When news broke on January 27 that the 2024 Copa América would be played in the United States, and not in Ecuador as originally planned, the change was viewed as a significant win for football in North America and for CONCACAF, the region’s governing body.
In Latin America, however, the change was not as celebrated.
La Nación writer Ezequiel Fernández Moores’ recent column, titled “América para los americanos,” sheds light on how South America’s recent political uprisings and security concerns have impacted the continent’s ability to host its premier international football tournament.
Still, Fernández Moores points out that the strength of American infrastructure and the readily available stadiums doesn’t shield the U.S. from similar criticism.
“It doesn’t matter that games can be played in California, the state that just suffered four mass shootings during 10 days in January,” he wrote.
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The return of the Copa América stateside was also big news in Mexico. But veteran ESPN Mexico reporter Rafa Ramos minimized the prestige of South America’s over century old tournament, calling the 2024 version “the Copa Panamericana.”
Ramos criticized Mexico Federation president Yon De Luisa’s handling of a myriad of Mexican footballing crises. Ramos said that the only path back to the Copa América for Mexico and for CONCACAF, “was to share the pie” with CONMEBOL.
It appears as if the Copa América needed an American bailout, in spite of CONMEBOL’s current sporting position after Argentina won the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. South American football reigned once again, and billions around the world watched as Lionel Messi’s once hopeless dream of lifting the World Cup trophy finally came true.
But off the pitch, things have been far more dire. In December, a political crisis in Peru led to the arrest of president Pedro Castillo over charges of rebellion and conspiracy. More than 40 civilians in Peru have been killed in clashes with government security forces. Brazil experienced a failed coup after supporters of former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro attacked the nation’s congressional and Supreme Court buildings.
And in Ecuador, violent protests that began last summer over mounting inflation and the higher prices of basic necessities, like gasoline and food, has created a volatile atmosphere in the Andean nation. A crime wave due to increased drug trafficking in Guayaquil has made matters worse.
In a column for The Athletic last December, former Ecuador international and Manchester United fullback Antonio Valencia referenced the current climate in his home country.
“We’re going through difficult times (in Ecuador), especially regarding the increase in violent crime,” wrote Valencia. “It’s really hard. We were able to forget everything that we’re all going through during the national team’s three World Cup matches. It was an escape for 90 minutes.”
This has become a worrying trend for CONMEBOL. Colombia was set to co-host the 2020 edition of the Copa América along with Argentina, but the tournament was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A year later, violent anti-government protests erupted throughout Colombia after former president Iván Duque’s tax reform bill did little to relieve the hardships of the poor and the middle class.
Argentina’s government backed out after realizing that the coronavirus was still rampant, and so CONMEBOL stepped in, moving the Copa América to Brazil in 2021 behind closed doors. For the first time since 1991, the Copa América was played with only CONMEBOL’s 10 representatives. It was a memorable tournament, though, as Messi and Argentina defeated Brazil at the Estadio Maracaná.
When Colombia was grappling with political violence and the embarrassment of losing host duties, Ecuador’s football federation president Francisco Egas began to lobby his country as a potential site for the 2024 Copa América.
“We’re preparing (to host),” Egas told reporters in May of 2021. “I believe we have the support of our clubs, some of which are working very well in regards to infrastructure. Hopefully Ecuador can host and that’s what we’ll fight for, the 2024 Copa América.”
Ecuador last hosted the tournament in 1993, but was recently the home of both the men’s and women’s Copa Libertadores finals. Ecuador’s candidacy was on the right track, however it has since been derailed by security concerns and Ecuador’s lack of adequate stadiums.
“We’re not ready to organize the Copa América,” said Egas in November. “Today, our country must focus on resources that will help us face the difficult predicament that concerns us all and that is our priority. There are more important things than football.”
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The Copa América’s return to the U.S. is unfortunate for South American football because of what the tournament has long represented — national and regional pride, and the opportunity to be crowned the kings of CONMEBOL against their continental foes. More importantly, Ecuador’s withdrawal as hosts does little to strengthen CONMEBOL’s 2030 World Cup bid.
The federations from Uruguay, Argentina, Chile and Paraguay hope to host the tournament 100 years after the first World Cup was held in Uruguay in 1930. They’re up against other joint bids, including a European contingent of Spain, Portugal and Ukraine, plus a formidable challenger in Saudi Arabia, which has aligned itself with Greece and Egypt, and their star ambassador: Leo Messi.
