Organizing body | CONCACAF |
---|---|
Founded | 1991[1] [2] |
Region | North America (Northern America, Central America, and the Caribbean) |
Number of teams | 16 (finals) 41 (eligible to enter qualification) |
Qualifier for | FIFA Confederations Cup (1992–2017) |
Related competitions | CONCACAF Championship |
Current champion(s) | Mexico (9th title) |
Most successful team(s) | Mexico (9 titles) |
Website | concacaf.com/gold-cup |
2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
Tournaments |
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The CONCACAF Gold Cup (Spanish : Copa Oro de la CONCACAF) is the main association football competition of the men's national football teams governed by CONCACAF, determining the continental champions of North America (Northern America, Central America, and the Caribbean). The Gold Cup is held every two years. The tournament succeeded the CONCACAF Championship (1963–1989), with its inaugural edition being held in 1991. [1]
So far, only three national teams have won the tournament: Canada, Mexico, and the United States. All of them are member associations of the North American Football Union (NAFU).
Before the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) was formed in 1961, association football in the region was divided into smaller, regional divisions. The two main bodies consisted of the Confederación Centroamericana y del Caribe de Fútbol (CCCF) founded in 1938 (consisting of Central America and most of the Caribbean) and the North American Football Confederation (NAFC) founded in 1946 (consisting of the North American nations of United States, Mexico, Canada, and Cuba). Each confederation held its own competition, the CCCF Championship and the NAFC Championship. The CCCF held 10 championships from 1941 to 1961 with Costa Rica winning seven times. The NAFC held four championships in 1947 and 1949, and after 41 years of absence, in 1990 and 1991 for the North American zone as the North American Nations Cup with Mexico winning three times and Canada winning once. [3]
CONCACAF was founded in 1961 through the merging of NAFC and CCCF which resulted in a single championship being held for the continent. The first CONCACAF tournament was held in 1963 in El Salvador with Costa Rica becoming the first champion. The CONCACAF Campeonato de Naciones, as it was called, was held every two years from 1963 to 1973. The second tournament was held in Guatemala in 1965 when Mexico defeated the host country in the final of a six-team tournament. The 1967 competition was held in Honduras and saw a third champion crowned, Guatemala. Costa Rica won their second title as hosts in 1969, knocking off Guatemala, while two years later, Mexico won their second championship as the tournament moved to Trinidad and Tobago, the first time in the Caribbean. In 1973, the tournament kept the same format of six teams playing a single round-robin, but there were bigger stakes attached: CONCACAF's berth in the FIFA World Cup tournament in 1974. In Port-au-Prince, Haiti, the host country pulled off an upset by winning the tournament and claiming a spot in the World Cup in West Germany.
With the Campeonato de Naciones doubling as the final World Cup qualifying tournament, the next two editions were held in Mexico City and Tegucigalpa, Honduras in 1977 and 1981, respectively. In each case the host country was crowned champion and earned a spot in the World Cup. In 1985 and 1989, the winner of the World Cup qualifying tournament was again crowned Confederation champion. Canada and Costa Rica were named champions in 1985 and 1989, receiving a trophy. [4] [ better source needed ]
In 1990, CONCACAF renamed and restructured the CONCACAF Championship as the CONCACAF Gold Cup, with the United States hosting the first competition in 1991, and hosting or co-hosting every subsequent iteration of the tournament (as of 2023). The host country was the inaugural champion of the eight-team tournament. Mexico dominated the remainder of the decade, winning three consecutive CONCACAF Gold Cup titles in 1993, 1996 and 1998.
In 1996, the Gold Cup field included its first guest team, the defending FIFA World Cup Champions Brazil. Guests were invited to participate in the six Gold Cup tournaments from 1996 to 2005. Starting with the 2000 Gold Cup, the tournament field was increased to twelve teams and for the 2007 tournament, the Gold Cup again was contested exclusively by nations within CONCACAF.
The 2007 Gold Cup hosts successfully defended their title beating Mexico in the final 2–1 in Chicago; Canada and Guadeloupe shared third place. Mexico won the 2009 Gold Cup by beating the United States 5–0. In the 2011 Gold Cup, Mexico defeated the USA 4–2 in the final while the USA won the 2013 Gold Cup by beating Panama 1–0.
Since the formation of the Gold Cup in 1991, the CONCACAF Championship has been won nine times by Mexico, seven times by the United States, and once by Canada. Runners-up include Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Honduras, Panama, and Jamaica.
