Barracas Central (Argentina) – Vasco Da Gama (Brazil)
Founded in 1904, Barracas Central will make their international debut in this 2026 Copa Sudamericana after finishing tenth in the overall table of the Argentine league last season. They are coming off a 2–1 home defeat to Sarmiento last Thursday, a result that ended two streaks: a five-match unbeaten run (three wins and two draws) and a four-game unbeaten stretch at home (three wins and one draw). It also pushed them out of the playoff spots in Group B of the Torneo Apertura, as they have 16 points from 12 matches, one behind eighth-placed Huracán. CR Vasco da Gama begin their ninth Copa Sudamericana campaign (they reached the semifinals in 2011) after finishing 14th in the 2025 Brasileirao. On Saturday night, they suffered a 2–1 home defeat to Botafogo FR, a result that ended a six-match unbeaten run across all competitions (three wins and three draws). They are experiencing an inconsistent league season, having collected 12 points from ten matches. Away from home, Vasco are on a six-game winless streak (two draws and four losses). They will field a completely rotated side on Tuesday, prioritizing their match next Saturday against Clube do Remo; in fact, most of the traveling squad consists of U-20 players. Their head coach Renato Gaúcho will not even be present. Even if Barracas is not the most reliable team, they should be highly motivated for their international debut. Vasco clearly doesn’t care about this competition, they’ve sent a young squad with an assistant coach, so I have to expect the hosts to win here.