Brazil upset tournament favorite Argentina 3–0 in the Copa America final to win its fourth South American soccer championship in five editions and eighth overall.

Julio Baptista and Daniel Alves scored for the record five- time world champion in Maracaibo, Venezuela, either side of a 40th minute own-goal by Argentina’s Roberto Ayala.

“We got the goals exactly when we needed to create this magnificent victory,” Baptista told Lancenet.

It was Brazil’s second straight win over archrival Argentina in the Copa America final after ending a run of eight consecutive defeats in the 2004 showpiece. Argentina was favored to extend the record of 14 titles it shares with Uruguay after scoring 16 times in five straight wins before the final. Brazil, which was without first-choice players including Kaka and Ronaldinho at the 12-nation event, lost 2–0 to Mexico in its opener and needed a penalty shootout to beat Uruguay in the semifinals.

In yesterday’s final, the Brazilians took the lead in the fourth minute when Baptista fired a right-foot shot into the top corner past Argentina goalkeeper Roberto Abbondanzieri.

The Brazilians went 2–0 up five minutes before halftime when Ayala diverted a cross from substitute Alves into his own net. Alves sealed the victory by adding a third in the 69th minute, finishing with a precise shot into the corner after collecting a center from Vagner Love, who had broken down the left. It was Alves’s first international goal.