Before 2015, when the Gold Cup did not fall in the same year as the FIFA Confederations Cup, the winner, or highest-placed team that is a member of both CONCACAF and FIFA, qualified for the next staging of that tournament. In 2015, the winners of the previous two Gold Cups (the 2013 and 2015 editions) faced each other in CONCACAF Cup – a playoff to determine the CONCACAF entrant to the 2017 Confederations Cup. [5]
In January 2017, Victor Montagliani announced the expansion of the Gold Cup from 12 to 16 teams, starting with the 2019 tournament. [6] In November 2018, Costa Rica was announced as one of the hosts of the 2019 tournament, with a group B double-header set to be held at the Estadio Nacional. [7] In April 2019, it was announced that Jamaica would host a doubleheader in group C at Independence Park. [8]
The number of teams in the final tournament has gradually increased over the years. Each tournament has consisted of a round-robin group stage followed by a single-elimination knockout stage.
There has been interest from numerous sources to have the tournament held every four years to potentially increase the prestige, decrease player fatigue and better align with the European and South American calendars. [9] [10]
Year | Teams | Matches | Group stage | Final stages |
---|---|---|---|---|
1991–1993 | 8 | 16 | 2 groups of 4 teams | 4-team knockout (group winners and runners-up) |
1996 | 9 | 13 | 3 groups of 3 teams | 4-team knockout (group winners plus best runner-up) |
1998 | 10 | 16 | 3 groups of 3 or 4 teams | |
2000 | 12 | 19 | 4 groups of 3 teams | 8-team knockout (group winners and runners-up) |
2002–2003 | 20 | |||
2005–2013 | 25 | 3 groups of 4 teams | 8-team knockout (group winners and runners-up, plus 2 best 3rd-placed teams) | |
2015 | 26 | |||
2017 | 25 | |||
2019–present | 16 | 31 | 4 groups of 4 teams | 8-team knockout (group winners and runners-up) |
Bold text denotes team was host country.
Team | Winners | Runners-up | Third place | Fourth place | Semi-finalist | Top 4 total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mexico | 9 (1993, 1996, 1998, 2003, 2009, 2011, 2015, 2019, 2023) | 2 (2007, 2021) | 1 (1991) | — | 2 (2013, 2017) | 14 |
United States | 7 (1991, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2013, 2017, 2021) | 5 (1993, 1998, 2009, 2011, 2019) | 2 (1996, 2003) | 1 (2015) | 1 (2023) | 16 |
Canada | 1 (2000) | — | 1 (2002) | — | 2 (2007, 2021) | 4 |
Panama | — | 3 (2005, 2013, 2023) | 1 (2015) | — | 1 (2011) | 5 |
Jamaica | — | 2 (2015, 2017) | 1 (1993) | 1 (1998) | 2 (2019, 2023) | 6 |
Brazil | — | 2 (1996 [11] , 2003) | 1 (1998) | — | — | 3 |
Costa Rica | — | 1 (2002) | 1 (1993) | 2 (1991, 2003) | 2 (2009, 2017) | 6 |
Honduras | — | 1 (1991) | — | — | 4 (2005, 2009, 2011, 2013) | 5 |
Colombia | — | 1 (2000) | — | — | 1 (2005) | 2 |
Guatemala | — | — | — | 1 (1996) | — | 1 |
South Korea | — | — | — | 1 (2002) | — | 1 |
Guadeloupe | — | — | — | — | 1 (2007) | 1 |
Haiti | — | — | — | — | 1 (2019) | 1 |
Peru | — | — | — | — | 1 (2000) | 1 |
Qatar | — | — | — | — | 1 (2021) | 1 |
Trinidad and Tobago | — | — | — | — | 1 (2000) | 1 |
As of 2023, a total of 31 teams have participated in the CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Year | Debuting teams | ||
---|---|---|---|
Teams | No. | CT | |
1991 | Canada , Costa Rica , Guatemala , Honduras , Jamaica , Mexico , Trinidad and Tobago , United States | 8 | 8 |
1993 | Martinique , Panama | 2 | 10 |
1996 | Brazil , El Salvador , Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 3 | 13 |
1998 | Cuba | 1 | 14 |
2000 | Colombia , Haiti , Peru , South Korea | 4 | 18 |
2002 | Ecuador | 1 | 19 |
2003 | None | 0 | 19 |
2005 | South Africa | 1 | 20 |
2007 | Guadeloupe | 1 | 21 |
2009 | Grenada , Nicaragua | 2 | 23 |
2011 | None | 0 | 23 |
2013 | Belize | 1 | 24 |
2015 | None | 0 | 24 |
2017 | Curaçao , French Guiana | 2 | 26 |
2019 | Bermuda , Guyana | 2 | 28 |
2021 | Suriname , Qatar | 2 | 30 |
2023 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 1 | 31 |
2025 | Dominican Republic , Saudi Arabia | 2 | 33 |
Qualified via | Year | Team | Result |
---|---|---|---|
1991 Gold Cup | 1992 | United States | Third place |
1993 Gold Cup | 1995 | Mexico | Third place |
1996 Gold Cup | 1997 | Mexico | Group stage (3rd) |
1998 Gold Cup (1st) | 1999 | Mexico | Champions |
