Other Confederations: AFC The 2nd Round is just over halfway done. The last 4 match-days start October 8. The top 12 teams move on to Round 3. CAF The 2nd Round starts on October 5, 2020. The 10 group winners out of 40 teams advance to the 3rd round. CONMEBOL Match-day 1 is October 8, 2020. OFC Round 1 starts on March 22, 2021. All 11 eligible teams will be divided into 2 groups by FIFA ranking. The top 2 in each group will advance to semifinals. UEFA The 55 eligible teams will be drawn into 10 groups in November. Match-day 1 is March 25-27, 2021.
The 2021 Gold Cup will have an actual draw and Qatar has been invited. https://www.espn.com/soccer/united-...-gold-cup-format-qatar-to-participate-in-2021 The draw will take place on September 28, 2020. Guest Qatar Already qualified by CNL results Mexico USA Canada Costa Rica Curacao El Salvador Grenada Honduras Jamaica Martinique Panama Suriname Three more teams will be determined in a Preliminary Round in early July. The tournament proper will start on July 10, 2021.
Recall that our city made the even more short list for hosting North America 2026 World Cup matches. I did want to share this ESPN production that someone had posted a few years back, ESPN made this incredible video on a special soccer ball ending up finally up in Space. Enjoy! It's a tear jerker as well! https://www.espn.com/watch/player?id=97d03166-a172-433c-a3f9-c9cf64d5c2d5&om-navmethod=espn:globalsearch:results Here is our city's logo:
https://www.yahoo.com/sports/messi-edges-ronaldo-worlds-highest-193535455.html Forbes' top 10 highest-paid footballers: 1. Lionel Messi - $126m 2. Cristiano Ronaldo - $117m 3. Neymar - $96m 4. Kylian Mbappe - $42m 5. Mohamed Salah - $37m 6. Paul Pogba - $34m 7. Antoine Griezmann - $33m 8. Gareth Bale - $29m 9. Robert Lewandowski - $28m 10. David De Gea - $27m
The pots have been announced for the 2021 Gold Cup Preliminary and Tournament draw. https://www.goldcup.org/en/article/concacaf-announces-details-for-first-ever-gold-cup-draw Preliminary Round: Pre-seeded teams: Haiti, Guatemala, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba, Guadeloupe and Bermuda Pot 1: French Guiana, Guyana, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Barbados, Montserrat and Bahamas The Preliminary Round will be a single-elimination bracket to narrow to three teams that will advance to the Gold Cup tournament. The Tournament: Pot 1 (pre-seeded teams): Mexico (Group A), USA (Group B), Costa Rica (Group C) and Honduras (Group D) Pot 2: Jamaica, Canada, Panama and El Salvador Pot 3: Martinique, Curacao, Suriname and Grenada Pot 4: Three Prelims Winners and Qatar (Group D) The draw is September 28.
2021 Gold Cup Preliminary Round: Haiti v. St. Vincent & Grenadines Bermuda v. Barbados Winners meet in Match 7 to qualify Guatemala v. Guyana Guadeloupe v. Bahamas Winners meet in Match 8 to qualify *Trinidad & Tobago v. Montserrat Cuba v. French Guiana Winners meet in Match 9 to qualify *Trinidad & Tobago is under suspension by FIFA. If they don't resolve that their place will be taken by Antigua & Barbuda Gold Cup groups: Group A Mexico El Salvador Curacao Preliminary Match 9 Group B USA Canada Martinique Preliminary Match 7 Group C Costa Rica Jamaica Suriname Preliminary Match 8 Group D Honduras Panama Grenada Qatar
The USA has two friendlies lined up for the November break. Both games will be with Euro-based players. Times are CST. Thursday, November 12 Wales v. USA @ Swansea, WAL 1:45 pm FS1/UniMas Monday, November 16 USA v. Panama @ Wiener Neustadt, AUT 1:45 pm FS1/UniMas Other CONCACAF friendlies: Friday, November 13 Japan v. Panama @ Dusseldorf, GER 8:15 am Costa Rica v. Qatar @ Hartberg, AUT 11:00 am Saudi Arabia v. Jamaica TBA Saturday, November 14 Mexico v. South Korea @ Vienna, AUT 2:00 pm Sunday, November 15 Guatemala v. Honduras 11:00 am Monday, November 16 Saudi Arabia v. Jamaica TBA Tuesday, November 17 Japan v. Mexico @Graz, AUT 2:00 pm
Copa Libertadores Semis today and tomorrow with River Plate vs. Palmeiras today and Boca Juniors vs Santos tomorrow. This a Maradona club vs Pele club encounter for the history nuts of the beautiful game. As well Spurs played Brentford in the English League Cup semis today with a rare Manchester Derby tomorrow in the other semi final. Both of these on ESPN+
