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CONCACAF and CONMEBOL to hold press conference Thursday, expected to announce 2016 Copa America

Landon Donovan, Marcelo

By RYAN TOLMICH

The worst-kept soccer secret in the Americas looks like it will finally be revealed this week when CONCACAF and CONMEBOL will hold a press conference that is expected to discuss the long rumored Copa America 2016 coming to United States soil.

The press conference, which will take place Thursday in Miami, is expected to feature CONCACAF president Jeffrey Webb, CONMEBOL president Eugenio Figueredo and “a number of internationally renowned” representatives from each region.

The 2016 tournament, which will be the competition’s 100th edition, is expected to include the United States, Mexico and four other CONCACAF sides in addition to the 10 nations that make on South America’s CONMEBOL.

According to a report from beIN Sports, the four additional CONCACAF spots would go to the champions of the Central American UNCAF Cup and the winners of the upcoming Caribbean Cup, as well as the two best finishers among the rest of the teams in next summer’s Gold Cup.

Rumors of the United States hosting the tournament have persisted for years, but the United States Soccer Federation and CONCACAF had previously stated that there were logistical issues that would need to be worked out. The tournament, which usually takes place in July, would conflict with the MLS regular season, the 2016 Summer Olympics and, potentially, World Cup Qualifying.

The most recent edition of the tournament took place in 2011 with Uruguay being crowned champions. The next competition is scheduled to take place in 2015 in Chile.

What do you think of a U.S.-hosted Copa America? Excited for the tournament? Plan to attend?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. For tournaments hosted in the USA … would like to see them do a specific region or area. Then you get concentrated soccer and tourist dollars in that area.

    Northeast – DC, Baltimore, Phillly, NYC, and Boston

    California + Las Vegas

    Florida – it’s a tourist destination already – Miami, Ft Lauderdale, Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville,

    Pacific Northwest – Seattle, Portland, Vancouver, Eugene, etc

    Reply
  2. Get rid of the Gold Cup and Copa America. Do the “Super Copa” every 4 years. Winner gets automatic entry into Confederations Cup … 2nd highest placing team of the other conference gets the other entry. This would put the America’s on par with Euro’s every 4 year tournament. A teams, TV contracts, $$$, experience for players in big time tournaments … it’s a win-win-win all around!

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  3. Every four years the EURO Cup is quality football and exciting to watch, while Copa America, not so much.

    For starters, down in South America; Copa is played in the winter time (except when hosted in Brazil); this in itself plays against the overall attendance of the tournament.

    Copa loses it luster when the host country is eliminated, mostly empty stadiums come to mind at the last tournament when the host Argentina was eliminated in the quarter finals. Uruguay managed to saved the tourney when additional fans traveled to watch their country play the in the Final.

    By contrast, playing Copa in USA in the summer is one the selling points as fans and people in general are ready to get outta the house, attend and spend. Another advantage is that colonies of pretty much every country in the world exist in America. Millions of soccer fans in the US are hungrier and will attend all games.

    The Conmebol Confederation needs cash, it must be a mute point for Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay to just keep adding more silverware to their shelves with minimal profits. Big time
    sponsorship’s money and game ticket sales will probably quadruple profits… we are talking big time dollars here.

    The Unified Copa America, the New Copa America, or whatever name Copa America will be renamed to needs to become a permanent summer fixture in the US every four years.

    Reply
    • Copa America is played in Summer in the northern South American countries. Its a matter of who’s hosting and CONMEBOL adopted an alphabetical hosting order now.

      Argentina
      Brazil
      Bolivia
      Chile
      etc

      Reply
    • “Copa is played in the winter time (except when hosted in Brazil)”

      I don’t understand what you’re saying. It’s always held around the first of July, right? I guess you’re referring more to the feel of the weather as opposed to the actual season? Either way, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, etc. are all going to be “Summer-like” (meaning, “warm”) in July. Only part of Brazil (the greater land area but much smaller population) is super warm in July.

      The point about hosting this every year in the US: will never happen. The Copa rotates—even Bolivia gets to host.

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  4. This needs to be a regular fixture similar to the Euro championship. They should play one every four years for the title of American champion. We should like the Euros and put it in an off year. Maybe play it the year before the World Cup, since the Euros is played on the even numbered year.

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  5. SUPER excited for this tournament & definitely plan to attend…just hope all 16 nations are required to bring their top teams!!

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  6. The winner of this tournament should get a spot in a two game playoff vs Oceana for a Confederations spot. If the winner has already qualified for Confed Cup then let Oceana qualify automatically. Not sure if other confederations will have a problem with this though.

