It has been almost a year since the last World Cup Qualifying match in South America, but CONMEBOL's competition returns to see which teams get the six spots to play in North America during the summer of 2026.
The road to play in either Canada, Mexico, or the United States has been full of surprises, with Argentina leading the pack almost unscathed, but with nice surprises coming from Uruguay, Colombia, and Venezuela, who complete the top four.
Now, with six games played for each national team, it is time to start separating those who are contenders from the teams that will only keep playing with no real options to be involved in the World Cup. Speaking of that final group, Bolivia and Peru will aim to keep their options alive, mainly because their display so far has been an utter disappointment.
Before we go deeper into all games, here is how the table looks like before the seventh match in CONMEBOL's World Cup Qualifiers.
[TABLE 18 "South America"]
Now, off to the first five games.
Bolivia vs Venezuela - La Vinotinto are closer than ever to reaching their World Cup dream, but there is still a long road to go through. Their first stop in that road will be in Bolivia, a team they defeated in their previous match with a convincing 4-1 score. Will the Venezuelan side repeat that feat?
[MATCH 4719542]
Argentina vs Chile - La Albiceleste has dominated all but one of their opponents in these Qualifiers, but this game could tell a different story due to Messi's absence. The Argentine side has won four of their last seven matches against Chile, with the other three ending in draws. Nonetheless, La Roja need to step things up if they don't want to miss out on a third World Cup in a row.
[MATCH 4719544]
Uruguay vs Paraguay - La Celeste will be living a special match since it will be the final hurrah for Luis Suárez with the team, but trying to leave that out the table, the Uruguayans will try to make ammends with their fans following their exit from the Copa América by beating Paraguay, a team they have beaten in six of their last ten games. La Albirroja will try to put an end to that run to cling to the seventh spot in the Qualifiers, and they will try to do so under a new boss: Gustavo Alfaro.
[MATCH 4719543]
Brazil vs Ecuador - A Canarinha has surprisingly struggled to win games in the Qualifiers, and their next match will not be any different as Ecuador has played some great games in this competition. Only one point separates these teams in the standings, but following Félix Sánchez Bas' exit, La Tricolor will be quite an enigma under new coach Sebastian Beccacece, who will have his first experience as a national team coach and will be in charge of trying to end a 20-year drought for Ecuador without a win against Brazil.
[MATCH 4719546]
Peru vs Colombia - The Peruvian side has been one of the biggest disappointments in the Qualifiers with absolutely no wins in six matches, and judging by their recent performances, it seems they will have to struggle for it when they host Colombia. La Franjirroja have won two out of their last three against Colombia, but their recent form hints that Los Cafeteros enter this match as major favorites to claim the win here, especially considering they won their two last away games against Peru with the same score (3-0).
[MATCH 4719545]