In a video statement released on the day that the 2024 Copa América format was announced, CONMEBOL president Alejandro Domínguez pledged to make 2030 a historic year for South America.
“This decision to unite the Americas through continental tournaments not only puts (South America) on the big screen, but it also helps prepare our confederation to retain the World Cup in 2026, on the same stage where the next World Cup will take place,” said Domínguez. “We will continue to defy the world so that the 100th World Cup in 2030 returns to where it all began.”
Uruguay hosted and won the first-ever FIFA World Cup in 1930.
The decision by FIFA to name the host country for the 2030 World Cup will take place next year. The Paraguayan Domínguez, who is in his seventh year as president, is hoping that 2024 will mark a historic milestone for CONMEBOL.
But, at least on the surface, it’s hardly a good look for Domínguez and the confederation to hand the Copa América over to the U.S. one year before the 2030 vote.
Colombia is currently hosting the men’s U-20 South American championship, with the tournament running smoothly. The Colombians remain desperate for another chance to host their second-ever Copa América. Surely Brazil or Argentina could’ve stepped in when Ecuador relinquished responsibility.
Instead Domínguez recognized an opportunity to fundraise. And perhaps more importantly, he has aligned CONMEBOL with CONCACAF and its 41 ballot-holding federations one year before that crucial vote. That’s not a bad strategy considering a recent Politico report, which lays out how Saudi Arabia’s coalition with Greece and Egypt could help the Gulf state earn valuable votes from Africa, Asia and Europe.
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On Tuesday, from the headquarters of the Argentina national team in Buenos Aires, Domínguez officially announced South America’s 2030 joint bid alongside federation and government officials from Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina. His confidence was evident.
“I’m not too worried about 2030,” Domínguez said from Buenos Aires. “We have a team. We believe in great things, we’re committed, and FIFA is obligated to honor the memory of those who came before us and organized the first World Cup.”
The 2016 version of the Copa América is widely considered a success, both commercially and from a sporting perspective. The Athletic reported last week that both CONCACAF and CONMEBOL made significant amounts of money from the tournament. In fact, the U.S. Soccer Federation, which organized the event rather than the confederations, made up to $90 million in revenue from the Copa América Centenario seven years ago.
Financial gain is an obvious incentive for staging the tournament in the U.S. again. That Copa América featured sellout crowds across the country. The U.S. men’s national team reached the semifinals, which kept the American public engaged throughout the competition. Some of South America’s biggest footballing stars committed to playing for their countries, including Messi, James Rodríguez, Luis Suárez, and Alexis Sánchez.
Messi briefly retired from international football in the tunnel of New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium after Argentina lost a second consecutive Copa América final to Chile in penalties.
Money aside, the inclusion of more CONCACAF nations did little to elevate the football on the pitch. In the group stage alone, CONCACAF’S six representatives (USMNT, Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, Jamaica and Haiti) conceded 36 total goals. Haiti and Panama conceded a combined 22 goals in six matches. Regional power Mexico were humiliated after losing 7-0 to Chile in the quarterfinals.
De Luisa touted the alliance between CONCACAF and CONMEBOL as crucial to Mexico’s preparation for the 2026 World Cup, which they’ll co-host with the U.S. and Canada.
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“We’ve been waiting for this to be announced for years,” De Luisa told reporters last week. “For over a year, we worked directly with FIFA president (Gianni) Infantino and personally with CONCACAF president Victor Montagliani in order to find these types of (competitive) windows, so that the three North American countries can compete against top teams.”
De Luisa is credited with having had an important role as a mediator when the two confederations negotiated what will most likely be a lucrative 2024 Copa América. Nonetheless, the announcement came as the Mexican federation attempts to clean up the mess that was 2022.
The aforementioned Ramos article referred to De Luisa as an opportunist who’s a better businessman than he is a sporting administrator. Ramos was harsh in his criticism of De Luisa, and called the tournament “an aromatic for the dung-heap that is the FMF.”
Another 16-team Copa América in the U.S. may not lead to elite-level football, but it will showcase the financial might and modern infrastructure that makes the U.S. such an attractive host nation. It’s also an ideal moment for the U.S. to hold an international football tournament, ahead of their World Cup hosting duties in 2026.
For CONMEBOL, the 2024 Copa América will most likely be viewed as a financial success, but the bigger picture must be considered. Although a diluted competition will be universally panned in Latin America, if South America wins the right to host the 2030 World Cup thanks in part to their new alignment with CONCACAF, perhaps the ends will justify the means.
(Photo: CONMEBOL)
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