Highlights

• The Copa America is the biggest tournament in South American football with a rich history.
• Inaugurated in 1916, the competition has seen a number of different winners, with Uruguay lifting the trophy on the first occasion.
• Argentina are the most recent winners of the Copa America, having beaten rivals Brazil in the final of the 2021 edition.

The first Copa America tournament was in 1916, when it was known as the South American Football Championship - a name that was kept until 1975. During that time, there have been eleven different host countries and a total of eight winners since the tournament began. While Argentina and Uruguay lead the way in the number of tournaments won, with 15 Copa America triumphs each, the former have been involved in a total of 29 finals, the most by any country involved in the tournament. Here is now a detailed breakdown of the tournament winners and their performances in one of South America's most prestigious competitions.

8 Bolivia

Copa Americas titles: 1

Bolivia have been involved in four Copa America tournaments, winning the tournament in 1963 - the year they were the host country. Maximo Alococer's six goals - including one in an unforgettable final game of the tournament against Brazil - helped Bolivia win their first and only Copa America trophy to date. In 1963, the tournament was in a league format, with no knockout rounds. Seven teams were involved (Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay and Peru) with every team facing each other once. Bolivia finished top of the table with 11 points from their six games, with five victories and one draw. Paraguay finished in second place with nine points, with their only loss of the tournament coming against the hosts.

Bolivia were also runners-up in the 1997 Copa America. The tournament had since changed its format since their triumph in 1963. The competition changed its name from the South American Football Competition to the Copa America in 1975, and in doing so, also changed the format to include a group stage and a knockout round. Bolivia had already upset the odds by reaching the final, but could not go all the way, and lost to a formidable Brazil side 3-1.

7 Colombia

Copa America titles: 1

Colombia lifted the 2001 Copa America, as home advantage paid dividends once again. Their 2001 triumph was their first and only time they have managed to get their hands on the coveted trophy. They impressed throughout the tournament, finishing top of a tricky-looking Group A, with Chile, Ecuador and Venezuela alongside the host country. Colombia won all three group games, qualifying to the knockout rounds with ease, with Chile progressing to the knockout rounds in second place, losing just once. Impressively, Colombia did not concede a single goal throughout the group stages.

Los Cafeteros continued to dominate the tournament, thumping Peru in the quarter-finals 3-0, before a comfortable 2-0 victory over Honduras in the semi-finals of the competition. They faced Mexico in the Copa America final, in what was a tense and edgy game. Colombia's impressive defence came out on top once again, and they went on to win the game 1-0 and lift the Copa America trophy. They are the only side in the tournament's history to go the whole campaign without conceding a goal, an amazing achievement to say the least.

The 2001 triumph for Colombia was their second appearance in the final of the tournament, with the first coming in 1975. They topped Group C, beating Paraguay and Ecuador twice in the group stages. This was the first year of the new format, and there were three team groups, with two points awarded for a win and one for a draw. Colombia faced Uruguay in a two-legged semi-final, impressively winning 3-1 on aggregate, before losing out to Peru in the final. The final was first played as a two-legged game. However, with one win apiece, the final went to a playoff game, where Peru were victorious and lifted the Copa America trophy as a result.

6 Peru

Copa America titles: 2

In 1939, Peru crowned an impressive tournament with the Copa America trophy. Not only did they win the tournament, but Teodoro "Lolo" Fernandez also won Player of the Tournament and picked up the Golden Boot, finishing the tournament with six goals. Peru were one of five participating countries in the Copa America in 1939, alongside Chile, Ecuador, Paraguay and Uruguay. Peru finished the league format with eight points, winning all four of their games in the tournament, where two points were awarded for a win at that time. They finished two points ahead of Uruguay, who lost just once throughout the tournament to Peru.

Peru's second triumph came in 1975, the first year the tournament was known as the Copa America and had knockout stages involved. They were placed in Group B alongside Chile and Bolivia. Peru topped the group, winning three of their four games, with the only blotch on their record being a 1-1 draw with Chile in the opening game. La Blanquirroja impressively drew 3-3 on aggregate with Brazil in the semi-finals, and as they were deemed to have qualified from their group first, they advanced to the final in a process called 'the drawing of lots.'

