kick-off times for the Libertadores final across the world.

It's actually a black and white battle in Buenos Aires tonight with Botafogo also sporting similar stripes.

Atletico are deemed to be the 'home' side and get to wear their traditional colours with Fogâo tonight set to wear their white away jersey.

'Galo' dressing room is ready

The iconic black and white Atletico Mineiro jerseys are primed and ready with kick-off now less than two hours away.

Fogão gunning for historic 'double'

This could be an historic season for the Rio based club who are looking to bag their first Copa Libertadores in the club's 120 year history.

However, doom and gloom is never far from the surface for the 'Lone Star' club as fans of the Alvinegro Carioca will have memories of the 2023 league campaign fresh in their minds when they then too held a sizeable lead heading into the final round of fixtures only for the Rio side to falter and let Palmeiras bag the title.

Fogão now hold a 3 point lead at the top of the Brazilian Serie A title with two games to go and are 90 minutes away from 'Gloria Eterna' in Buenos Aires.

Surely, 2024 is their year !

Possible XI's

Atlético Mineiro: Everson; Lyanco, Rodrigo Battaglia, Junior Alonso; Gustavo Scarpa, Fausto Vera, Alan Franco, Guilherme Arana; Paulinho, Hulk and Deyverson

Coach: Gabriel Milito.

Botafogo: John; Vitinho, Adryelson, Alexander Barboza, Alex Telles; Marlon Freitas, Gregore; Luiz Henrique, Jefferson Savarino, Thiago Almada; and Igor Jesus.

Coach: Artur Jorge.

Junior Santos vs Paulinho

Tonight's final pits together both top marksmen from the competition to date with Fogão's Junior Santos hoping to add to his 9 goals from 11 games with Galo'sPaulinho on seven goals in his nine games.

Stage is set in Buenos Aires

Blue skies await in the Argentine capital with the pitch at River Plate's Estadio Monumental looking in immaculate condition.

The conditions are ideal for the game with a current temperature of 74F in Buenos Aires and no rain forecast for the remainder of the day.

Perfect conditions for the players and over 80,000 fans who will pack into the stadium in the Nuñez district of the city.

Triple bonus for winners

Tonight's game also offers two bonus incentives for the winners as either Atletico MG or Botafogo will be the final side to take their place at the new expanded FIFA Club World Cup which is set to be staged in the US next summer.

The winner's will also be packing their bags for an imminent trip to Qatar as they will face Liga MX side Pachuca in the Derby of the America's at the 2024 Intercontinental Cup.

The winners will then face Egypt's Al Ahly in the semi-final with Real Madrid awaiting in the  final which is scheduled for 18 December in Lusail.

The 2024 CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores final is the fourth final in five years to feature two Brazilian sides as Atletico look to bag their second ever Libertadores win following continental glory in 2013 when ‘Galo’ beat Paraguay’s Olimpia in the final after a shoot-out win.

This is Botafogo's first Libertadores final in the club's long history.

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the 2024 Copa Libertadores final as Atletico Mineiro face Botafogo in another all Brazilian final.

The action in Buenos Aires kicks-off at 3pm (ET).