The involvement of Clube Atlético Mineiro in international club football began in 1972, the year of its first appearance in an official competition at that level. Since then, the Brazilian club, based in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, has participated in 31 continental and one intercontinental tournament. Atlético Mineiro has won four official titles at the international level: the Copa Libertadores in 2013; the inaugural edition of the Copa CONMEBOL in 1992, and again in 1997; and the Recopa Sudamericana in 2014. In addition, the club finished as runner-up of the Copa CONMEBOL in 1995, the Copa de Oro in 1993, and the Copa Master de CONMEBOL in 1996.
Prior to the existence of official continental football in South America, Atlético Mineiro had played against foreign clubs since 1929, and toured Europe in 1950. As Brazilian champion in 1971, the club qualified for the 1972 Copa Libertadores, its first continental tournament. Atlético Mineiro then debuted in the inaugural editions of the Copa CONMEBOL, in 1992, of the Copa de Oro, in 1993, and of the Copa Master de CONMEBOL, in 1996. Its first and only appearance in the Copa Mercosur was in the 2000 season, and its debut at the Copa Sudamericana was in 2003, the first time Brazilian clubs had participated. The club's first and only appearance in an intercontinental competition occurred in the 2013 edition of the FIFA Club World Cup, where it finished in third place.
The club's biggest-margin win at the international level is 6–0, achieved twice against Mineros in the 1995 Copa CONMEBOL, and against Cobreloa in the 2000 Copa Libertadores. Goalkeeper Victor is the player with the most appearances in international competitions for the club, with 41; forwards Guilherme and Jô are Atlético's top goalscorers with 11 goals.
Background
Prior to the inception of official international competitions between football clubs, Atlético Mineiro was the first team in Minas Gerais to play against a foreign team defeating Portugal's Vitória de Setúbal in Belo Horizonte in 1929. Over the following decades, the club played friendlies against foreign sides, including national teams, and in 1950 went on its first European tour, during which it played ten games in five countries. Having taken place soon after the traumatic Maracanazo, the tour and Atlético's results, many of which were achieved in adverse weather, including snow, were seen by national sports media as a historic achievement for Brazilian football itself.
The first continental competition organised by CONMEBOL, the governing body of football in South America, was the 1960 Copa Libertadores. Before this official tournament, Chilean club Colo-Colo's President Robinson Alvarez had the idea for a South American Championship of Champions, which was eventually held in Santiago in 1948. In 1958, the new CONMEBOL president, José Ramos de Freitas, contacted South American football associations intending to introduce an annual competition for clubs on the continent. The following year, at a CONMEBOL congress in Caracas, the creation of a South American Champions Cup was decided, renamed as Copa Libertadores in honour of the heroes of South American liberation.
From 1959 to 1968 the champions and runners-up of the Taça Brasil were the Brazilian representatives in the Copa Libertadores; the national competition had been created with the purpose of selecting the country's entrants in the continental tournament. Brazilian clubs did not enter the 1966, 1969 or 1970 editions of the competition, and in 1971 the champion and runner-up of the Torneio Roberto Gomes Pedrosa filled Brazil's berths. From 1972 to 1989, the champions and runners-up of the Campeonato Brasileiro became the representatives; from 1990 to 1999, the champions of the Copa do Brasil, the national cup, occupied the second Brazilian berth. Copa Libertadores saw an increase in the number of participating teams in 2000, and since then the runners-up, and other best-placed teams in the Brasileiro, also qualify for the continental tournament.
Copa Libertadores was the only continental competition in South America until the creation of the Supercopa Libertadores in 1988, and the Recopa Sudamericana in 1989. The first was contested between past champions of the main continental tournament, while the second was played by the winners of the Libertadores and the Supercopa of the previous year. In 1992, Copa CONMEBOL was established, being a competition for the best-placed clubs in the national leagues that did not qualify for the Copa Libertadores. Other Copas were also created by the continental confederation in the 1990s, some of them with a single game, mainly contested between past winners of the previous competitions. Copa Mercosur and the Copa Merconorte replaced the Supercopa in 1998, and eventually absorbed Copa CONMEBOL in 2000. The two competitions were replaced by the Copa Sudamericana in 2002, which remains active as the second-most important tournament on the continent.
From 1960 to 2004, CONMEBOL and UEFA, the administrative body of European football, jointly organised the Intercontinental Cup, a competition between the winners of the Copa Libertadores and the European Cup (the later UEFA Champions League). It was replaced in 2005 by the FIFA Club World Cup (which had a pilot edition in 2000), a worldwide event contested between the winners of the continental competitions of all six continental confederations.
