(TSDD), however, the title was given to another runner with Oriente Petrolero causing the controversy. The leadership of the club called the decision as fair, because this year the La Paz team fought until the end for the title and the title was the reward for the effort of the players. In conclusion The Strongest was awarded the championship. In 2009 Oriente was close to the title, but they could not win their last two away games against The Strongest and Bolivar. In the Clausura Oriente could advance to next stage, but in the quarter-final Oriente surprisingly knocked out Bolivar (anyway, they qualified as the best loser). In the semi-final they lost against their classic rival Blooming. Oriente gained the third place in Clausura that gave Oriente a second participation in the Copa Sudamericana. In the Torneo Playoff Oriente eliminated their rival Blooming (Qualified to best Loser's round), in the quarter-final Oriente eliminated San Jose. In the Semi-final Oriente was eliminated by Bolívar after drawing in two games. That year Oriente had spent a lot of money in strikers, but after two years Oriente qualified to an international cup. Oriente began with Aerosur Cup, but were eliminated in the first stage. After being eliminated, they received an invitation from Peruvian Football Federation to participate in the Peru International Cup. On 3 February they eliminated Deportivo Garcilaso 3–2 in the semi-final and in the final they beat Cienciano 3–0 on penalties after drawing 0–0 after 90 minutes and they won their first Peru International Cup. Historical participation in the Copa Libertadores 1988 In the Copa Libertadores 1988, Oriente was drawn in group 4 with: Bolívar (Bolivian rivals), Cerro Porteño, and Olimpia. Oriente finished first in the group with seven points. They began their campaign by beating fellow Bolivian rivals Bolivar 2–1 in La Paz. They then played Olimpia at home in Santa Cruz and won 1–0, and also won the away leg 2–1. They later tied at home with Cerro Porteño 2-2, although they lost the away leg in Asunción 1–0, and lost 3–1 to Bolivar at home. In the second phase, their rival was Colo-Colo of Chile. In the first leg played on September 8 in Santa Cruz, they took advantage and won 2–1. While in the return match played on September 14 in Santiago de Chile, the match ended 0–0. They qualified to the next round. In the quarterfinals,