The 2023 Copa Colombia, officially the Copa BetPlay Dimayor 2023 for sponsorship reasons, was the 21st edition of the Copa Colombia, the national cup competition for clubs affiliated to DIMAYOR, the governing body of professional club football in Colombia. The tournament was contested by 36 teams, beginning on 14 February 2023 and ending on 23 November 2023.
Atlético Nacional won their sixth title in the competition, defeating the defending champions Millonarios in the finals on penalty kicks after a 2âÂÂ2 draw on aggregate. As champions, Atlético Nacional qualified for the 2024 Copa Libertadores.
The format for the 2023 Copa Colombia featured changes in the entry points of the teams in each phase with respect to previous editions, while keeping its double-legged, single-elimination format. The first stage was contested by the eight lowest placed teams in the aggregate tables of both the 2022 Primera A and 2022 Primera B tournaments, with the Primera B teams drawn against a Primera A side in eight ties. The first stage winners then faced the remaining Primera B teams in the second round of the competition, with the eight winners advancing to the third stage where they were drawn against each other. The four third stage winners qualified for the round of 16, where they were joined by the remaining 12 Primera A teams which entered the competition at that point. In another departure from previous editions, the order of legs was drawn for each phase of competition, except for the second stage in which the first stage winners played the second leg at home.
The schedule of the competition was as follows:
The first stage was played by eight CategorÃÂa Primera A and eight CategorÃÂa Primera B clubs, with the latter seeded in the ties according to their placement in the 2022 season aggregate table. The Primera A clubs were drawn into each tie.
The second stage was played by the eight first stage winners as well as the top eight teams in the 2022 Primera B aggregate table, which were seeded into this stage according to their placement in the aggregate table. The first stage winners hosted the second leg.
The third stage was played by the eight second stage winners.
Each round in the final stages was played under a home-and-away two-legged format. The teams entering the competition at this stage were the top 12 teams in the aggregate table of the 2022 Primera A season. The order of legs of each tie was decided by draw. In case of a draw on aggregate score at the end of the second leg, extra time was not played and the winner was decided in a penalty shoot-out.
Tied 2âÂÂ2 on aggregate, Atlético Nacional won on penalties.
<small>Source: Besoccer</small>