Argentina’s national team and Lionel Messi, in particular, received all the applause at Conmebol’s headquarters in Asunción. The players, coaching staff, and Argentine Football Association officials were honored and received medals and trophies to celebrate their victory at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the first won by a South American team in 20 years. Lionel Scaloni, the Albiceleste coach, was emotional, and Messi, who witnessed the unveiling of a statue in his honor, said: “I have achieved everything in soccer… Now I have to enjoy what I have achieved. Now I have to enjoy what I have left (as a footballer), whatever happens.”
After the emotional tribute, the draw for the groups of the Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana took place. Flamengo, the Libertadores champion, leads Group A with accessible opponents, while Boca Juniors leads Group F, in which it should not have many problems. Meanwhile, River Plate heads Group D with Fluminense, The Strongest, and Sporting Cristal. In the Copa Sudamericana, Peñarol will play in the Group of Death with Millonarios of Colombia, Defensa y Justicia of Argentina, and América Mineiro of Brazil.
This draw was overshadowed by a tribute to Messi and his team for winning the 2022 World Cup, an achievement that organizers highlighted as the first for a South American team in two decades. Argentine singer Soledad Pastorutti dedicated the same song to Messi that she sang to Diego Maradona, while organizers immortalized his name on a statue in Conmebol’s Football Museum, alongside those of Pele and Maradona.