The – a mini World Cup for the Western Hemisphere – begins Thursday in the United States. It will stretch from coast to coast, capturing TV audiences across the Americas. It will feature megastars such as Lionel Messi, as well as a vibrant array of Latin talent.
One of his main questions, though, is: will casual fans in the host country care?
Millions of Mexican-Americans and Colombian-Americans, of Argentine-Americans and Venezuelan-Americans, will erupt with joy for the Copa América. This, many of them know, is arguably the most competitive international men’s football tournament in the four-year gap between the World Cups.
But the 2024 Copa América, specifically, is a novelty in a country little familiar with it.
Here, then, is an attempt to familiarize you – with the basic principles, the narratives, the issues and the driving forces behind this unique event.
What is the Copa América?
The Copa América is the South American men’s football championship, a centuries-old competition between the continent’s 10 national teams (and often others).
Its cadence, size and shape have varied over the years. Now, it is a quadrennial tournament much like the European Championship (Euros), played in the summers of even-numbered years between the men’s World Cups.
It normally has 12 teams, two of which are invited from other continents. But in 2024, it will be temporarily expanded to 16. More on that below.
Is the Copa América a big deal?
In South America, perhaps the most football-crazy continent on the planet, it’s a big deal. It is historic, prestigious, anticipated, fiercely contested and festive. For years it was huge enough to.
Outside the Americas, it is slightly less. Its global presence is overshadowed by its European equivalent, the Euro. This, however, is largely due to the economic power of Western Europe – and its willingness/eagerness to market and commercialize the sport.
At their core, the two tournaments are comparable. They are the biggest in football outside the World Cup – the hardest to beat, the most profitable, the most acclaimed. And this year’s Copa América, in some ways, is even bigger.
How and why is this Copa América different? And who is in this?
Struggling to find a satisfactory South American host is CONMEBOL – the 10-member South American football confederation – its North and Central American counterpart.
CONCACAF would help organize the 2024 edition in the United States; in exchange, it would get six spots in a 16-team field.
Thus, the men’s teams from the USA, Mexico, Canada, Panama, Costa Rica and Jamaica will join the 10 traditional participants: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Uruguay, Paraguay, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Venezuela and Bolivia.
Who are the candidates for victory?
Argentina is the favorite. We have.
Wait, so why will the 2024 Copa América be in the USA?
Copa América hosting duties typically rotate from one South American country to another – from 1989 to 2011, for example, each of CONMEBOL’s 10 members hosted once.
In recent years, however, the COVID-19 pandemic and instability have disrupted the rotation and left organizers searching for replacements – first Brazil and now the U.S.
In 2024, it should be Ecuador’s turn. But Ecuador, citing security and infrastructure concerns, renounced responsibility. “We are not ready to organize the Copa América,” said Francisco Egas, president of its football federation, in November 2022. So, with less than two years to go, CONMEBOL did not know where its 2024 championship would be played.
Brazil, its largest, richest and most capable deputy, seemed willing and able to accommodate. But Brazil has also hosted the two previous Copa Américas – the first in 2019, according to the standard rotation; and then in 2021, when Colombia and Argentina withdrew at the last minute.
Thus, driven by necessity, but also driven by financial and political benefits, CONMEBOL leaders turned to the States. Talks accelerated with the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. An agreement was reached and announced in early 2023.
Hasn’t there already been a Copa América in the USA?
Yes, but that one was even younger. It was a unique edition of the “Centenary” in 2016. It was not moved to the USA; instead, it was essentially created by the US Soccer Federation, in partnership with CONMEBOL, a year after the regularly scheduled 2015 Copa América, as an opportunity to make money and pit the US men’s national team against elite opponents.
In practice, however, the 2016 and 2024 tournaments will be very similar. Same format; six from the same host cities; 15 of the same 16 teams.
How was that Copa América Centenário 2016?
It was quite successful. On the field, Chile beat Argentina in a glamorous but brutal final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. 1.48 million tickets were sold in the stands, an average of around 46 thousand per game. In total, the event generated a “one-time profit of around US$80 million” for US Soccer, its then vice president, Carlos Cordeiro,.
Are fans excited about the 2024 Copa América?
That’s a complicated question.
In South America, fans are always excited about any Copa América, but some are unhappy that the crown jewel has been sent back to North America.
In North America, those who understand the gravity and importance of the tournament appear excited; but many non-Latinos in and around the American soccer community feel the tournament has been poorly promoted and may fail to break into the competitive U.S. sports scene.
CONMEBOL commercial head Juan Emilio Roa told Yahoo Sports that around 25-30% of fans in attendance would be those traveling from South America; most of the remainder will be US residents.
How are ticket sales for the Copa América?
Roa told Yahoo Sports on June 7 that just over 1 million tickets had been sold — just over 31,000 per game. That represents about 50% capacity for all games, most of which will be played in NFL stadiums.
Naturally, games with teams like Argentina and Mexico are close or already sold out; others, however, may be quite empty.
How can I buy tickets for the Copa América?
Per finding the desired stadium or game and paying well.
One reason about 50% of tickets go unclaimed is that the prices, for many, are obscene. A single upper-deck ticket for Argentina’s opener against Canada, in the second-to-last row of Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, cost $307 at the time of writing. Even for Peru-Chile at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the next day, a standard 200-tier ticket costs $208. The average ticket price for the entire tournament, according to Vivid Seats, is $ 283.
Why are tickets so expensive?
It’s unclear who exactly is to blame for the obscene prices.
Roa confirmed that they are based on the “dynamic pricing” model often used by American ticket brokers such as Ticketmaster and SeatGeek.
For a standard Copa América in South America, CONMEBOL would have full control over all aspects of the match day experience, including ticketing. But here, they had to work with a variety of stakeholders (and capitalists), stadium by stadium, city by city. Instead of selling tickets on a single platform, they’ve essentially delegated that task to each venue — some of which use Ticketmaster, some of which use SeatGeek.
The complexities and somewhat last-minute nature of all these arrangements have been challenges and, presumably, reasons why tickets only went on sale at the end of February.
When and where will the games be?
They are spread across the US, in 14 different cities, and each hosts a maximum of three games.
So, will the Copa América be fun and successful?
Some games, certainly in the round of 16, should be great. Others, among proud but less prominent teams trapped in cavernous NFL stadiums, will feel a little soulless.
The tournament as a whole will likely struggle to differentiate itself from every other high-level soccer game played in the United States this decade. But for CONMEBOL, financially, it will almost certainly be successful.
“The North American market is an incredible market in terms of everything – in terms of viewership, in terms of sponsorship, in terms of exposure,” Roa said. The inclusion of the Mexican team probably allowed CONMEBOL to benefit from many millions of dollars more.
“And certainly, having Argentina and Leo Messi playing in this Copa América… increased interest around the world,” Roa added.
“We receive calls, emails and contacts through our [commercial] agency, directly to CONMEBOL, from all over the world, like never before, like never before,” said Roa. “Because obviously they have interests in the United States. And all the things that happen in the United States take on another dimension.”
