CONMEBOL / ten nations, no easy games

CONMEBOL is the Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol — South America's soccer confederation, running the sport across its 10 countries. Think of it as one of FIFA's six regional conferences — the oldest and smallest, including the two giants, and pound-for-pound the strongest region in the sport. Clubs chase the Copa Libertadores (the Champions League with the intensity dial snapped off); nations chase the Copa América — older than the World Cup itself — and survive a qualifying league where all ten play everyone, home and away, through 12,000-foot altitude and Amazon heat. Brazil and Argentina are fully wired below.