The 2006 South American Women's Football Championship (Campeonato Sudamericano de Fútbol Femenino 2006) was the fifth staging of the South American Women's Football Championship (now known as Copa América Femenina) and determined the CONMEBOL's qualifiers for the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup and the 2008 Olympic Games football tournament. The tournament was held between 10 and 26 November in the Argentine city of Mar del Plata.
The hosts Argentina won the tournament for the first time and qualified to their second FIFA Women's World Cup and their first Olympic tournament. Runners-up Brazil also qualified for the World Cup; but had to face Ghana in a play-off to qualify to the Olympics.
Like in the 1998 edition, the only venue used for the tournament was the Estadio José MarÃÂa Minella, also known as Estadio Mundialista.
The following referees and assistant referees were named for the tournament:
The tournament format is similar to the 1998 edition. It features a first round, where the ten teams are divided into two groups of five teams each. The top two teams in the groups advance to a final round, instead of a knockout stage.
The final round was set up in a round-robin format, where each team played one match against each of the other teams within the group. The top two teams in the group qualified for the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup in the People's Republic of China, and the first-placed team won the tournament.
Three points were awarded for a win, one point for a draw, and zero points for a loss.
Teams were ranked on the following criteria:
Argentina and Brazil qualified for the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup and the 2008 Summer Olympics, although second-placed Brazil had to play an inter-continental play-off, which they won against Ghana eventually.