Thats a good question... btw Panama vs CR was the final of Copa Centro Americana tbh, two best teams at the tourney flat out. Sad one of em might(slim, but still a possibility) miss out on Copa Centenario cuz they were in the same group.
I think I found the response... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_Copa_Centroamericana#Group_stage The teams are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, 0 points for a loss). If tied on points, tiebreakers are applied in the following order:[23] Greater number of points in matches between the tied teams. Greater goal difference in matches between the tied teams (if more than two teams finish equal on points). Greater number of goals scored in matches among the tied teams (if more than two teams finish equal on points). Greater goal difference in all group matches. Greater number of goals scored in all group matches. Drawing of lots.
Yea.. a 3 way tie could be on the cards in the other Group.. too many scenarios to list, if anyone can list them all, i shall rep you.
So in the end, Panama 2-0 Nicaragua. Group goes like this. Costa Rica 4pts +3 Panama 4pts +2 Nicaragua 0pts -5 Nicaragua could well be coming up against Honduras...
I knew Guatemala was dormant for too long and I figured they'd be the 'most improved' for this cycle after their early exit from 2014 qualifiers and failing to qualify for the GC2013. I didn't think it would happen so quickly though. If they can get past Costa Rica, who are missing some key players, they're into Copa 2016. Honduras having to take the scenic route just to get to the GC is also surprising, though you'd certainly fancy them against Nicaragua and most anyone from the Caribbean who would be finishing 5th
"Early exit from 2014 qualifiers"? Guatemala finished third in Semifinals in qualifying for World Cup 2010 and World Cup 2014 with 5 points in qualifying for 2010 and double that in qualifying for 2014. Did they do any worse than expected in qualifying for World Cup 2014? Guatemala was 17th in CONCACAF in the FIFA Rankings used for qualifying for World Cup 2014 and 11th in CONCACAF in the FIFA Rankings before the Semifinals for World Cup 2014 started. The Semifinal group finished in FIFA Ranking order (USA first, Jamaica second, Guatemala third, and Antigua and Barbuda fourth). At the start of the Semifinals, Guatemala was closer to Antigua and Barbuda behind them than to Jamaica ahead of them in the FIFA Rankings.
Fair enough Evan. I could have sworn Guatemala was in at least a couple of Hex's since 98, but in fact they were only in one. I think I got crossed up thinking about how many times we've played them because it seems like we're always going down there for WCQ every cycle, but I suppose all but once were for semi-final rounds.
Guatemala missed out on the Hex last time around only due to goal difference. Antigua laid down against Jamaica so that the Caribbean could have a representative in the Hex. 2010 Qualifying was a very bad cycle for the team. The cycle before that, Guatemala missed out on a playoff with Bahrain to qualify for Germany 2006 because Mexico threw their final game of WCQ against Trinidad and Tobago at the orders of Jack A. Warner (confirmed by then coach LaVolpe). As far as FIFA rankings go, if they beat Costa Rica this Saturday, they will be ranked 29th in the world.
Pulling for CR in the final. Honduras needs to see that autobirth spot go to the stronger traditional power.
Copa America officials and sponsors are probably rooting for Guatemala. They will bring a lot more people to the games an spend a lot more money on merchandise.
Saturday will be a massive home crowd advantage for Guatemala. Probably around 35k Guatemalans to Costa Rica's probable 5k, if that.
Honduras take 5th place with a 1-0 win over Nicaragua (the Caribbean teams will be disappointed with that). Panama has an early lead over El Salvador.
I wonder if there will even be that many Costa Ricans there. I read somewhere recently that the number of Costa Ricans in the US has actually dropped in the past few years.
There was around 1k Costa Ricans, and about 65k Guatemalans. No joke, Copa America officials were probably pulling for Guatemala. The announced attendance was 41k but that was complete bs. 75% of the coliseum was full.