At the beginning of the 2003 Apertura, Julio César Falcioni, and through the promotion of players like Daniel Bilos and Rodrigo Palacio, managed to build a first-line squad and Banfield got 62 points in the season, finishing third and qualifying for the international cups (Sudamericana 2004 and Libertadores 2005). In the 2005 Copa Libertadores, with players such as Jorge Cervera and Antonio Barijho, they passed the round as 2nd in the group with 11 points, eliminated Independiente de Medellín in the Round of 16 with a 5–0 aggregate and were eliminated in the Quarterfinals against River, finishing in 7th place in the cup, reaching 23rd place in the FIFA Club World Ranking.