In the two-legged final, they faced Colombia, and they won a game each, meaning the final would be decided by a third game, where Peru came out on top 1-0 to lift the trophy for a second time. Peru finished as runners-up in 2019, their first appearance in the final of the competition since winning it in 1975. Peru qualified from their group in third place, with just four points, and advanced to the knockout stages alongside Paraguay as the best-ranked third-placed side. They faced Uruguay in the quarter-finals and impressively held them to a goalless draw before winning 5-4 on penalties. Their semi-final was a lot more straightforward, as they cruised to a 3-0 win over Chile. Peru faced Brazil in the final and did have the game level at 1-1, before eventually losing 3-1.

5 Chile

Copa America titles: 2

Before the 2015 Copa America, it felt like Chile were always the bridesmaid but never the bride, having appeared in four finals and lost every one. However, their luck would eventually change when Chile won two consecutive Copa America titles in 2015 and 2016, in part largely due to Eduardo Vargas, who finished as the top scorer in both tournaments. He is just three goals away from equaling the all-time record of 17 goals, which is an incredible achievement considering the size of some of the other teams involved in the tournament.

In both the 2015 and 2016 tournaments, Chile faced Argentina in the final, beating them on penalties on both occasions and denying Lionel Messi what would then have been his first Copa America trophy. Chile went through the 2015 tournament without losing a game and only conceded once, against Peru in the semi-finals. The consecutive triumphs were their first and second-ever Copa America trophies.

4 Paraguay

Copa America titles: 2

Paraguay lifted the Copa America trophy in 1953 and 1979. They won the 1953 tournament via a playoff victory over Brazil, after both sides finished on eight points. La Albirroja beat Brazil 3-2 in the match which saw them crowned champions for the very first time. Their second triumph was a less stressful one. After topping their group, they beat the Brazilians again 2-1 in the semi-final before cruising past Chile 3-1 on aggregate in the final.

Paraguay have also faced heartache in the final of the Copa America, and probably far too many times than they'd like. They have been beaten six times in the final of the tournament, with the last time coming in 2011 when they were thumped 3-0 by Uruguay thanks to two goals from Diego Forlan and one from Luis Suarez.

3 Brazil

Copa America titles: 9

Perhaps a surprise to those who do not follow the competition closely, that Brazil have not won the Copa America as many times as they have. Their last triumph came in 2019 when they beat Peru in the final. Brazil were formidable throughout the 2019 tournament, winning all their group games apart from one, in which they drew with Venezuela.

Brazil beat Paraguay 4-3 on penalties in the quarter-finals before a comfortable 2-0 win over rivals, Argentina, in the semi-final. Brazil beat Peru 3-1 in the final, which was their first Copa America triumph in 12 years. They have been involved in 21 finals in total, and have suffered heartbreak in 12 of them, with the most recent one coming in 2021 when Brazil lost 1-0 to Argentina, in a game that ended Lionel Messi's hunt for the coveted trophy.

2 Uruguay

Copa America titles: 15

Uruguay are the joint all-time winners of the trophy alongside Argentina, who recently equaled the record of 15 during the 2021 tournament. Incredibly, their last triumph was over ten years ago in 2011. Their most recent Copa America win wasn't a smooth one. They did things the hard way, finishing second in their group before scraping past Argentina on penalties in the quarter-finals. Fortunately for Uruguay, their games in the semi-final and final of the tournament were more straightforward. They beat Peru 2-0 in the semi-finals before thumping Paraguay 3-0 in the final.

Uruguay have finished as runners-up in the tournament six times, the last time coming in 1999 when they fell at the final hurdle to Brazil, losing the final comfortably 3-0.

1 Argentina

Copa America titles: 15

In 2021, Argentina and Lionel Messi ended their long wait to get their hands on the Copa America trophy once again. It was their first in 28 years, but in doing so, they equalled Uruguay's all-time record of 15 trophies. Messi was determined to win the tournament after missing out on several occasions, including consecutive finals in 2015 and 2016 to Chile. He had a stellar Copa America, finishing the tournament as the top scorer with four goals and being voted the Player of the Tournament.

It turned out to be an incredible year for Argentina. Following their Copa America win, their long wait to get their hands on the World Cup trophy also came to an end in 2022, which was their first World Cup triumph since 1986.