Diego Forlan scored twice after Luis Suarez’s opening goal as Uruguay beat Paraguay 3-0 to win the Copa America in Buenos Aires and be crowned South American champions for a record 15th time.
Suarez, voted player of the tournament, put Uruguay ahead in the eighth minute of the final at the Monumental when his low, left-footed shot from the right beat the diving Justo Villar and went in off the far post.
Forlan, the 2010 World Cup’s best player, made it 2-0 three minutes before half-time when he ran onto a ball from midfielder Egidio Arevalo Rios and blasted left-footed past Villar from the edge of the box.
In the last minute, Forlan made sure of the title with his second goal at the end of a fine counter-attacking move, steering the ball past Villar and in off the post.
Uruguay now have one more title than hosts Argentina, whom they upset on penalties in the quarter-finals, at the end of a fine 12 months following their fourth place at the World Cup.
Outgoing champions Brazil, also eliminated in the quarter-finals on penalties by Paraguay, have eight titles.