U.S. Soccer has put out a schedule for games the next couple of years: March, 2021 Thursday, March 25: Friendly, TBA Sunday, March 28: Friendly, Ireland v. USA May, 2021 Sunday, May 30: Friendly, TBA June 2021 Thursday, June 3: CNL Semifinal, USA v. Honduras Sunday, June 6: CNL Final/3rd Place game, USA v. Mexico/Costa Rica Wednesday, June 9: Friendly, TBA July 10-August 1 2021 GOLD CUP September 2021 Thursday, Sept. 2: WCQ Match 1, *SLV/TRI v. USA Sunday, Sept. 5: WCQ Match 2, USA v. *CAN/HAI Wednesday, Sept. 8: WCQ Match 3, HON v. USA October 2021 Thursday, Oct. 7: WCQ Match 4, USA v. JAM Sunday, Oct. 10: WCQ Match 5, *CUW/PAN v. USA Wednesday, Oct. 13: WCQ Match 6, USA v. CRC November 2021 Friday, Nov. 12: WCQ Match 7, USA v. MEX Tuesday, Nov. 16: WCQ Match 8, JAM v. USA January-February 2022 Thursday, Jan. 27: WCQ Match 9, USA v. *SLV/TRi Sunday, Jan. 30: WCQ Match 10, *CAN/HAI v. USA Wednesday, Feb. 2: WCQ Match 11, USA v. HON March 2022 Thursday, March 24: WCQ Match 12, MEX v. USA Sunday, March 27: WCQ Match 13, USA v. *CUW/PAN Wednesday, March 30: WCQ Match 14, CRC v. USA June 2022 Saturday, June 4: WCQ Intercontinental Playoff OR Friendly, TBD Wednesday, June 8: WCQ Intercontinental Playoff OR Friendly, TBD Saturday, June 11: Friendly, TBA Tuesday, June 14: Friendly, TBA September 2022 Friday, September 23: Friendly, TBA Tuesday, September 27: Friendly, TBA November-December 2022 World Cup * Likely opponent, Exact opponent TBD
CONCACAF World Cup 2022 Qualifiers Round 1, Matchdays 1 and 2 Wednesday, March 24 (A) Antigua & Barbuda v. Montserrat (B) Suriname v. Cayman Islands (C) Guatemala v. Cuba (D) Dominican Rep. v. Dominica (E) Nicaragua v. St. Lucia (F) St. Kitts & Nevis v. Puerto Rico Thursday, March 25 (A) El Salvador v. Grenada (B) Canada v. Bermuda (C) Curacao v. St. Vincent & the Grenadines (D) Panama v. Barbados (E) Haiti v. Belize (F) Trinidad & Tobago v. Guyana Saturday, March 27 (A) US Virgin Islands v. Antigua & Barbuda (B) Aruba v. Suriname (C) B. Virgin Islands v. Guatemala (D) Anguilla v. Dominican Rep. (E) Turks & Caicos v. Nicaragua (F) Bahamas v. St. Kitts & Nevis Sunday, March 28 (A) Montserrat v. El Salvador (B) Cayman Islands v. Canada (C) Cuba v. Curacao (D) Dominica v. Panama (E) St. Lucia v. Haiti (F) Puerto Rico v. Trinidad & Tobago Tuesday, March 30 (A) Grenada v. US Virgin Islands (B) Bermuda v. Aruba (C) St. Vincent & the Grenadines v. B. Virgin Islands (D) Barbados v. Anguilla (E) Belize v. Turks & Caicos (F) Guyana v. Bahamas The next matchdays are in June. The group winners have a playoff June 12-15.
Other Confederations World Cup qualifying update: AFC The 2nd Round will finish in June of 2021. Most teams have 3 or 4 games left to go. The third round of 12 teams will start in September. CAF The 2nd Round starts in June of 2021. The 10 group winners out of 40 teams advance to the 3rd round which will be held in November of 2021. CONMEBOL Match-day 5 and 6 of 18 are in March of 2021. Their qualifiers end in March of 2022. OFC Round 1 will probably start in June of 2021. All 11 eligible teams will be divided into 2 groups by FIFA ranking. The top 2 in each group will advance to semifinals. UEFA The 55 eligible teams have been drawn into 10 groups. Match-day 1 is March 25-27, 2021.
The CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament wasn't on the US Soccer list but it is a big deal and it is coming up in March. The tournament is being held in Guadalajara and Zapopan, Mexico. Thursday, March 18 (A) USA v. Costa Rica (A) Mexico v. Dominican Republic Friday, March 19 (B) Canada v. El Salvador (B) Honduras v. Haiti Sunday, March 21 (A) Dominican Republic v. USA (A) Mexico v. Costa Rica Monday, March 22 (B) Haiti v. Canada (B) El Salvador v. Honduras Wednesday, March 24 (A) Costa Rica v. Dominican Republic (A) Mexico v. USA Thursday, March 25 (B) El Salvador v. Haiti (B) Honduras v. Canada Semis are March 28 and the final is March 30. The top two from each group advance to the semifinals. The semifinal winners advance to the 2021 Olympics later this year.
https://www.chron.com/sports/article/Houston-2026-World-Cup-host-city-bid-candidate-16013002.php Houston will get to make its case Wednesday to be one of 10 United States cities to host World Cup matches in 2026. Houston is competing with Los Angeles, New York/New Jersey, Washington, D.C., Dallas, Kansas City, Denver, Baltimore, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Nashville, Seattle, San Francisco Bay Area, Boston, Cincinnati, Miami and Orlando for those final 10 slots. Houston figures to have a good shot since it's the fourth-largest city in the country and NRG Stadium has hosted two Super Bowls, two Final Fours and several soccer matches involving the likes of the Mexican National Team as well as international clubs like Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Manchester City, Manchester United and Real Madrid.
