Remarkably, the Chileans - who are hosting the tournament for the first time since 1991 - have never won a single Copa America in its 99-year history.
But home advantage, a strong team by historical standards, and - most of all - a kindly draw have all given La Roja fans hope of finally breaking their duck.
After all, Chile have avoided Argentina and Uruguay - who have been pitted together in Group B - as well as Brazil and Colombia who are in Group C.
Of course, that draw also means there will be two almighty clashes as early as the group stages.
Holders Uruguay are without their talisman Luis Suarez who is still banned from international football after he took a chunk out of Giorgio Chiellini's shoulder at the last World Cup.
By contrast, pre-tournament favourites Argentina can call upon Suarez's Barcelona team-mate, the already-legendary Lionel Messi, as well as Manchester City's Premier League top scorer Sergio Aguero.
Nevertheless, out of the 12 teams competing, the weight of history is likely to rest on the shoulders of the Argentines most heavily - even taking into account Chile's complete lack of success over the years.
For, Argentina have not won the Copa America since 1993, and missed a huge chance of ending this depressing streak when hosting the last edition in 2011.
Instead, La Albiceleste went out to their great rivals from across the Rio de la Plata in the quarter finals on penalties - and, ultimately, the resurgence of Uruguayan football was confirmed by a 3-0 win over Paraguay in the Final.
Notably, the result also took La Celeste back clear of Argentina - with 15 titles to the Argentines' 14 - in the overall record. Brazil trail in third on eight.
Brazil fans will point out, though, that four of those eight titles have come since Argentina last tasted success.
And the Seleção will be eager to make it three wins out of the last four Copas as part of their continued rehabilitation under coach Dunga following the awful end to their home World Cup last year.
Memories of last year's disappointment are unsurprisingly proving hard to shrug off in Brazil - despite an excellent record of 10 wins in a row since then.
Indeed, those memories are likely to come flooding back when Brazil take on Colombia in Group C in a repeat of last summer's World Cup quarter final.
Last July, Brazil prevailed 2-1 from a rough match - but victory came at a cost as they lost their brightest hope Neymar after he was effectively kicked out of the tournament.
Brazil could have few complaints, however - their constant tactical fouling had turned the quarter final into a pitched battle - and so, while this next match will undoubtedly be a spectacle, it will not be a pretty one.
Naturally, there will still be little moments of genius from Neymar - and his counterpart James Rodriguez - but it would be fair to say, one year on, these teams still do not like each other very much.
It is a shame then - given the presence of Messi, Neymar, James, and Arsenal's Chilean Alexis Sanchez, as well as the numerous sub-plots in South American football - that the tournament has been afforded scant coverage in the UK.
Of course, many of the kick-off times - including Argentina v Uruguay (12.30am) and Brazil v Colombia (1am) - are only really suitable for nightowls and insomniacs.
But, in being shuffled off to subscription channel Premier Sports, the Copa America sadly somehow gets far less coverage than the weaker biennial African Cup of Nations.
A calendar of the fixtures is provided below (all times BST). Group winners and runners-up qualify for the knockout stages along with the best two third-placed teams.
GROUP A
| 12-Jun 00:30 | CHILE | 2-0 | ECUADOR | Santiago |
| 13-Jun 00:30 | MEXICO | 0-0 | BOLIVIA | Vina del Mar |
| 15-Jun 22:00 | ECUADOR | 2-3 | BOLIVIA | Valparaiso |
| 16-Jun 00:30 | CHILE | 3-3 | MEXICO | Santiago |
| 19-Jun 22:00 | MEXICO | 1-2 | ECUADOR | Rancagua |
| 20-Jun 00:30 | CHILE | 5-0 | BOLIVIA | Santiago |
| GROUP A TABLE | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts |
| (Q) CHILE | 2 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 3 | +7 | 7 |
| (Q) BOLIVIA | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | -4 | 4 |
| Ecuador | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | -2 | 3 |
| Mexico | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 5 | -1 | 2 |
GROUP B
| 13-Jun 20:00 | URUGUAY | 1-0 | JAMAICA | Antofagasta |
| 13-Jun 22:30 | ARGENTINA | 2-2 | PARAGUAY | La Serena |
| 16-Jun 20:00 | PARAGUAY | 1-0 | JAMAICA | Antofagasta |
| 17-Jun 00:30 | ARGENTINA | 1-0 | URUGUAY | La Serena |
| 20-Jun 20:00 | URUGUAY | 1-1 | PARAGUAY | La Serena |
| 20-Jun 22:30 | ARGENTINA | 1-0 | JAMAICA | Vina del Mar |
| GROUP B TABLE | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts |
| (Q) ARGENTINA | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 7 |
| (Q) PARAGUAY | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 5 |
| (Q) URUGUAY | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| Jamaica | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | -3 | 0 |
GROUP C
| 14-Jun 20:00 | COLOMBIA | 0-1 | VENEZUELA | Rancagua |
| 14-Jun 22:30 | BRAZIL | 2-1 | PERU | Temuco |
| 18-Jun 01:00 | BRAZIL | 0-1 | COLOMBIA | Santiago |
| 19-Jun 00:30 | PERU | 1-0 | VENEZUELA | Valparaiso |
| 21-Jun 20:00 | COLOMBIA | 0-0 | PERU | Temuco |
| 21-Jun 22:30 | BRAZIL | 2-1 | VENEZUELA | Santiago |
| GROUP C TABLE | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts |
| (Q) BRAZIL | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 6 |
| (Q) PERU | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| (Q) COLOMBIA | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| Venezuela | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | -1 | 3 |
QUARTER FINALS
| 25-Jun 00:30 | CHILE | 1-0 | URUGUAY | Santiago |
| 26-Jun 00:30 | BOLIVIA | 1-3 | PERU | Temuco |
| 27-Jun 00:30 | ARGENTINA* | 0-0 | COLOMBIA | Vina del Mar |
| 27-Jun 22:30 | BRAZIL | 1-1 | PARAGUAY^ | Concepcion |
SEMI FINALS
| 30-Jun 00:30 | CHILE | 2-1 | PERU | Santiago |
| 01-Jul 00:30 | ARGENTINA | 6-1 | PARAGUAY | Concepcion |
THIRD PLACE PLAYOFF
| 04-Jul 00:30 PERU | v | PARAGUAY | Concepcion |
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