1998 Gold Cup (2nd) | United States | Third place | |
2000 Gold Cup | 2001 | Canada | Group stage (4th) |
2002 Gold Cup | 2003 | United States | Group stage (4th) |
2003 Gold Cup | 2005 | Mexico | Fourth place |
2007 Gold Cup | 2009 | United States | Runners up |
2011 Gold Cup | 2013 | Mexico | Group stage (3rd) |
2013 Gold Cup | 2017 | United States | DNQ [a] |
2015 Gold Cup | Mexico | Fourth place |
There are currently five post-tournament awards: [12]
The 1996 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the first iteration to have a guest from a different confederation, Brazil from CONMEBOL. In spite of bringing their under-23 team, Brazil finished as runners-up to Mexico and outplaced seven teams from CONCACAF. [13] For the next decade, six countries from three confederations would make appearances in the Gold Cup, with seven of the eleven appearances finishing within the top four. Starting in 2007, CONCACAF would no longer invite guests from other confederations. This is primarily due to giving more opportunities from teams in the region to compete, as there was a rise in performances from the region hinted by the FIFA World Ranking. [14] [15]
After a 16-year hiatus from guest nations, Qatar were invited and participated in the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup, losing in the semi-finals to the United States. Qatar also participated in the 2023 Gold Cup, where they lost 4–0 to Panama in the quarter-finals. [16]
Team | Confederation | 1996 | 1998 | 2000 | 2002 | 2003 | 2005 | 2021 | 2023 | 2025 | Editions |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Brazil | CONMEBOL | 2nd [17] | 3rd | – | – | 2nd | – | – | – | – | 3 |
Colombia | CONMEBOL | – | – | 2nd | – | QF | SF | – | – | – | 3 |
Peru | CONMEBOL | – | – | SF | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1 |
South Korea | AFC | – | – | GS | 4th | – | – | – | – | – | 2 |
Ecuador | CONMEBOL | – | – | – | GS | – | – | – | – | – | 1 |
South Africa | CAF | – | – | – | – | – | QF | – | – | – | 1 |
Qatar | AFC | – | – | – | – | – | – | SF | QF | – | 2 |
Saudi Arabia | AFC | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | Q | 1 |
In Canada, after years on Sportsnet and TSN, it has been broadcast exclusively on OneSoccer since 2021. In Mexico it airs on Televisa and TV Azteca. In the United States, the CONCACAF Gold Cup airs on Fox Sports and Univision (since 2000). CONCACAF also streams Gold Cup matches on YouTube with some geo-restrictions.
The Gold Cup trophy is awarded to the champions of the tournament. The design of the trophy has changed multiple times since its inaugural version. Changes include scaling down of the size as well as replacing the original flat rectangular base with an elevated round pedestal. The base includes engravings of the champion nation with the year in which they won the trophy.
The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football, abbreviated as CONCACAF, is one of FIFA's six continental governing bodies for association football. Its 41 member associations represent countries and territories mainly in North America, including the Caribbean and Central America, and, for geopolitical reasons, 3 nations from the Guianas subregion of South America-Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. The CONCACAF's primary functions are to organize competitions for national teams and clubs, and to conduct the World Cup and Women's World Cup qualifying tournaments.
The United States men's national soccer team, abbreviated as USMNT, represents the United States in men's international soccer competitions. The team is governed by the United States Soccer Federation, which is a member of FIFA since 1914 and was a founding member of CONCACAF since 1961. It was also affiliated with NAFC, which was a predecessor confederation of CONCACAF and the governing soccer body in North America from 1946 to 1961.
The Mexico national football team represents Mexico in men's international football and is governed by the Federación Mexicana de Fútbol. It has been a member of FIFA since 1929 and competes as a member of CONCACAF since 1961, of which it was one of the founding members. It was also a member of NAFC from 1946 to 1961, which was a predecessor confederation of CONCACAF and the governing body of football in North America at the time.
