On 20th July 2011, Paraguay defeated Venezuela via penalties to reach the Copa America final despite not winning any of their matches. The feat is very unusual for any team, especially in a major international tournament.
Paraguay had previously won the Copa America twice in 1953 and 1979. In the 2011 edition, they were pitted in a group with Brazil, Venezuela and Ecuador. In their opening game, Paraguay played out a goalless draw against Ecuador. The following game against Brazil was a two each draw but it could well have been a win had Fred not equalised in the 89th minute. In the final group stage game, Paraguay were 3-1 up against Venezuela in the 88th minute and looked set to secure a second-place finish. Venezuela ended up scoring two late goals through Miku and Grenddy Perozo to rescue a point. Paraguay's goal difference of zero meant that they were the second-best 3rd placed team ahead of Costa Rica who had a goal difference of -2 and ended up qualifying for the Quarterfinals.
In the Quarterfinals Paraguay drew defending champions Brazil. Having played an entertaining 4 goal thriller in their group stage game the two teams met once again. This time around Paraguay held Brazil to a goalless draw at the end of extra time after parking the bus for 120 minutes. Brazil dominated possession of the ball but failed to find the back of the net. Paraguay caused Major upset by winning the penalty shootout 2-0 after Brazil missed all four penalties. Elano, Thiago Silva, Andre Santos and Fred all missed their penalties. Paraguay played Venezuela in the Semi-Finals. They again played out a goalless draw and won the penalty shootout after scoring all five of their penalties. Under FIFA rules, the shootout is not part of the match, which is officially considered a draw.
This pattern however did not follow the Paraguayan team in the finals as they lost 3-0 to Uruguay and had to settle for the silver medal. The runner up position remains their best result in a major international competition since their Copa America win in 1979. Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal did something similar in 2016 when they won the Euros. The Portuguese team did not win any of their matches in normal time except their Semi-Final win against Wales.
