“At Concacaf we are very excited about this summer’s Gold Cup and we know that Las Vegas and Allegiant Stadium will provide a great host city and venue for the final,” said Concacaf President and FIFA Vice President Victor Montagliani. “2021 is Concacaf’s 60th anniversary year making this edition extra special for players and fans. The federations and their teams are looking forward to this tournament with great anticipation and it is fitting that the regional champion will be crowned in such an outstanding venue and famous city.”
The Gold Cup Group Stage will begin on July 10 and will feature 16 national teams; Canada, Costa Rica, Curaçao, El Salvador, Grenada, Honduras, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico (defending champion), Panama, Suriname, United States, Qatar (guest nation and current AFC Champion) and the three Prelims winners.
Here’s a closer look at the four group and the schedule of matchups:
Group A: Mexico, El Salvador, Curacao and Winner Prelims 9
Group B: USA, Canada, Martinique and Winner Prelims 7
Group C: Costa Rica, Jamaica, Suriname and Winner Prelims 8
Group D: Honduras, Panama, Grenada and Qatar.
Quarterfinal #4: Winner Group B vs Second Place Group C
Quarterfinal #2: Winner Group A vs Second Place Group D
Quarterfinal #3: Winner Group C vs Second Place Group B
Semifinal #1: Winner Quarterfinal #1 vs Winner Quarterfinal #4
Semifinal #2: Winner Quarterfinal #2 vs Winner Quarterfinal #3
Final: Winner Semifinal #1 vs Winner SF #2
Haiti, St V&G, Bermuda, or Barbados are the four possible final group members. A group of Haiti, Canada, and Martinique would be a nice test for our B/C squad. It will be interesting to see what Canada does with its European players they’ve got qualifiers in June, against minnows but they can’t afford a slip so we may not see Davies, David, and Larin in GC. A team is going to roll the dice and try to win the GC with their best a month before qualifying might be Jamaica.