    Reply
      • yeah, I don’t think so. First, no confederation tournament ever leads to an auto World Cup bid. They are different events. Second, the winner of this tournament is almost a shoe in for the World Cup anyway. So why give Oceana a spot for nothing? Now having the winner play the winner of Euro would be fun. Although that is kind of the point of the Confederation Cup.

    • Seattle’s gotta grow grass first…. in Europe and even in some American universities grass is grown outside the stadium then transported inside via gigantic rollers when it needs to be protected from weather elements.

      No more excuses, spend the money and Seattle will become a permanent fixture for many USNT games.

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      • I love the rolling field system. You spend like a billion dollars already just do it right and have 2 different surfaces ready. 1 turf and 1 grass.

  7. Huge cash grab. No way FIFA makes it an official tourney which means no Europe based players.
    Still expect large crowds but the quality of the games won’t be amywhere close to the real Copa America.

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    • Why? The Euros are going on summer 2016 as well and I doubt they’d be hosting a tournament of this magnitude if FIFA wouldn’t recognize it. That would defeat the purpose.

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      • If they tried to host it at the same time as the Euros, then the two would compete. That’s bad business.

        If they hold it before or after the Euros (and release European-based players), then that’s a lot of back-to-back disruption to pro teams: Euros, Copa, Olympics….

      • In order to release the best players they may have to run it at the same time as the Euro’s. Competing for some airtime, sure. I think it is better to compete with the Euro’s using the best talent than to choose a different time of year and not bring in any top level players outside of domestic leagues.

      • Sort of, but they won’t happen at the same time, because of time zones.

        Euros might be something like 10, 12, 2 EST with Copa America games at 7 and 9 or something.

        It would be awesome as a fan.

      • Jesse D, wfrw07: I’m not so worried about direct competition—i.e., a Euro match and Copa match airing at the same time, because that’s easy to schedule around. I am worried about soccer overload. Most fans have a limited amount of hours they can devote to watching soccer in one week. FIFA doesn’t want to make them choose between watching a Euro or a Copa, especially because if this Copa thing is going to succeed then it needs to draw a European audience. Few Europeans would choose to watch a Copa match over a Euro.

        Of course, this only has to be a problem in 2016. After that, the Copa could stay on its current schedule: 2015, ’19, ’23 when it does not compete against Euro, WC, or Confed Cup.

  8. Love it, but a the timing 1 year after the Chile hosted version gives me pause. Will all the countries bring their A team to both tournaments?

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    • Unlikely but IMO, it will depend on whether or not FIFA adds it to the calendar. If they do, clubs will have no choice but to let players attend.

      It may not be full on A teams but it will be close.

      Otherwise it will be a glorified friendly tournament.

      Reply
      • it is a glorified friendly tournament, still having the 2015 and 2019 versions of regular Copa America makes the tournament pointless except fro the $$$$$$$$$$

      • pointless? It still depends on the quality of the players there. If they starting having World Cups every year, they would become more like the value of winning a Super Bowl. Valuable, but not as valuable. I don’t think it becomes pointless if they do it more often than every 4 years. The quality of the players that attend the tournament says a lot more about the value than the frequency.

  9. If it works out and becomes a regularly scheduled thing for the US it would change things dramatically.

    Right now the USMNT is on a 4 year cycle. The problem is that means you practically have to have a whole new, untested team for every World Cup. For example this year our WC vets are our only serious tournament experienced players and they are all aging. I’d feel a lot better about guys like AJ, Besler, Gonzo, Zusi, Bedoya , Mix, etc, etc. if they could have gone through something much tougher than the Gold Cup.

    A viable Copa America for the USMNT puts it on a 2 year cycle. That means the 2018 World Cup team could have a nice blend of proven players, some with WC experience and some with Copa America experience. The European teams for example have the World Cup and the Euros.

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  10. Would this be going on at the exact same time as the Euro 2016?
    I was planning to travel to France for that but might reconsider if Copa America is happening at the same time in the US.

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  11. I really hope Copa America comes to the USA. If the World Cup would be 1A, then the European Championship and Copa America would be 1B tournaments. A large part of the USMNT veterans will continue to get paychecks in MLS and abroad, but for the most part will be done with USMNT. Copa America is a chance to get as many young up and coming young USMNT players to form a new core of USMNT players and player pool. I am really excited about the prospects. So many good younger players are coming up and the depth will double what it is now. Question is….will the World Cup really be played in Russia in 2018? Russia is really making a mess of things in the world right now. I would not be surprised if they lost the World Cup.

