Record 16th Copa America Title for Argentina
2024 Copa America Recap: Albiceleste End Colombia’s Unbeaten Streak
Di Maria Ends International Career on a High
Angel Di Maria’s illustrious international career ended on a massive high, as Argentina defeated Colombia 1-0 in extra time in the 2024 Copa America Final. Argentina managed back-to-back Copa America titles despite Lionel Messi going off with an ankle injury in the second half.
With their 16th Copa America title, Argentina have now won the competition more than any other team. In our 2024 Copa America Recap , we’ll cover Argentina’s triumph, the tournament awards and surprises of the tournament.
Argentina vs Colombia
Result: 1 – 0
The Final
The Colombia national football team , on a 28 game unbeaten streak heading into Sunday’s Copa America final, came out of the gates firing. They had the better chances in the first half and Argentina found themselves on the back foot more often than not. On their run to the final, Colombia took down Uruguay and scored 12 goals.
Legendary Argentina forward Lionel Messi picked up an ankle injury in the first half and managed to continue playing in the second half. However, he had to come off in the 66th minute due to his injury and was visibly emotional on the sidelines.
Neither team was able to find a breakthrough in normal time as the match finished scoreless. In extra time, substitutes made the difference for Argentina. Giovani Lo Celso found Lautaro Martinez, who rifled a shot past Colombia keeper Camilo Vargas in the 112th minute.
Argentina defended superbly in and around their area and held on for a 1-0 victory. Although he had to come off early, Messi won in front of his adopted hometown fans, in Miami. Our 2024 Copa America recap highlights that the Albiceleste have won three straight major tournaments.
Argentina’s Title Run
Argentina kicked off their Copa America 2024 schedule against Canada on June 20th. Canada proved to be a difficult opponent but Julian Alvarez and Lautaro Martinez scored in a 2-0 victory.
Martinez scored as a substitute for a second straight game as he scored the game’s only goal versus Chile. Starting in place of the injured Messi, Martinez scored twice in the final group game, a 2-0 win over Peru.
Argentina finished the group stage without conceding a goal, as goalkeeper Emi Martinez and center backs Lisandro Martinez and Cristian Romero stood out.
In the Quarter-Finals, Argentina took on Ecuador and survived a scare. Lisandro Martinez scored in the first half for the Albiceleste but Ecuador equalized in stoppage time. Emi Martinez made two saves in the penalty shootout as Argentina advanced to the Semifinals.
In the Semis, Argentina defeated Canada 2-0 again behind goals from Alvarez and Messi. Argentina finished Copa America with only one goal conceded and Rodrigo De Paul was immense throughout the tournament in midfield.
Surprises of the Tournament
Canada’s first Copa America appearance was a success. After falling 2-0 to Argentina in the group stage, Canada eked out a 1-0 win over Peru as Jonathan David scored the winning goal. In the group stage closer, Canada held on for a scoreless draw against Chile, which clinched second place in the Group A Copa América standings .
Les Rogues took on Venezuela, another surprise team of the tournament, in the Quarter-Finals. Jacob Shaffelburg put Canada ahead 1-0 but Venezuela’s Salomon Rondon lobbed Canada keeper Maxime Crepeau in the second half.
Crepeau made up for being off his line by saving two penalties in Canada’s 4-3 shootout victory. Canada competed with Argentina in the Semifinal but ultimately fell 2-0. Canada were minutes away from clinching third place at the tournament but Luis Suarez equalized for Uruguay as the third place game finished 2-2 in normal time. Then, Canada heartbreakingly fell in penalties.
Venezuela also came out of nowhere to win all three of their group stage games. Under Fernando Batista, Venezuela have been continuously improving and could very well qualify for their first-ever World Cup in 2026.
Awards
It was also surprising to see how well James Rodriguez played over the course of the tournament. The Colombian captain, 10 years on from his breakout tournament at the 2014 World Cup, provided a tournament record six assists in as many matches.
He was a major reason why Colombia dominated en route to the final. Although Colombia fell to Argentina on Sunday, James still received Copa America’s Best Player award.
Our 2024 Copa America Recap also notes Lautaro Martinez clinched the Golden Boot award, with five goals. Three of Martinez’s goals came as a substitute and he also won the 2023-24 Serie A Golden Boot and was a key player in Inter Milan’s 20th Serie A title.
It’s no surprise that Emi Martinez won the Best Goalkeeper award. The Argentine shot stopper kept five clean sheets in six games and allowed only one goal all tournament. Martinez has never let Argentina down and it’s not a coincidence that the Albiceleste have won all three major tournaments where he’s been their starting goalkeeper.
Can’t get enough? Here’s more!
