Ivan Cordoba, 65’: The most significant minute in Colombian football history

• Colombia hosted the Copa America for the first time in 2001

• The hosts progressed to the final without conceding a goal

• Colombia beat Mexico to win maiden title on home soil

Akshat Mehrish A golden generation of Colombian footballers had produced many memories and several cult figures, but none of it had amounted to any silverware of note. Colombia exited the 1990 FIFA World Cup, with the team in its prime, in the round-of-16, and failed to make it past the group stage in the following two tournaments. On the continent, they finished fourth in the 1991 Copa America, and third in 1993 and 1995. As the sun settled on a collection of icons unlike any Colombia had seen, the feeling of what could’ve been began seeping in. When the country hosted its first Copa America competition in 2001, it had firmly set in.

Prior to the 2001 tournament, Colombia and Venezuela were the only two members of the South American footballing body, CONMEBOL, not to have acted as hosts. Furthermore, the former had only been a regular participant in the competition since 1975, the year they achieved their highest finish hitherto by reaching the final. Internal strife nearly took that opportunity away from the country. But, after much deliberation by those in charge, the decision to host the tournament as planned was given the go-ahead. Still, it wasn’t without its controversies; Canada and Argentina withdrew their teams for varying reasons on the eve of the contest but were swiftly replaced by Costa Rica and Honduras, respectively. Along with Mexico, those two ensured that even though the Copa America was a South American flagship tournament, two confederations were represented in its 2001 edition. It kicked off on July 11, with Chile defeating Ecuador in the opening game.

Although they no longer boasted the star power of yesteryear, Colombia enjoyed a perfect group stage to the delight of the excited home crowd. Head coach Francisco Maturana drew much of his roster from the local competition, with only five players based outside Colombia and only one — captain Ivan Cordoba — playing in Europe at the time. Yet, what his team lacked in glamour, it made up with its collective spirit. Not only did Colombia win each of their group games against Chile, Ecuador, and Venezuela, they did not concede a single goal.

The hosts continued their fine form with comfortable wins over Peru and Honduras in the quarter-finals and semi-finals, powered by a robust defence and the efficiency of centre-forward Victor Aristizabal. The striker, who netted thrice in the group stage and thrice in the knockouts, finished as the tournament’s top-scorer. Progressing through the rounds, Colombia set a final date with invitees Mexico, marking their first appearance at that stage in nearly 40 years. The game commenced on July 29, 2001, in front of 45,000 fans stuffed inside Estadio El Campin in Bogota. Refereed by Paraguayan Ubaldo Aquino, the match was a heated affair, with the official brandishing five yellow and two red cards over the course of 90 minutes. The result was decided by the finest of margins in the 65th minute when captain Cordoba flicked a free-kick delivery from Ivan Lopez into the far corner. Ivan Cordoba, a combative defender who was already playing for Italy’s Internazionale and would continue to do so until his retirement in 2012, ran away to celebrate with his teammates, barely containing the emotions that had taken over him. Cordoba then returned to his day job of stopping opposition attackers in their stride, emerging triumphant when Aquino blew his whistle following the regulation hour-and-a-half, confirming Colombia’s status as the new South American champions.