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    • If the US had the chance to qualify for Copa America I would place more importance on Copa America than Gold Cup, but any tournament is good development for the USMNT. Copa America is every 4 years and 2 after the World Cup. Good development cycles. The Gold Cup will have to be creative with a competition schedule.

      Reply
      • It’s every 4 years. But always the summer after the World Cup. That’s why it’s Chile 2015. Then they’d have this special 100th anniversary edition in 2016 as the exception.

      • Also ya, If a Civil war in the Ukraine does kick off won’t Ukrainian Terrorists be super fun to think about during the 2018 WC. It might be too dangerous to have there.

      • We haven’t invaded someone for Territorial gain since oh…. 1898. Unless I’m forgetting something. Anything before the Modern Era doesn’t count.(So maybe Pre-World War I)

      • I think some Japanese, Korean, German, etc. people living near US military bases would disagree. A technicality maybe, but still.

      • What? German farmers loved having tanks drive around on their fields.

        No, you are right about that. That Okinawa base has people up in arms all the time too. I know why we did it though.(Stalin was scary.) And really in East Asia the cold war isn’t over until somebody works out what to do about N. Korea.

        Shades of gray. =/

      • Maybe, but at least those farmers are still Japanese, Korean, and German. It might be different today had those bases not been there…

      • Let’s keep the political stuff on other boards please. This website is for discussion of the beautiful game, not your views on US foreign policy.

      • Agree, and while we are at it, lets not refrain from discussions on these boards regarding whether certain USMNT players are American enough.

  12. how big would this tournament be?

    would it make a ton of $$$$$$$

    would it raise the stature of soccer and the USMNT in this country?

    what if our boys lose all 3 group stage games, is it still a success?

    Reply
    • It’s not possible for it to be as hard as this world cup draw. Not all South American are good teams like Bolivia, Paraguay, aren’t Ecuador exactly tons tougher than what we play in Concaf.(Bolivia is arguably worse.) I would say we would have a good chance of getting out of whatever group we end up with.

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      • Clearly you haven’t watched South American soccer enough to understand the gap is considerably larger between those three and anything else CONCACAF can muster outsife of US, Mexico, and maybe Honduras.

      • Clearly you haven’t watched enough soccer because you think that Honduras is better than Costa Rica….

        But lets get down to business on Bolivia and Ecuador. They didn’t win a single away game. Boliva and Paraguay only got 12 points in 16 games.

        They are are not good teams. They are probably about the equivalent of Panama. Look at their Rosters and were they play.

        I totally agree that Brazil, Uruguay, and even Venezuela are better than Costa Rica etc but don’t act like Bolivia is anythink but bad.

      • Clearly you haven’t watched Increase enough to have any idea how much South American soccer he/she watches.

        CONMEBOL rankings are skewed because it’s a small confederation with three soccer powerhouses. Any win against those big three boosts your ranking, plus they enjoy the “regional strength multiplier.” Bolivia, for example, wins against Brazil at home because they play at altitude and let the grass grow really long. Thus, their FIFA ranking is inflated to 68th. We all know that those rankings are suspect, but I generally view them as accurate +/- 10 places. For the lower half of CONMEBOL, however, due to being skewed by the powerhouses, the ranking is even further off.

      • 1. FIFA Rankins? Honestly don’t care, and don’t know anyone that pays much mind to them other than for fun.
        2. You can debate who’s better between Costa Rica and Honduras forever, without ever seeing the bigger picture: no one cares, both suck. Neither wins outside of CONCACAF.
        2. Between Panama and Bolivia, who cares. If they played, both win at home, happy?
        3. Between Panama, Hondorus, and Costa Rica vs either Paraguay or Ecuador, look at those teams historically in international competitions (esp vs each other) and tell me honestly (if you can) that the numbers somehow favor the Central Americans, with the World Cup 2006 3-0 win for Ecuador over Costa Rica the first of many Central American fails. Wake up fanboys.

      • 1. Your preferences for debate material? Honestly don’t care. But since it’s okay with you to pay attention to FIFA rankings “for fun,” I hope you’ll allow us to discuss them on a blog that we visit…for fun.

