CONCACAF Nations League
The CONCACAF Nations League (Spanish: Liga de Naciones CONCACAF, French: Ligue des Nations de la CONCACAF) is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the member associations of CONCACAF, the regional governing body of North America. The tournament takes place on dates allocated for international friendlies on the FIFA International Match Calendar. A one-time qualifying tournament took place from September 2018 to March 2019 and the inaugural tournament began in September 2019.[1]
| Organizing body | CONCACAF |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2018 |
| Region | North America, Central America and the Caribbean |
| Number of teams | 41 |
| Qualifier for | CONCACAF Gold Cup CONMEBOL Copa América |
| Current champion(s) | United States (1st title) |
| Most successful team(s) | United States (1 title) |
| Website | concacaf.com/nations-league |
| 2022–23 CONCACAF Nations League | |
History and format
The tournament was announced in November 2017.[2] It is divided into three tiered leagues, A, B, and C, of four groups each, with promotion and relegation between the leagues based on finishing position within groups. The group winners of League A enter a four-team knockout competition to be crowned champion, while the group-winners of Leagues B and C are promoted to the next tier. In Leagues A and B, the four teams at the bottom of the groups are relegated to the next-lower tier.[3] The tournament also determines which national teams qualify for the next edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup.[2]
The format proposals were first formally investigated at the XXXII CONCACAF Ordinary Congress in Oranjestad, Aruba on 8 April 2017[4][5] and confirmed by CONCACAF on 16 November 2017.[2] CONCACAF president Victor Montagliani stated that the purpose of the competition is to have a regular schedule of international fixtures for CONCACAF's national teams, noting that some teams play fewer than 10 games in a four-year period and needed more competitive games to assist the sport's development in those nations.[6][7]
Adjustment from 2023–24
On 28 February 2023, CONCACAF announced a format change for the 2023–24 season of the CONCACAF Nations League. As a result, no teams will be relegated from the 2022–23 season.[8]
The size of League A will be increased from twelve to sixteen teams, and will now feature a quarter-final round. The twelve lowest-ranked teams in the CONCACAF Rankings of March 2023 will enter the group stage, now using a Swiss-system tournament format. The teams will be divided into two groups of six teams, with each team playing four matches against group opponents (two at home and two away). The top four teams will advance to the quarter-finals, and will be joined by the four top-ranked teams in the CONCACAF Rankings. The teams advancing from the group stage will be drawn into ties against the top-ranked teams, which will be played on a two-legged home-and-away basis.
League B will remain unchanged, featuring sixteen teams divided into four groups of four. Each team will play six matches in a double round-robin home-and-away format (three at home and three away). Following the format change, League C will be reduced from thirteen to nine teams and from four to three groups. Teams will be divided into three groups of three teams, with each team playing four matches in a double round-robin home-and-away format (two at home and two away).[8]
Promotion and relegation will resume for the 2023–24 season, with the fifth and sixth placed teams in League A and the fourth-placed teams in League B being relegated for the next season. The group winners of Leagues B and C will be promoted, as will the best second-placed team of League C.[8]
Trophy
The CONCACAF Nations League trophy was unveiled eight days before the inaugural Nations League Finals. The trophy represents all 41 CONCACAF national associations and is made of silver-plated brass and stone. The trophy weighs 8 kg (18 lb) and is 52 cm (20 in) tall.[9]
Seasons
Each season of the CONCACAF Nations League is typically played from September to November (league phase), and March or June of the following year (Nations League Finals of League A). An exception was made in the 2022–23 season when the league phase was played from June 2022 to March 2023, due to the 2022 FIFA World Cup played in Qatar at the end of the year.
