2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup Unveiled
NEW YORK (Tuesday, 6 March 2007) – CONCACAF (Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football) today unveiled the final groups for the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup that takes place from 6-24 June in six cities across the USA.
Group A, the first of three First Round Groups, which will be based in Miami’s Orange Bowl, includes the Central American champions Costa Rica, Canada from the North American Zone, Caribbean winners Haiti along with Gold Cup newcomers Guadeloupe.
Group B, with games at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California and Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, includes the defending Gold Cup Champions USA, both El Salvador and Guatemala from Central America and Trinidad & Tobago from the Caribbean.
The final quadrangular, Group C, will see games between Mexico of the North American Zone, Honduras and Panama from Central America and Cuba from the Caribbean. The Group C encounters will take place in two venues; starting at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey (near New York City) before heading to Reliant Stadium in Houston for the last day of first round play.
The quarterfinal matches, set for Saturday, 16 June (two games in Foxboro) and Sunday, 17 June (two games in Houston) will comprise the first and second-placed teams from each of the three groups along with the two best-finishing third-place squads.
The 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinals and final are scheduled for Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois on Thursday, 21 June and Sunday 24 June, respectively.
Speaking about the participation of the USA team in the Gold Cup, head coach Bob Bradley said:
“The Gold Cup is very important. It’s the championship for our confederation and the USA won the last go around. Defending the title in the first big tournament I’m coaching is very, very important “
Speaking about the participation of the Mexican team in the Gold Cup, head coach Hugo Sanchez said:
“This is a new era for the Mexican team and I am convinced we are going to make history, but to start this history that will be so beautiful we have to win the Gold Cup.”
2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup Schedule
* All kick off times are in local time
GROUP A
Costa Rica, Haiti, Canada, Guadeloupe
GROUP B
USA, Trinidad & Tobago, Guatemala, El Salvador
GROUP C
Mexico, Panama, Honduras, Cuba
First Round
6 June 2007 Group A, Orange Bowl; Miami, Florida
M1 COSTA RICA – CANADA (7:00 pm) *****
M2 GUADELOUPE – HAITI (9:00 pm)
7 June 2007 Group B, Home Depot Center; Carson, California
M3 USA – GUATEMALA (6:00 pm)
M4 EL SALVADOR – TRINIDAD & TOBAGO (8:00 pm)
8 June 2007 Group C, Giants Stadium; East Rutherford, New Jersey
M5 PANAMA – HONDURAS (7:00 pm)
M6 MEXICO – CUBA (9:00 pm)
9 June 2007 Group B, Home Depot Center; Carson, California
M7 GUATEMALA – EL SALVADOR (12:00 pm)
M8 TRINIDAD & TOBAGO – USA (2:00 pm)
9 June 2007 Group A, Orange Bowl; Miami, Florida
M9 CANADA – GUADELOUPE (7:00 pm) *****
M10 HAITI – COSTA RICA (9:00 pm)
10 June 2007 Group C, Giants Stadium; East Rutherford, New Jersey
M11 HONDURAS – MEXICO (4:00 pm)
M12 PANAMA – CUBA (6:00 pm)
11 June 2007 Group A, Orange Bowl; Miami, Florida
M13 COSTA RICA – GUADELOUPE (7:00 pm)
M14 HAITI – CANADA (9:00 pm) *****
12 June 2007 Group B, Gillette Stadium; Foxboro, Massachusetts
M15 USA – EL SALVADOR (7:00 pm)
M16 TRINIDAD & TOBAGO – GUATEMALA (9:00 pm)
13 June 2007 Group C, Giants Stadium; East Rutherford, New Jersey
M17 CUBA – HONDURAS (7 :00 pm)
M18 MEXICO – PANAMA (9:00 pm)
Quarterfinals
16 June 2007 Gillette Stadium; Foxboro, Massachusetts
M19 A1 vs B2 (1:00 pm)
M20: B1 vs A3/C3 (4:00 pm)
17 June 2007 Reliant Stadium; Houston, Texas
M21 C1 vs A3/B3 (2:00 pm)
M22 C2 vs A2 (5:00 pm)
Semifinals
21 June 2007 Soldier Field; Chicago, Illinois
M23 QF1 vs QF2 (6:00 pm)
M24 QF3 vs QF4 (9:00 pm)
Final
24 June 2007 Soldier Field; Chicago, Illinois
M25 SF1 vs SF2 (2:00 pm)
GOLD CUP History
Year … Champion … Finalist … Venues
1991 … USA … Honduras … Los Angeles, Pasadena (USA)
1993 … Mexico … USA … Dallas (USA); Ciudad de México (México)
1996 … Mexico … Brazil … Anaheim, San Diego, Los Angeles (USA)
1998 … Mexico … USA … Oakland, Miami, Los Angeles (USA)
2000 … Canada … Colombia … San Diego, Miami, Los Angeles (USA)
2002 … USA … Costa Rica … Pasadena, Miami (USA)
2003 … Mexico … Brazil … Foxboro, Miami (USA); Ciudad de México (México)
2005 … USA … Panama … Carson, Foxboro, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, NY/NJ, Seattle (USA)
About CONCACAF
CONCACAF “The Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football” is one of six continental confederations of FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) and serves as the governing body of football in this part of the world. It is composed of 40 national associations, from Canada in the north to Surinam in the south.
About the CONCACAF Gold Cup
The CONCACAF Gold Cup is CONCACAF’s showpiece event for men’s national teams as it crowns the regional champion. The USA won the inaugural competition in 1991, defeating Honduras before 40,000 fans at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum in California. Mexico then won three consecutive titles, the third in 1998 before a crowd of 91,000 in Los Angeles, before Canada won its first major international honor in more than 100 years of football history in 2000. After the USA claimed the 2002 title, Mexico returned to the top of the Confederation with their fourth crown in 2003. The 2005 edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup was won by the USA.
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