CONCACAF Gold Cup Preview
Football fans across the world are spoilt this summer, as 2021 is delivering some of the most anticipated football tournaments within the space of a few months. The UEFA Euro 2020 Championships and the Copa America 2021 are already underway. To finish the summer international football festivities, the CONCACAF Gold Cup just around the corner.
The most popular tournament in North, Central America, and the Caribbean, the Gold Cup, is set for its return on the 10th of July. It will be the sixteenth edition of the Gold Cup, and this year’s competition will be hosted in the United States. The action kicks off with its final qualifications on July 2nd – 6th, but the actual tournament begins on the 10th and will run until the 1st of August, with the majority of its games taking place in Texas. 13 countries have already qualified, and three more teams will enter following the qualification stage.
Qualified Gold Cup 2021 Teams
The teams that qualified directly through the CONCACAF Nationals League 19/20 & the Gold Cup qualification tournament are Canada, Honduras, Grenada, Jamaica, the United States, Mexico, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Curacao Martinique, Suriname, and Panama. Qatar will participate with automatic qualification as a guest nation.
For those wanting to make some extra cash during the Gold Cup, sportsbooks from across the globe will be offering some great value on future predictions of the tournament’s winner. Fanduel Promo codes will help you with finding some great value, but for now, let us preview some of the most talented squads taking part in the 2021 Gold Cup.
Mexico
Mexico’s success during Gold Cup meetings is undeniable, and as the current champions, they’re undoubtedly one of the favourites to collect the trophy.
Mexico has won the Gold Cup on eleven occasions and is one of only six countries to qualify for consecutive World Cups since 1994. Only Brazil can equal their record of reaching the qualifying stages of the previous seven finals competitions. Historically, Mexico is the most successful team in the CONCACAF federation.
United States
Runners-up in the Gold Cup 2019 and currently ranked 23rd in the rankings, the USA will feel the pressure to match the ultra-successful US women’s team, the current World Champions.
USA’s record in their confederation speaks for itself; they have won this tournament on five occasions since 2002, previously lifting the cup in 2018. Reaching the Qatar World Cup will be on their mind, but having won the Gold Cup six times, they should have confidence in making their mark on this year’s tournament.
Star power from the Champions League winning side Chelsea in Christian Pulisic could be a game-changer for the US squad. Whilst Juventus midfielder Weston Mc Kennie is a proven midfielder worth paying attention to.
Costa Rica
Often overlooked, Costa Rica is the third-highest FIFA ranked team in this year’s Gold Cup. A nation with just 5 million people reached their first World Cup in 1990 and have gone on to five of eight finals since that date. Not bad for a country with such a small population in comparison to its predecessors.
Costa Rica is the most successful national football team from Central America. Having won the CONCACAF title on three occasions and leading the Copa Centroamericana tournament by claiming four championships until 2017, when they were put in the CONCACAF Nations League.
Costa Rica is the only country to have played in five World Cup tournaments, with their best outing most notably at Brazil 2014. They finished top of their group; three former World Champions trailed behind: England, Italy, and Uruguay.
The majority of Costa Rica’s squad are MLS based. Manfred Ugale, the 18-year-old striker playing out of Lommel in Belgium, has obtained his prominent squad appearance. Keylor Navas of PSG is the most experienced, with 91 caps. Celso Borges out of Deportivo La Coruna is a severe goal-scoring threat with 23 goals in 130 international appearances.
The Costa Ricans have a great chance of making this year’s finals. Group C is positioned in Group C, which consists of Jamaica and Suriname and should claim the sportsbooks top position as favourites to win the group.
