On 23 June 2012, after a successful regular phase in the second place under Universidad de Chile at the top of the table, in the play-offs faced to Unión La Calera in the quarter-finals. The first match at La Calera, the team won 1–0 with a free kick goal of Ramón Fernández, who played the last season in that club, not celebrating the goal, in Rancagua for the second match, the club again won, now for a 3–2 victory, thanks to Enzo Gutiérrez, who scored a peace of goal after an incredible bicycle kick that defeated to the keeper Lucas Giovini. The next key, the club faced to Unión Española in the semi-finals at Santiago, in where with a goal of the playmaker Emiliano Vecchio the club was defeated at the Estadio Santa Laura, finally winning 2–1 at the second match with goals of Luis Pedro Figueroa and Rodrigo Rojas, whilst for the club of Independencia, scored the striker Sebastián Jaime. The next game, now for the finals against the club Universidad de Chile, O'Higgins beat for the same scored of the last match to the team of the University, with goals of Rojas and the Argentine full back Alejandro López, whilst for the blues scored Guillermo Marino. O'Higgins was the Primera División champion of the Torneo de Apertura, until the 92nd minute of game in the Estadio Nacional, because with annotations of Charles Aránguiz and the same Marino, the club equalized the key, winning 2–0 in the penalties thanks to the blues' keeper Jhonny Herrera, who saved three penalties to Rodrigo Rojas, Yerson Opazo and Enzo Gutiérrez. However, the match was not exempt of polemics, because the referee Enrique Osses conceded a non–existent penalty to Marino, that was scored by Aránguiz, and unfairly red-carded to the centre back Julio Barroso, after an aggression of the right back José Rojas of Universidad de Chile.