The Mexican Football Federation, abbreviated as FMF is the official governing body of association football in Mexico. It administers the men's and women's national teams with all its youth teams, the national teams of futsal and beach soccer, the Liga MX with all its professional divisions, all affiliated amateur sectors, and controls promoting, organizing, directing, expanding, and supervising competitive football in Mexico. The FMF was established on August 23, 1927 to replace the Federación Central de Fútbol and its first president was Humberto Garza Ramos. It is an affiliate member of FIFA since 1929 and one of the founding members of CONCACAF since 1961. Subject to policies, statutes, objectives and ideals of those international governing bodies. Its headquarters are located in Toluca, State of Mexico.
The Honduras national football team represents Honduras in men's international football. The team is governed by the Federación Nacional Autónoma de Fútbol de Honduras. They are nicknamed Los Catrachos, La Bicolor, or La H.
The Costa Rica national football team represents Costa Rica in men's international football. The national team is administered by the Costa Rican Football Federation (FEDEFUTBOL), the governing body for football in Costa Rica. It has been a member of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) since 1927, the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) since 1961, and a member of the Central American Football Union (UNCAF) since 1990.
The El Salvador national football team, known as La Selecta, represents El Salvador in international football, and is governed by the Salvadoran Football Federation (FESFUT).
The Cuba national football team represents Cuba in men's international football, and is controlled by the Football Association of Cuba. Nicknamed Leones del Caribe, the team represents all three FIFA, Caribbean Football Union and Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF).
The CCCF Championship was an association football (soccer) tournament made for teams in the area of Central America and the Caribbean between the years of 1941 and 1961. It was founded in 1938 and the precursor of the CONCACAF, that was formed when the Confederación Centroamericana y del Caribe de Fútbol (CCCF) merged with the North American Football Confederation (NAFC) in 1961.
The Panama national football team represents Panama in men's international football and is governed by the Panamanian Football Federation. The team represents all three FIFA, CONCACAF and the regional UNCAF.
The Suriname national football team represents Suriname in international football. The team is controlled by the Surinamese Football Association, which is a member of CONCACAF.
The Unión Centroamericana de Fútbol, more commonly known by the acronym UNCAF, represents the national football teams of Central America: Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama. Its member associations are part of CONCACAF.
The CONCACAF W Championship is a women's association football competition for national teams organized by the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) that often serves as the qualifying competition to the Women's World Cup, and recently the Olympics. In years when the tournament has been held outside the World Cup qualifying cycle, non-CONCACAF members have been invited. CONCACAF is the governing body for football for North America, Central America and the Caribbean. The most successful country has been the United States, winning their ninth title in 2022.
The Confederación Centroamericana y del Caribe de Fútbol, also known by its initialism CCCF, was the governing body of association football in Central America and the Caribbean from 1938 to 1961.
The CONCACAF Championship was an association football tournament that took place between 1963 and 1989. The competition was referred to as CONCACAF Campeonato de Naciones in Spanish.
The Panamerican Championship was an official continental competition of Association football organized by the Panamerican Football Confederation (PFC) every four years for senior national teams, with three editions held from 1952 through 1960.
The 1961 CCCF Championship was the tenth and last edition of the CCCF Championship, the tournament took place from March 5 to 19, 1961 in the Costa Rican capital.
This is a list of records and statistics of the CONCACAF Gold Cup. The Gold Cup replaced the CONCACAF Championship, which was held ten times from 1963 to 1989. Before the merger and foundation of CONCACAF, the confederation was split into two entities with their own international tournament, NAFU's North American Nations Cup and the CCCF Championship.
The CONCACAF Gold Cup is North America's major tournament in senior men's soccer and determines the continental champion. Until 1989, the CONCACAF Championship was the regions' primary competition. It is currently held every two years. In earlier editions, the continental championship was held in different countries, but since the inception of the Gold Cup in 1991, the United States have hosted or co-hosted every tournament. Since then it has expanded to more countries in North America.
The 2022 CONCACAF W Championship was the 11th edition of the CONCACAF W Championship, the quadrennial international women's football championship contested by the senior women's national teams of the member associations of CONCACAF, the regional governing body of North America, Central America, and the Caribbean. Eight teams played in the tournament, which took place from 4 to 18 July 2022 in Mexico. The United States emerged as the winner, defeating Canada 1–0 in the final.
Of course the Gold Cup is this year and it is the last edition of 12 teams as we will increase it to 16 for the 2019 version.