The Copa America is a world-class international tournament and it is coming to the USA next June for its 100th anniversary
The U.S. Soccer Federation will partner with The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF), and the Confederacion Sudamericana de Futbol (CONMEBOL), to host the prestigious Copa America Centenario, a tournament that marks the 100-year anniversary of the South American Football Championship.
The competition between the top Twenty-four cities under consideration to host the soccer tournament games is expected to be fierce and Pasadena, home of the finals of the 1994 World Cup and 1999 Women’s World Cup is a top contender. While the Rose Bowl is rumored to be on the top of the list for the South America’s quadrennial soccer championship final, other cities want to get some of this soccer action. The cities wanting to host soccer games include San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle and Dallas. A minimum seating capacity of 50,000 is required for tournament venues.
Last year Chile ended a 99-year wait to be crowned Copa América champions with a 4-1 shoot-out success over Argentina in Santiago. Who will win in 2016?
Featuring the top stars from both regions, including five-time World Cup champion Brazil and three-time World Player of the Year Lionel Messi of Argentina, the event will be held from June 3-26 in venues across the United States.
Under a haze of the notorious FIFA scandal, CONCACAF, the ruling federation for soccer in North America, Central America and the Caribbean – has just cleared up the Copa America marketing rights from Datisa S.A., the company at the center of the Justice Department’s investigation.
Serving as the Local Organizing Committee, U.S. Soccer will work with CONMEBOL, CONCACAF and the soccer community in the U.S. to organize and execute the event. U.S. Soccer will immediately begin securing venues for the tournament and planning the operational aspects of the event. Earlier this year, 24 metropolitan areas showed interest in hosting matches during the tournament and submitted a proposal to U.S. Soccer.
More than 40,000 fans have already signed up to receive ticketing information and U.S. Soccer will provide updates in the near future.
The 2016 Copa America Centenario will feature six teams from CONCACAF, and all 10 teams from CONMEBOL: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela.
From CONCACAF, host USA and Mexico are automatic qualifiers, while Costa Rica (2014 Copa Centroamericana winner) and Jamaica (2014 Caribbean Cup winner) qualified this fall. The final two teams will be determined through a playoff in the near future.
Uruguay has won the most Copa America titles with 15 since the tournament began in 1916 as the South American Championship of Nations.
