Andrea Pérez gives Santa Fe a dramatic Libertadores debut: 3-2 over Caracas with a 90+2 header

Santa Fe had to suffer until the very last breath to open their 2026 Copa Libertadores Femenina with a win. Las Leonas beat Caracas FC 3-2 at the Rodrigo Paz Delgado stadium in Quito on Friday night, with an Andrea Pérez header in the 90+2 minute closing an end-to-end match. It was the debut for both sides in Group A, in the fixture CONMEBOL had moved from Thursday to Friday because of the Venezuelan delegation's visa problems.

Five goals and two comebacks

Caracas struck first: in the 26th minute, Emaiver Mota converted a penalty for 1-0 after a foul by Andrea Pérez on María Maza. Santa Fe answered before the break. In the 44th minute, Katherine Valbuena headed in the equaliser from close range after a corner, and in first-half stoppage time Mariana Zamorano made it 2-1 from the spot, a penalty that, according to El Tiempo's match report, VAR awarded for a Maza handball.

The second half started badly for the Colombians: in the 47th minute, Fabiola Solórzano levelled with an angled strike. In between there was another long VAR check that ruled out a Zamorano goal for an offside in the build-up, according to El Tiempo. When the draw seemed sealed, a Zamorano free kick found Pérez's head in the 90+2 minute and the ball ended up in the net for the final 3-2.

How Group A stands

• Corinthians, 3 points (2-0 over Colo Colo in their opener).
• Santa Fe, 3 points.
• Caracas FC, 0 points.
• Colo Colo, 0 points.

The top two in each group advance to the quarter-finals, and the tournament is decided on 31 October. Santa Fe, runners-up in the Colombian league, play again on Sunday against Colo Colo. Caracas, still without a point, will face defending champions Corinthians.

The build-up: 24 visas out of 30

Las Leonas' debut was in doubt until Thursday. Ecuador has required visas from Venezuelan citizens since 2019 and the Caracas delegation's paperwork was delayed, so CONMEBOL pushed the match back a day. The Venezuelan club said in a statement that it had received approval for 24 of the 30 visas requested and that four players were still waiting for theirs. The squad arrived in Quito only hours before the new kick-off time, with fewer players than planned, and still took the lead and later pulled level at 2-2 before Pérez's late header.

Cruzeiro also opened with a win

In Group C, Cruzeiro beat LDU Quito 2-1 at the same Rodrigo Paz Delgado. Gisseli opened the scoring in the early minutes after a Byanca Brasil free kick hit the crossbar, Justine Cuadra equalised for the Ecuadorians shortly after the half-hour mark, and Byanca Brasil herself scored the winner in the second half. With Bolívar and Olimpia drawing 2-2, the Brazilians sit alone at the top of the group and play Bolívar on Monday.

Sources: El Tiempo, EFE (via Infobae), Colombia.com, La Vinotinto, Infobae Colombia, No Ataque, Fut das Minas.