The ‘bad taste’ of defeat: this is how the fans in Colombia were left after the Copa América final: photos

The illusion, so easy to feel and so difficult to land in reality. Millions of Colombians dreamed of winning the most important title on the continent: the Copa América. However, against a powerful rival like Argentina, they fought to maintain a match that was worthy of a final that leaves a feeling of pride and sadness.

While the footballers gave their all on the pitch, the Colombians did the same from every corner available to unite in a single celebration the joy of reaching the final of the most historic football event.

Despite the bitter taste of defeat, the Copa América has concluded and the South American teams, regardless of the result in the tournament in the United States, must once again focus on qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. The Colombian National Team, like the rest of the teams, must prepare for the pre-World Cup competition, in which he has had an outstanding performance.

In this sense, there are more tournaments and matches coming up that will once again fill with excitement every Colombian who lived this Copa América with the belief that we would repeat the victory of 2001.

However, as the minutes passed, Colombia began to lose its scoring opportunities, which were blocked by ‘Dibu’ Martínez or missed due to the strength and position of the players, but the Colombians kept their faith intact.

At the end of the match, the referees were even called to award a penalty following a controversial play. In the first 15 minutes of extra time established by Conmebol, the central referee, Raphael Claus, was not called to the VAR to review the apparent foul by Alexis Mac Allister against Jhon Córdoba.

The foul occurred after Santiago Arias made a pass to Jhon Córdoba, who went after the ball to try to stop it; however, when he executed his play he was intercepted by the Liverpool player, who stepped on him hard.

Despite the controversies of the day, the ‘bad taste’ remains. Despite the fact that it will be a stumbling block, the process of the National Team will continue and the upcoming matches will be spaces to reunite a population that has found in its national team a reason for pride, keeping differences aside while celebrating the goals of the same side.

The accounts in the World Cup qualifiers

Colombia, led by Argentine coach Néstor Lorenzo, occupies third place in the table with 12 points, the result of three wins and three draws. Argentina leads the standings with 15 points, followed by Uruguay, which also has 12 points. Next are Venezuela with nine, Ecuador with eight and Brazil with seven points. Paraguay and Chile each have five points, Bolivia has three and Peru closes the table with two points.

FIFA has established that six teams from the South American qualifying round will directly qualify for the World Cup, which will be held in the United States, Mexico and Canada. In addition, the seventh team in the table will have the opportunity to play in a play-off, which could increase the number of representatives from this zone to seven.

In the second half of 2024, the teams will play six matches. In the double-header in September, Colombia will visit Peru in Lima and host Argentina at the Roberto Meléndez stadium in Barranquilla. In October, they will face Bolivia in La Paz and host Chile in Barranquilla. The last two matches of the year will be in November, when Colombia visits Uruguay in Montevideo and then hosts Ecuador at home, with the aim of staying at the top of the table.

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ALEJANDRA OSPINA CORDERO

DIGITAL REACH EDITORIAL

TIME

*With information from EL TIEMPO SPORTS