A late goalkeeping mistake by Léo Jardim sealed a 3-1 victory for Boca Juniors over Vasco da Gama on Tuesday night (20) at Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, completing a 3-2 aggregate comeback in the second leg of the Copa Sudamericana semifinal. The result sends the Argentine club into the continental championship match and eliminates the Brazilian side in front of its home supporters.

Coached by Pedro Emanuel, the Rio de Janeiro club had won the opening leg 1-0 in Buenos Aires and needed only a draw to advance in front of approximately 66,000 fans, who bought out all available tickets and displayed a stadium-wide mosaic before kickoff. Tournament organizers and local authorities have not yet released the exact number of paying spectators or the official gate receipts for the match at Maracanã Stadium.

First-half surge puts the Argentine visitors ahead on aggregate

The aggregate advantage Vasco da Gama brought back from Argentina vanished early in the first half through a set piece. Full-back Lautaro Blanco delivered a corner kick from the left flank, and center-back Lautaro Di Lollo rose above the coverage of Santiago Sosa to head the ball into the net and open the scoring for Boca Juniors.

The home team attempted to answer shortly afterward when Alan Lescano sent a cross into the penalty box, but forwards Adson and Bruno Duarte got in each other’s way in front of an open net. Midfielder Thiago Mendes also came close to equalizing for the Brazilian club with a header that skimmed just past the goalpost.

Before halftime, a turnover by the Rio de Janeiro defense while trying to play the ball out from the back allowed the visitors to double their lead on the night. Forward Sebastián Villa intercepted the pass and fed striker Miguel Merentiel, who broke into the penalty area and fired a low shot past advancing goalkeeper Léo Jardim to make it 2-0.

Second-half substitutions and the decisive strike by Leandro Paredes

Returning from the halftime break trailing on aggregate, head coach Pedro Emanuel reshaped his lineup by bringing on Marino Hinestroza, Brenner, and right-back José Luis Rodríguez, known as Puma Rodríguez. At the same time, the Argentine coaching staff introduced midfielder Leandro Paredes into the match.

The tactical changes paid off for Vasco da Gama in the 21st minute of the second half during a counterattack initiated by center-back Robert Renan, who won possession with a tackle. Left-back Cuiabano followed up by sending a cross into the box for Puma Rodríguez, who struck a first-time shot past goalkeeper Álvaro Montero to cut the deficit to 2-1 on the night and level the aggregate score at 2-2.

With the semifinal heading toward a penalty shootout, the decisive play arrived in the 43rd minute of the second half. Leandro Paredes unleashed a right-footed shot from outside the penalty area, and goalkeeper Léo Jardim deflected the ball into his own net, establishing the final 3-1 scoreline and securing qualification for Boca Juniors.

Follow: Flamengo defends 61-point lead against Fluminense in 461st Rio derby

Official match details from the Rio de Janeiro semifinal

• Fixture: Copa Sudamericana semifinal, second-leg match.
• Date and kickoff time: October 20, 2026, at 9:30 p.m. (Brasília local time).
• Venue: Maracanã Stadium, located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
• Final scoreline: Vasco da Gama 1, Boca Juniors 3 (Boca Juniors won 3-2 on aggregate).
• Estimated attendance: Approximately 66,000 spectators inside the venue.

Courtroom battle over stadium access and a 26-year continental drought

Hosting the decisive match at Maracanã Stadium required Vasco da Gama to prevail in a legal dispute against the Fla-Flu Consortium, the joint management group run by rival clubs Flamengo and Fluminense that operates the arena. The club’s own ground, São Januário, was barred from hosting the fixture because its capacity falls short of the 30,000-seat minimum required for the semifinal stage by Conmebol, the governing body of South American soccer.

The Court of Justice of the State of Rio de Janeiro (TJ-RJ, the state appellate court) granted permission for the game to take place at the venue. The ruling stood despite an appeal filed with Brazil’s Superior Court of Justice (STJ, a high federal court in Brasília) by the managing consortium, which argued that staging the soccer match posed a public safety risk due to a scheduled basketball game between Flamengo and Botafogo at the adjacent Maracanãzinho arena on the same date.

Watching from the executive suites at Maracanã Stadium was businessman Marcos Lamacchia, who recently reached an agreement to purchase the SAF (Sociedade Anônima do Futebol, a Brazilian corporate structure that allows soccer clubs to operate as privately owned companies) of Vasco da Gama, accompanied by Mário Junqueira. The elimination on the pitch extends the Rio de Janeiro club’s drought without reaching a continental final to 26 years, while merely tying its best previous finish in the history of the Copa Sudamericana.

Historical milestones and upcoming fixtures for both clubs

• 2000: Year in which Vasco da Gama last competed in a continental final, winning the Copa Mercosur title over Brazilian rival Palmeiras.
• 2011: Season marking the club’s only prior appearance in the Copa Sudamericana semifinals, a campaign that ended in elimination against Universidad de Chile.
• October 13, 2026: Date of the opening semifinal leg at La Bombonera in Buenos Aires, where Vasco da Gama won 1-0 on a goal by Adson assisted by Andrés Gómez, who received a second-half red card and missed the return match through suspension.
• October 24, 2026: Saturday fixture in which Vasco da Gama hosts Corinthians at 6:30 p.m. (Brasília time) at São Januário Stadium in Brazil’s top-flight national league, the Campeonato Brasileiro.
• November 21, 2026: Scheduled date for the single-match Copa Sudamericana final in Barranquilla, Colombia, where Boca Juniors will face the winner of the tie between Brazil’s Atlético-MG and Uruguay’s Montevideo City Torque, after the Brazilian side won the first leg 3-0.

With its international campaign finished, Vasco da Gama now shifts its full attention back to domestic league play ahead of Saturday’s (24) match against Corinthians at São Januário. The game represents a direct battle near the bottom of the Campeonato Brasileiro standings between the Rio de Janeiro club, currently sitting in 15th place, and the São Paulo team, which holds the 16th position just above the relegation zone.