        2. Obviously some people care, or we wouldn’t be having this convo. As for never winning outside of CONCACAF:

        Costa Rica 1-0 Bolivia, Copa 2011
        Costa Rica 2-1 Chile, Copa 2004
        Costa Rica 1-1 Uruguay, Copa 2001
        Costa Rica 4-0 Bolivia, Copa 2001
        (finished above Ecuador in the standings every time)

        Honduras 2-0 Bolivia, Copa 2001
        Honduras 1-0 Uruguay, Copa 2001
        Honduras 2-0 Brazil, Copa 2001
        Honduras 2-2 Uruguay, Copa 2001

        2. Typically the number 3 comes after the number 2 in numbered lists.

        3. They haven’t played each other enough to know. Which is one reason that the idea of a north and south Copa is so intriguing.

      • 1. Setting aside the fact that an accurate metric of international teams’ up to date strength is probably impossible…even for fun, I’d suggest the Elo Rating over the FIFA rankings.
        2. Agree some people care. Just not many outside of the respective federations (and their supporters) being discussed all around. Fair point, I said never outside of home. I should have typed very very rarely. That said, how does a few wins 5-13 years ago somehow favor the Central Americans? You add draws in as wins and igonore listing any losses hahaha.
        2. I had no idea, thanks!
        3. It’d SHOCK the world if more than one Central American team even made it past the first round in 2016, let alone led the group. Sorry to douse your delusions of grandeur.

      • 1. Elo Ratings: fine with me. It also places Costa Rica, Panama, and Honduras right in the mix with 4/10 of the CONMEBOLs.

        2. Where did I say anything about “favoring the Central Americans”? You seemed to imply that they couldn’t win so I showed otherwise. I listed the two draws because they were away matches against Uru-freakin-guay. (I left out wins in friendlies because they’re often experimental.)

        2. At your service!

        3. Naw, because it wouldn’t be the first time (and the field will be bigger). You’re the only one who said anything about “winning the group.”

        4. I think you’re missing the whole point of what people are saying here. We look forward to seeing Central American teams in the Copa because the matches will be good and exciting. You mis-read that as “Costa Rica will dominate the world!”

  13. Can’t wait! Couldn’t make the world cup this year, but this will be just as good (if all teams are at the best strength)

    I think if this is successful, which I highly doubt it will. We will likely see more of these

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    • So you think it won’t be successful?

      I think it will rival the success of the Euros, and will become a permanent fixture every 4 years.

      This tourney will also make the USMNT all the stronger.

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      • I agree. With UEFA becoming more exclusive, we would be wise to lock up the Supercopa Americas every 4 years in an off year from the Gold Cup.

        We could even cut one iteration of the Gold Cup out, but still distribute revenue to the other CONCACAF nations to help them grow.

      • They are also doing that weird Continuous League thing. So Friendlies with European teams will become less common as all the free FIFA Dates will be taken up.

        That’s what he means. Friendlies with Quality teams will be harder to come by. We will likely end playing more South American sides.

      • The issue is whether club teams will be willing to release the players for the tournament. Maybe this had something to do with Clint Dempsey and Michael Bradley coming back to MLS, but clubs are not required to release players playing in a competitive tournament outside of their region. That’s why we haven’t been to Copa America since 2007 where we had to take a C team and got owned.

  14. Awesome! I like how they are qualifing for this. Looking forward to seeing how they organize the rest of the tournament.

    Hopefully this leads to the USA participating in the Copa America every 4 years

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  15. If all the top players commit to play for their respective squads, then the tournament would be very attractive and would likely draw pretty large crowds in the U.S. If not, it will be just like a really big Gold Cup in a year when qualification to the Confederations Cup is not on the line. Personally, I have wanted a larger ‘hemisphere’ type cup for years now and am pretty excited about the prospect.

    Reply
      • I was referring to the Gold Cups in the past where there was no Confederations Cup spot on the line. The overalls quality of the tournament suffered due to this; the same would be true for this event if both the CONCACAF and South American teams did not send an A squad, or as close to it as possible. It probably would not be on the level as a Euro if everyone brings their best, but it would be highly entertaining and likely pack stadiums in the U.S.

    • This will be fun. Hopefully the tournament will be successful enough to support doing this every 8 years or so in the US. Then it won’t matter if Jeffrey Webb throws his imagined weight around and moves the Gold Cup to Cuba or Guyana or some other prime CONCACAF location.

      Reply
      • Can someone help me find Canada? I can’t find it on the map.

        Just kidding. I am planning on going to Winnipeg or QC for the 2015 WC.

      • Mexico definitely can host a tournament of this scale and perhaps even Canada, but there is a lot more money to be made in the US – bigger stadiums, advertising revenue, etc.

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