Gotta give it to the CONMEBOL for sticking with the Argentina plans and not going for the cash. That said, it could be a negotiation tactic to eek more dough out of it but as of right now it seems like they really just want it in South America. (Which is fine by me.)
The interesting tidbit from the SI article is that The US Fed may try and have a tournament with African and Asian federations instead. That would be cool.
At this rate there is going to be an increase in the number of int'l friendlies even if the global nations league happens. Only difference is the friendlies would take place mostly in June-July instead of September-November.
Group A USA Qatar Nigeria Group B Japan Costa Rica Ghana I Group C Mexico Korea Rep Egypt Group D Honduras Iran South Africa Get Bein Sports to pony up some money for TV rights since Qatar will be in it. Games played in Seattle, L.A., Chicago, NY, Miami, Houston.
Yeah, tell the clubs to whom the players have contracts with, how happy they will be releasing them for free more often through out the year, without even mentioning their delayed vacations and holidays and/or about the possibilities that they get injured playing for national teams.
Not if the US Department of Justice, steps in and starts another probe against the company in charge of the distribution of the money which will be paid for those taking part in the tournament, deciding to freeze all assets till a final veredict is taken. As up to now, Conmebol is still wondering if they will ever receive the money promised in contracts, for the past 2016 Copa America Centenario.
There's only the one FIFA break in June, so they could schedule two friendlies max in that period. Confederations can get tournaments approved for that period; others can't (i.e. clubs wouldn't be obligated to release players for the full tournament).
Cordeiro says door to Conmebol for 2020 in the US is still wide open: http://www.insideworldfootball.com/...o-says-door-conmebol-2020-us-still-wide-open/
Like all good Salesmen Cordeiro is going to keep on calling them up and following up with the CONMEBOL until they officially say no and name where the 2020 Copa will be.
FWIW the speculation on ESPN Deportes' Jorge Ramos y su Banda is that Domínguez made this call entirely on his own while the federation heads were at a FIFA meeting, and that there's more conversation to be had within Conmebol.
ESPN's Jorge Ramos was the first to report the Copa America Centenario news way before anyone too. (Like by a couple years.) People around here were like there is no way it would happen and it did.
Japan manager Hajime Moriyasu says building best squad for Copa America won't be easy: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports...st-squad-copa-america-wont-easy/#.XINycfZuLIU CONMEBOL should have just moved the 2019 Copa to 2020. Then CONCACAF could have participated (without FIFA calendar protection) and you wouldn't have the ridiculous scenario of another set of back-to-back Copas like in 2015/2016.
That would not be ideal having a whole full year without competitive matches for South American teams. As you know I love friendlies, but managers also need competitive matches in the summer to know what they are working with once World Cup Qualifying begins.
Fair point about the lack of competitive games. Still, four Copas in the time-span of six years (2015-2020) is really pushing it.
It occurs to me that with the change in schedule of the Copa America to 2020, 2024 etc., the South American teams that do not qualify for the WC will have to wait 2.5 years for their next competitive game (October 2021 to June 2024) at the next Copa America! Do you think CONMEBOL's moving of the Copa America opens the door to a pan-American continental championship with a 12-to-18 month qualification competition like the UEFA EuroCup in order to give more South American (and CONCACAF) teams more competitive games during each four year cycle, in the hope it helps to improve standards across the Americas?
It opens the doors a bit but we have to remember that the only reason that CONMEBOL is starting qualifying in 2020 is because of the idiotic Winter World Cup time frame. In the 2026 cycle they will probably revert back to Qualifying the year after the World Cup (2023) unless some sort of Pan-American Cup gets more steam/ (Which could happen but probably not in time for that 2026 cycle.)
And from the CONCACAF side of things they are clinging to the two Gold Cups per cycle idea with a death grip.
But when the WC reverts back to its northern hemisphere summer slot, the qualifiers in South America will still finish the previous October and the next competitive games for South American teams which don't qualify for the WC will be 2.5 years away at the Copa America. Far too long, surely?
Edit* I see what you are saying. (Although from October 2025 to September 2027 is less than two years, it is still long.) That said with the way things are going three teams that do not make the World Cup from CONMEBOL would not make much of a complaint about it I don't think.
And it may make room for the World League that is being pushed by FIFA. Or CONMEBOL could just start Qualifying the March FIFA dates after the World Cup or the Summer of that year.
But that is assuming CONMEBOL sticks with a single group - still two years without a competitive game, as you say, which is far too long - while I think they will revert to two groups of five (assuming there is no pan-American qualifying competition by then) which would necessitate a start in September of the year of the Copa America, 2.5 years after the WC-eliminated teams last played a competitive game.
They could start qualifying earlier and have more FIFA dates for friendlies or for the proposed FIFA World League in between. But as I said before there could be a possibility for the Pan -American thing you are suggesting. I just don't see it happening.
...or Conmebol could have set up their own Nations League - two divisions of 5, perhaps with Copa América top seeds and a trophy on the line. Tell me you wouldn't watch Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia and Chile (**sigh** based on current FIFA ranking, albeit at Peru's expense) go at it, even for tiddlywinks.
Colombia did not even sign their coach until February of this year so no, I would not have liked that. But in theory it would have been fun to watch.