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The South American Championship 1959 was a football tournament held in Argentina, and won by Argentina with Brazil as runner-up. Colombia and Ecuador withdrew from the tournament. Pelé from Brazil was named best player of the tournament and was the top scorer with 8 goals.[1]
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | Argentina |
| City | Buenos Aires |
| Dates | 7 March – 4 April |
| Teams | 7 (from 1 confederation) |
| Venue(s) | Monumental Stadium |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Argentina (12th title) |
| Runners-up |  Brazil |
| Third place |  Paraguay |
| Fourth place |  Peru |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 21 |
| Goals scored | 86 (4.1 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Pelé (8 goals) |
| Best player(s) | Pelé |
← 1957 | |
| Buenos Aires |
|---|
| Estadio Monumental |
| Capacity: 67,664 |
.JPG) |
| Argentina | 6–1 |  Chile |
|---|---|---|
Pedro Manfredini  5', 50' Pedro Callá 7' Juan José Pizzuti 17', 39' Raúl Belén 75' |
Luis Álvarez 25' |
Uruguay  | 7–0 |  Bolivia |
|---|---|---|
| José Sasía 5' Guillermo Escalada 12' Víctor Guaglianone 17' Carlos Borges 60', 65' Vladas Douksas 69' Domingo Pérez 89' |
| Brazil | 2–2 | Peru |
|---|---|---|
| Didi 24' Pelé 48' |
Juan Seminario 59', 77' |
| Paraguay | 2–1 | Chile |
|---|---|---|
| José Aveiro 8', 14' |
Leonel Sánchez 34' (pen.) |
| Argentina | 2–0 | Bolivia |
|---|---|---|
| Omar Corbatta 2' Pedro Callá 79' |
| Peru | 5–3 | Uruguay |
|---|---|---|
| Miguel Ángel Loayza 4', 27', 42' Juan Joya 29', 79' |
Héctor Demarco 2' Vladas Douksas 31' José Sasía 81' |
| Paraguay | 5–0 | Bolivia |
|---|---|---|
| Cayetano Ré 1', 21', 50' Ildefonso Sanabria 11' José Aveiro 51' |
| Uruguay | 3–1 | Paraguay |
|---|---|---|
| Héctor Demarco 2' Vladas Douksas 37' José Sasía 85' |
José Aveiro 77' |
| Argentina | 3–1 | Peru |
|---|---|---|
| Omar Corbatta 18' (pen.) Rubén Sosa 42' Víctor Benítez 78' (o.g.) |
Miguel Ángel Loayza 51' |
| Brazil | 4–2 | Bolivia |
|---|---|---|
| Pelé 16' Paulo Valentim 18', 26' Didi 89' |
Ricardo Alcón 12' Ausberto García 22' |
| Chile | 1–1 | Peru |
|---|---|---|
| Armando Tobar 77' |
Miguel Ángel Loayza 12' |
| Argentina | 3–1 | Paraguay |
|---|---|---|
| Omar Corbatta 15' Rubén Sosa 63' Vladislao Cap 69' |
Silvio Parodi 36' |
| Chile | 5–2 | Bolivia |
|---|---|---|
| Mario Soto 7', 42' Juan Soto Mura 17', 51' Leonel Sánchez 89' |
Máximo Alcócer 25', 76' |
| Brazil | 3–1 | Uruguay |
|---|---|---|
| Paulo Valentim 62', 80', 89' |
Guillermo Escalada 36' |
| Brazil | 4–1 | Paraguay |
|---|---|---|
| Pelé 25', 31', 63' Chinesinho 35' |
Silvio Parodi 4' |
| Argentina | 4–1 | Uruguay |
|---|---|---|
| Raúl Belén 15', 60' Rubén Sosa 55', 80' |
Héctor Demarco 85' |
| Paraguay | 2–1 | Peru |
|---|---|---|
| José Aveiro 32', 68' |
Gómez Sánchez 51' |
| Chile | 1–0 | Uruguay |
|---|---|---|
| Mario Moreno 88' |
| Argentina | 1–1 | Brazil |
|---|---|---|
| Juan José Pizzuti 40' |
Pelé 58' |
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| 1959 South American Championship champions |
|---|
 Argentina 12th title |
With eight goals, Pelé of Brazil is the top scorer in the tournament. In total, 86 goals were scored by 36 different players, with only one of them credited as own goal.
- 8 goals
- 6 goals
- 5 goals
- 4 goals
- 3 goals
- 2 goals
- 1 goal
Vladislao Cap
Ausberto García- Ricardo Alcón
Chinesinho
Luis Hernán Álvarez- Mario Moreno
- Tovar
Ildefonso Sanabria
Óscar Gómez Sánchez
Domingo Pérez- Víctor Guaglianone
- Own goal
- Víctor Benítez (playing against Argentina)
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Originally, the 1959 Copa America was scheduled to be hosted by Ecuador. However, due to financial difficulties and infrastructure challenges, Ecuador withdrew as the host nation just a few months before the tournament was set to begin. This sudden withdrawal left CONMEBOL in a difficult situation to find a replacement host at such short notice.
In response to Ecuador's withdrawal, Argentina volunteered to step in as the new host for the tournament. The Argentine Football Association (AFA) had the necessary resources and infrastructure to organize the event. Consequently, Argentina was granted the hosting rights, and the tournament was scheduled to take place in Buenos Aires.
However, a disagreement arose among some South American nations regarding the legitimacy of Argentina being granted the hosting rights without a proper bidding process. A group of countries, including Brazil, Uruguay, and Chile, refused to participate in the tournament hosted by Argentina and organized their own competition called the "Copa del Atlántico", in response.
Meanwhile, Argentina went ahead with its plans and organized the Copa America as scheduled, inviting other CONMEBOL member nations to participate. The tournament took place from March 7 to April 4, 1959, and was won by Argentina.
After the initial Copa America tournament held in Argentina from March to April 1959, there was indeed a second Copa America held in Ecuador later that year. The second tournament took place in Guayaquil and Quito, Ecuador, from December 5 to 25, 1959.
The decision to hold a second Copa America in Ecuador was made to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Eloy Alfaro, a prominent Ecuadorian political figure. The tournament was officially named the "Copa del Centenario de la Batalla de Quito" (Centenary Cup of the Battle of Quito) to honor this occasion. Uruguay emerged as champions, securing their 10th title in the tournament's history.
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| Goalkeeper | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
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