A security guard helps fans waiting to enter the stadium before the Copa America final between Argentina and Colombia, Sunday, July 14, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Florida. (AP Photo/Lynn Sladky)
Argentina, the reigning World Cup and Copa America champions, and Colombia, unbeaten in 28 games since 2022, will face off in the 2024 Copa America final on Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.
The game kicked off at approximately 9:15 pm ET after fans flooded the gates, delaying the originally scheduled 8 pm start.
Colombia’s unbeaten streak continued all the way to the final, where they won two, drew one and lost none in the group stage, beat Brazil on penalties, crushed Panama 5-0 and beat Uruguay 1-0 in the semi-finals. The last team to beat Colombia? Yes, it was Argentina. Their 1-0 win over Colombia in the 2022 South American World Cup qualifiers was one of the reasons they missed out on a place in Qatar that year.
Meanwhile, Argentina qualified for the World Cup with their victory and ultimately won it by beating France on penalties. But it was in the 2021 Copa America that Lionel Messi led Argentina to the trophy after a 28-year drought and set them on their path to world domination.
It will be the first time the two teams have faced off in a Copa America final in the tournament’s 108-year history, with a win for Argentina securing a record-breaking 16th Copa America title, while Colombia will be looking to win their second title.
For the latest updates on the match, check out our live blog below.
live51 updates
Messi is back on the field, crisis averted. He complains about his right ankle, but his left one looks even more painful.
Hard Rock Stadium gates finally open
The gates at Hard Rock Stadium are open, allowing fans who weren’t able to get in, but as The Athletic’s Felipe Cardenas points out, some of those who do get in aren’t even sure they have tickets at this point.
As you can see, the venue is packed with people.
Lionel Messi collapsed to the ground and appeared to be in pain after charging to the goal-line to put in a cross before being tackled by Santiago Arias, but to no avail.
35′ Messi falls after a hard tackle
Colombia have looked the more dominant side for the first 33 minutes and, although they have failed to capitalise on their chances so far, Argentina are unlikely to take an easy win.
The audio and video seem to be in sync again.
Incidentally, the score is still 0-0 after 20 minutes.
Fans continue to try to get into Hard Rock Stadium
The chaos outside Hard Rock Stadium doesn’t appear to be over, with videos posted to social media showing fans trying to get into the venue over the past 30 minutes, including climbing up air vents.
Fox’s audio seems to be about 5 seconds ahead of the video right now. Very disturbing.
7′ John Cordoba just misses the goal!
Whew, Colombia was quick on the offensive in the first seven minutes, and Argentina has already found themselves on the back foot multiple times.
After the chaos of the past few hours at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, the Copa America final is about to begin. Let’s get started. It should be a great match.
The Univision broadcast estimated that there were about 7,000 extra people who did not have tickets, out of the stadium’s capacity of 65,000. #copaamerica
There is footage of people collapsing in the sea outside and police brutally taking away people with ID.
This is no longer a football match or a spectacle, it is just violent mayhem, and reporting on it solely from a sporting perspective is a journalistic failing.
According to Fox, the Copa America final kicks off at 9:15pm.
This is the fault of CONMEBOL, but also of local organisers and stadium operators at the venues. The whole tournament has been thrown into chaos, big and small.