History
Early appearances (1972–1981) Atlético Mineiro's first participated in the Copa Libertadores in 1972, having qualified as champion of the inaugural Campeonato Brasileiro in 1971. In the first stage, Atlético was drawn in Group 3, along with Paraguayan clubs Olimpia and Cerro Porteño, and fellow Brazilian club São Paulo, runner-up of the Brasileiro. Atlético failed to advance to the second stage, after drawing four games and losing one to Cerro Porteño. A match against Olimpia in Paraguay was abandoned in the 84th minute at 2–2, because Atlético had five players sent off; the points were awarded to the Paraguayan club. According to Atlético left-back Oldair, Olimpia played a violent game, and at one point Atlético's players decided to reciprocate. They were subsequently attacked and beaten by local police.
Atlético did not participate in the Copa Libertadores again until 1978, when it qualified after finishing as runner-up to São Paulo in the 1977 Brasileirão. The Brazilian clubs were again drawn into Group 3, this time with Chilean clubs as opposition: Unión Española and Palestino. Atlético qualified for the second stage undefeated, with four wins and two ties. In the semi-finals, then played as a group stage with three teams, the club faced Boca Juniors and River Plate from Argentina. Atlético won only one match, against River, and Boca advanced to the competition finals, which it went on to win.
After a two-year absence from the Copa Libertadores, Atlético qualified for the 1981 edition as runner-up of the 1980 Campeonato Brasileiro, which it had lost to Flamengo. The refereeing in the finals had been controversial, as Atlético forward Reinaldo was sent off with a straight red card after scoring a brace. Brazil's representatives were once again drawn into Group 3, together with Olimpia and Cerro Porteño, whom Atlético faced for a second time in a group stage of the Libertadores. The two encounters between the Brazilian clubs ended 2–2, and both won two and drew two matches against the Paraguayans, meaning Atlético and Flamengo were tied on points. According to the competition's rules, a one-game playoff in a neutral stadium had to be played between the clubs to decide which one would advance to the semifinals.
The playoff match was played at Serra Dourada Stadium, in Goiânia, a venue selected by Flamengo. Atlético elected the referee, José Roberto Wright who, until the match, was considered the best in the country. At the 33rd minute of the match, Atlético forward and star player Reinaldo received a straight red card from the referee after fouling Flamengo's Zico, in what was described by the press as a "normal" foul and "without much violence". After the foul, Atlético player Éder was sent off for complaining, and the game was stopped. A turmoil started, and Atlético players Palhinha and Chicão were also sent off for insulting the referee. Left with seven players, Atlético's goalkeeper João Leite claimed he was injured when the match was restarted, but Wright did not stop the game. Atlético defender Osmar then held the ball with his hands, preventing the restart, and was also sent off. The match ended as a goalless draw at the 37-minute mark because Atlético had fewer than seven players on the field. The result meant qualification for Flamengo, as it had the best goal difference in the group stage.After the match, Atlético unsuccessfully appealed to a CONMEBOL court for its annulment. According to Wright, Reinaldo's foul was indeed "normal", but he was sent off because of a previous verbal warning. He also stated that Éder, Palhinha and Chicão continued to be undisciplined and that he had to send Éder off to not lose control of the match. The episode and referee Wright's performance were described by Brazilian and South American media at the time as "shameful", "deplorable" and "disgraceful". Flamengo advanced to the semi-finals and went on to win the competition.
+ Fixtures in international competitions (1972–81)SeasonCompetitionRoundOppositionHomeAway 1972Copa Libertadores GS São Paulo 2–2 0–04th Cerro Porteño 1–1 0–1 Olimpia 0–02–2 1978Copa Libertadores GS Unión Española 5–1 1–11st São Paulo 1–1 2–1 Palestino 2–0 5–4SF Boca Juniors 1–2 1–33rd River Plate 1–0 0–11981Copa LibertadoresGS Flamengo 2–2 2–22nd Olimpia 1–0 0–0 Cerro Porteño 2–2 1–2 Flamengo 0–0
First titles and finals (1992–1998)
Atlético only returned to official international football in 1992, taking part in the inaugural edition of the Copa CONMEBOL, a new competition organised by the continental confederation; the club earned a berth in the competition by finishing third in the 1991 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A. Copa CONMEBOL was contested among 16 teams, which played two-legged knockout ties. In the first round, Atlético eliminated fellow Brazilian side Fluminense with an aggregate score of 6–3, after a 2–1 away loss and a 5–1 home victory. The team then faced Colombia's Atlético Junior in the quarter-finals, advancing with a 5–2 aggregate score. Ecuadorian side El Nacional was the opponent in the semi-finals, in which Atlético lost the first leg at Quito by 1–0 and won the second at home by 2–0 to advance. Olimpia, a team which Atlético had already faced in two Copa Libertadores tournaments, was the club's opposition in the finals. After a 2–0 home win with a brace by Negrini at the Mineirão, and a 1–0 away defeat at the Defensores del Chaco, Atlético won its first official international trophy. Aílton, an Atlético forward, scored six goals in the competition and was its top goalscorer.