Results
Finals
| Ed. | Season | Host | Final | Third place play-off | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winners | Score | Runners-up | Third place | Score | Fourth place | |||||
| 1 | 2019–20 Finals | United States | United States | 3–2 (a.e.t.) Empower Field at Mile High, Denver | Mexico | Honduras | 2–2 (5–4 p) Empower Field at Mile High, Denver | Costa Rica | ||
| 2 | 2022–23 Finals | United States | ||||||||
| 3 | 2023–24 Finals | |||||||||
| 4 | 2024–25 Finals | |||||||||
Performances by team
| Team | Winners | Runners-up | Third place | Fourth place |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 1 (2020*) | |||
| Mexico | 1 (2020) | |||
| Honduras | 1 (2020) | |||
| Costa Rica | 1 (2020) | |||
| Canada | ||||
| Panama |
- * = hosts
Team performances by season
- 1 – Champions
- 2 – Runners-up
- 3 – Third place
- 4 – Fourth place
- – Promoted
- – No movement
- – Relegated
- Q – Qualified for upcoming CONCACAF Nations League Finals
- – Hosts of CONCACAF Nations League Finals
| Team | 2019–20 | 2022–23 | 2023–24 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LG | P/NM/R | LG | P/NM | LG | P/NM/R | |
| Anguilla | C | C | C | |||
| Antigua and Barbuda | B | B | B | |||
| Aruba | B | C | C | |||
| Bahamas | C | B | B | |||
| Barbados | C | B | B | |||
| Belize | B | B | B | |||
| Bermuda | A | B | B | |||
| Bonaire | C | C | C | |||
| British Virgin Islands | C | C | C | |||
| Canada | A | A | Q | A | ||
| Cayman Islands | C | C | C | |||
| Costa Rica | A | 4 | A | A | ||
| Cuba | A | B | A | |||
| Curaçao | A | A | A | |||
| Dominica | B | C | C | |||
| Dominican Republic | B | B | B | |||
| El Salvador | B | A | A | |||
| French Guiana | B | B | B | |||
| Grenada | B | A | A | |||
| Guadeloupe | C | B | B | |||
| Guatemala | C | B | A | |||
| Guyana | B | B | B | |||
| Haiti | A | B | A | |||
| Honduras | A | 3 | A | A | ||
| Jamaica | B | A | A | |||
| Martinique | A | A | A | |||
| Mexico | A | 2 | A | Q | A | |
| Montserrat | B | B | B | |||
| Nicaragua | B | B | A | |||
| Panama | A | A | Q | A | ||
| Puerto Rico | C | C | B | |||
| Saint Kitts and Nevis | B | C | B | |||
| Saint Lucia | B | C | B | |||
| Saint Martin | C | C | C | |||
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | B | B | B | |||
| Sint Maarten | C | C | B | |||
| Suriname | B | A | A | |||
| Trinidad and Tobago | A | B | B | |||
| Turks and Caicos Islands | C | C | C | |||
| United States | A | 1 | A | Q | A | |
| U.S. Virgin Islands | C | C | C | |||
Broadcasters
CONCACAF
| Country/region | Broadcaster | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | Pay | ||
| Aruba | Telearuba | ||
| Canada | OneSoccer | [10] | |
| Caribbean | Flow | [10] | |
| El Salvador | TCS | Millicom | [11] |
| Guatemala | RTVG | ||
| Nicaragua | Viva Nicaragua | ||
| Honduras | TVC | ||
| Costa Rica | Repretel | ||
| Teletica | |||
| Multimedios TV | |||
| Mexico | TV Azteca | ||
| TelevisaUnivision | |||
| Curaçao | TeleCuraçao | ||
| Jamaica | CVM (delayed) | ||
| Panama | RPC-TV | ||
| TVN | |||
| TVMax | |||
| Suriname | ATV | ||
| STVS | |||
| United States | Univision (Spanish) VIX | Paramount+ (English) CBS Sports Network (English, finals only) | [12][13][14] |
International
All matches are streamed through CONCACAF's subscription streaming service CONCACAF GO.
| Country/region | Broadcaster | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | Pay | ||
| Sport Klub | |||
| Indonesia | Mola TV | [15] | |
| Timor-Leste | |||
| NENT | |||
See also
- UEFA Nations League
- CONCACAF W Gold Cup – women's tournament with similar format
References
- ^ . CONCACAF.com. The Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football. 5 March 2018. Archived from the original on 6 March 2018. Retrieved 5 March 2018.
- ^ a b c . CONCACAF.com. The Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football. 16 November 2017. Archived from the original on 25 December 2017. Retrieved 6 March 2018.
- ^ (PDF). CONCACAF.com. The Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football. 16 November 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 November 2017. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
- ^ (PDF). CONCACAF.com. The Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football. 15 March 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 November 2017. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
- ^ "CONCACAF Nations League Officially Launched". CONCACAFNationsLeague.com. The Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football. 7 March 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
- ^ . GoldCup.org. The Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football. 26 February 2018. Archived from the original on 26 June 2019. Retrieved 6 March 2018.
- ^ . GoldCup.org. The Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football. 27 February 2018. Archived from the original on 22 October 2020. Retrieved 6 March 2018.
- ^ a b c "CONCACAF announces formats for men's national team competitions for the 2023–2026 cycle". CONCACAF. 28 February 2023. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
- ^ "Concacaf Nations League Trophy unveiled ahead of Final Four". CONCACAF. 26 May 2021. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
- ^ a b "Concacaf Nations League deal tightens OneSoccer's grip on Canadian soccer". Sports Business Media. 27 August 2019. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
- ^ "Tigo Sports acquires rights to Costa Rica Concacaf Nations League games". SportBusiness Media. 3 October 2019. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
- ^ "Concacaf and CBS Sports agree to multi-year media rights partnership for Concacaf Nations League and new Concacaf women's national team competitions". CONCACAF. 27 February 2021.
- ^ "Paramount+ adds Concacaf soccer rights ahead of US launch - SportsPro Media". 25 February 2021.
- ^ "USA, Mexico change formations for Concacaf Nations League final". CBS Sports. 6 June 2021. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
- ^ "Panama Vs Bermuda LIVE STREAMING Mola TV Kick-Off Jam 08.00 WIB | Live CONCACAF Nations League". Tribun Pontianak (in Indonesian). Retrieved 12 February 2020.
External links
- Official website