Argentina won record 16th Copa America title after extra-time goal from Lautaro Martinez; final delayed for over an hour with thousands of ticketless fans trying to enter stadium; Martinez goal sparked wild celebrations at the Hard Rock Stadium after Lionel Messi earlier taken off injured
A goal deep into extra-time by Lautaro Martinez gave Argentina a 1-0 win over Colombia and a record-breaking 16th Copa America title.
Argentina lost a tearful Lionel Messi to injury midway through the second half of a game delayed by more than an hour by crowd issues, but Martinez came off the bench in the extra half-hour to ensure his captain would lift a third successive major trophy.
The win in Miami followed 2021 Copa America success and the World Cup triumph in 2022.
The match kicked off an hour and 20 minutes late after security closed gates at the Hard Rock Stadium, one of the sites for the 2026 World Cup, after fans attempted to enter the stadium without tickets.
When it did get under way, Manchester City’s Julian Alvarez had an early chance for the defending champions but Colombia made the brighter start with Liverpool’s Luis Diaz forcing an early save from Camilo Vargas while Jhon Cordoba struck a post.
Alvarez inadvertently blocked an effort from Messi, who went down with what looked like an ankle injury before the break but was able to swing in a free-kick which Nicolas Tagliafico headed over.
The second half saw both teams have spells on the front foot, but neither side were able to seize control – Angel Di Maria, in his last international appearance, forcing a couple of saves from Vargas.
Messi went down again just after the hour and this time was unable to continue, limping off to watch on in tears from the bench.
Gonzalez had the best chance of the first period of extra-time, but could only shoot straight at Vargas following Rodrigo De Paul’s cut-back.
Lisandro Martinez produced an excellent block on Miguel Borja as time ran out and within moments Argentina were ahead.
De Paul won the ball near halfway, finding Lautaro Martinez who exchanged passes with fellow substitute Giovani Lo Celso and the tournament’s top scorer made no mistake to end Colombia’s run of 28 unbeaten games.
Overcrowding mars final
South American football’s governing body CONMEBOL pushed the start time of the match back three times after videos on social media showed security scuffling with fans as they ran across the concourses and attempted to breach the gates of the Hard Rock Stadium.
According to reports, several people were ejected from the stadium by security staff at the venue, which will host matches during the 2026 World Cup.
“It was hard because many had their families outside, they didn’t know what was going on,” Argentina and Tottenham defender Cristian Romero told reporters. “It didn’t seem like a final, there was a lot of commotion and a lot of concern.”
A Hard Rock Stadium statement, released on Monday, read: “Throughout the afternoon and evening, there were numerous attempts by unruly fans without tickets to overpower security and law enforcement personnel at entry points to the stadium, putting themselves, other fans and security and stadium staff at extreme risk.
“Various stadium gates were closed and re-opened strategically in an attempt to allow ticketed guests to enter safely and in a controlled manner. Fans continued to engage in illegal conduct – fighting police officers, breaking down walls and barricades and vandalising the stadium, causing significant damage to the property.
“When it became apparent that it would not be safe to start the match at 8pm, a joint decision was made to postpone. Shortly after 8pm, stadium officials, CONMEBOL, CONCACAF and law enforcement officers communicated and decided to open stadium gates for a short period of time to all fans to prevent stampedes and serious injury at the perimeter. The gates were then closed once the threat of fans being crushed was alleviated. At that time, the venue was at capacity and gates were not re-opened.”
Sky Sports News has contacted FIFA and CONMEBOL for further comment.