Great air travel conduits to Mexico, Central/South American and internationally. Diverse and international citizens. Retractable roof stadium. Track record of successful large sports events including soccer competitions. Would be very surprised if NRG is not selected, and we do not get 2 group games and at least a quarter-final match.
i agree a million percent that Houston should be a shoe-in with is 2 airports and diverse population. Unfortunately, it’ll come down to which cities have the best hookers and blow.
CONCACAF World Cup 2022 Qualifiers Updated with times and locations if different: Times are CDT. Round 1, Matchdays 1 and 2 Wednesday, March 24 (B) Suriname v. Cayman Islands 5:00 pm (A) Antigua & Barbuda v. Montserrat @ Curacao 6:00 pm (C) Guatemala v. Cuba 6:00 pm (D) Dominican Rep. v. Dominica 6:00 pm (F) St. Kitts & Nevis v. Puerto Rico @ Dominican Republic 6:00 pm (E) Nicaragua v. St. Lucia 8:00 pm Thursday, March 25 (E) Haiti v. Belize 4:00 pm (F) Trinidad & Tobago v. Guyana @ Dominican Republic 6:00 pm (B) Canada v. Bermuda @ Orlando, FL 7:00 pm (C) Curacao v. St. Vincent & the Grenadines 7:00 pm (D) Panama v. Barbados @ Dominican Republic 7:00 pm (A) El Salvador v. Grenada 8:30 pm Saturday, March 27 (D) Anguilla v. Dominican Rep. @ Ft. Lauderdale, FL 5:00 pm (A) US Virgin Islands v. Antigua & Barbuda 6:00 pm (E) Turks & Caicos v. Nicaragua @ Dominican Republic 6:00 pm (F) Bahamas v. St. Kitts & Nevis 6:00 pm (B) Aruba v. Suriname @ Bradenton, FL 7:00 pm (C) B. Virgin Islands v. Guatemala @ Curacao 7:00 pm Sunday, March 28 (B) Cayman Islands v. Canada @ Bradenton, FL 2:30 pm (D) Dominica v. Panama @ Dominican Republic 3:00 pm (C) Cuba v. Curacao @ Guatemala 4:00 pm (F) Puerto Rico v. Trinidad & Tobago 4:00 pm (A) Montserrat v. El Salvador @ Curacao 6:00 pm (E) St. Lucia v. Haiti TBD Tuesday, March 30 (B) Bermuda v. Aruba 5:30 pm (A) Grenada v. US Virgin Islands 6:00 pm (E) Belize v. Turks & Caicos @ Dominican Republic 6:00 pm (D) Barbados v. Anguilla @ Dominican Republic 6:30 pm (C) St. Vincent & the Grenadines v. B. Virgin Islands @curacao 7:00 pm (F) Guyana v. Bahamas 7:00 pm The next matchdays are in June. The group winners have a playoff June 12-15.
The Olympic Qualifiers are being shown on FS1 and FS1 this week. The USA game on Thursday is on FS1 at 4:30 CDT. The Mexico game is at 7 pm. The Honduras game on Friday is at 2:30 on FS2. The Canada game is at 5:00 pm.
"2020" CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament: Thursday, March 18 (A) USA 1-0 Costa Rica (A) Mexico 4-1 Dominican Republic Friday, March 19 (B) Canada 2-0 El Salvador (B) Honduras 3-0 Haiti Sunday, March 21 (A) Dominican Republic 0-4 USA (A) Mexico 3-0 Costa Rica Monday, March 22 (B) Haiti 0-0 Canada (B) El Salvador 1-1 Honduras Wednesday, March 24 (A) Costa Rica v. Dominican Republic (A) Mexico v. USA Thursday, March 25 (B) El Salvador v. Haiti (B) Honduras v. Canada USA and Mexico have clinched semifinal berths. Honduras and Canada lead Group B but neither has clinched. Semis are March 28 and the final is March 30. The semifinal winners advance to the "2020" Olympics later this year.
CONCACAF WCQs start this week but there are also friendlies during this break for the teams that aren't involved with Round 1. Wednesday, March 24 Belarus v. Honduras 12:00 pm ESPN3 Thursday, March 25 USA v. Jamaica @ Wiener Neustadt, AUS 12:00 pm ESPN2/UniMas Sunday, March 28 N. Ireland v. USA 11:00 am FOX/UniMas Tuesday, March 30 Costa Rica v. Mexico @ Wiener Neustadt, AUS 3:00 pm