The Professional League (LPF) announced this Wednesday the groups for the Apertura and Clausura tournaments of the 2026 season. which will be played in the same format as this year, following the draw that took place at the Lionel Messi Mansion of the Argentine Football Association (AFA) in Ezeiza.
The teams that will compete next year are almost all the same as in 2025, with the exception of the two that were relegated to the Primera Nacional – San Martín de San Juan and Godoy Cruz – and were replaced by Estudiantes de Río Cuarto and Gimnasia de Mendoza.
In both championships, the 30 teams were divided into two zones of 15 teams each. In the first phase, they will compete against each other in their respective groups and each club will also play a classic and an interzonal tournament. There will be a total of 16 games for each team and the best eight from each zone will advance to the round of 16. From then on there will be direct elimination games until the definition.
By chance, the interzonal tournaments that will take place in the two tournaments have also been determined and the most attractive will be Boca vs. Racing. Like the In summary, the cast of Buenos Aires’ La Boca neighborhood in 2026 will include at least eight classics.
In addition, the millionaire will play the interzonal tournament against Vélez Sarsfield; Rojo against Independiente Rivadavia de Mendoza; San Lorenzo vs. students from Río Cuarto; Rosario Central vs Cordoba Workshops; and Argentinos Juniors against Lanus.
Zone A
Zone B
The LPF considered some requests for the draw. Security authorities called for a homogeneous distribution of teams across areas so as not to combine games in the same jurisdiction; TV that there is one classic per date and that it is not in the first few days; and the clubs demanded that the derbies not be played during the week.
The Apertura and Clausura champions play against each other for the Champions Trophy and also qualify for the Copa Libertadores 2027 together with the winner of the Argentine Cup and the top three in the annual table. From fourth to ninth place overall, where the points scored in both championships are added, they advance to the Sudamericana 2027.
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