The Copa America never fails to entertain! In a gripping quarter-final clash, Argentina was held back by Ecuador in the final minutes of the stoppage time. Ecuador’s Kevin Rodríguez connected with a header to tie the match last minute, 1-1. Fans expected them to get some extra time, but they were wrong! The game skipped straight to a penalty shootout. So why was the usual extra half-hour not given?

Apparently, it all comes down to the new rule book of the Copa America. Usually, after a tied affair between two sides, an extra half-hour is given, split into two halves of 15 minutes each. However, as per the CONMEBOL tournament’s latest regulation, there will be no extra time given in the knockout stages.

As per Article 26: “In the knockout phase, if there is a tie at the end of regular time in the Quarterfinals, Semifinals, or the Third-Place match, the winner will be determined by a penalty shootout in accordance with the rules stipulated by IFAB/FIFA.”

Hence, they would have to decide their fate via penalties. But what about the final of the Copa America 2024? Well, extra time will be provided.

As per Article 27: “Specifically for the final match, if there is a tie at the end of regular time, an extra time consisting of two 15-minute halves will be played. If the tie persists at the end of extra time, a penalty shootout will be held in accordance with the rules stipulated by IFAB/FIFA to determine the winner.”

As reported by ‘The Athletic’, this format with the finals was also used between 1995 and 2004. In fact, the only instance where the extra time was given for each knockout round was in 2011, but in the next edition (2015), they shifted back to the previous rules. Interestingly, no specific reason has been stated by the Copa America stakeholders for this change.

No doubt, many competitions in the past have seen matches head directly to penalties and CONMEBOL surely seems to have made the decision. Whether it is a benefit or a boon for a nation depends entirely on the situation. As for today’s match, things turned out to be quite dramatic.

Did the extra time omission prove favorable for Argentina and Ecuador?

Tonight’s match could have gone in the favor of either side. Argentina took the lead from Lisandro Martinez’s 35th-minute strike. Despite Ecuador earning a penalty at the hour mark, Enner Valencia’s attempt made it easy for Emiliano Martinez, who dived the wrong way, as Valencia mistakenly struck the ball directly at the bottom-left post. However, Ecuador didn’t give up, and Kevin Rodriguez found the equalizer during injury time.

Looking at the 90 minutes so far, either side had a chance to take the lead if the match had been taken to extra time. Yet, all was left on penalties as Argentina eventually came out victorious with a 4-2 score, with Martinez saving the opening two and Lionel Messi shockingly missing the opening one.

During Messi’s turn, the ball hit the crossbar and went over the net. “A lot of anger, a lot of anger … I just wanted to touch it and it went high,” he said later. But eventually, things went in his team’s favor. With this win, Argentina booked La Albiceleste’s berth in the semifinals.

We wonder what the result would have been if it would have been a contest of 120 minutes. Regardless, let us know your thoughts on this latest rule.