By Mark Baber
December 11 – As the final game of Los Angeles Galaxy legend Landon Donovan highlighted the trans-border interests of soccer fans in Mexico and the US, the football ties between the two countries look like deepening with Liga MX officials saying that they are evaluating the possibility of incorporating Major League Soccer (MLS) clubs into the biannual knock-out Copa MX.
November 26 – The reggae beat is pounding out through Jamaican football at the moment. At their home tournament the Reggae Boyz triumphed in the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Cup with a penalty shoot-out win over long-time rivals Trinidad and Tobago earlier this month. In January, the Jamaicans kick off the CONCACAF football year with the hosting of the U20 Championships.
By Paul Nicholson
September 29 – After a longer than anticipated wait, the Centennial Cup America has been officially added to the 2016 FIFA events calendar. The dates mean that the oldest international cup competition in the world will overlap with UEFA’s revamped 24-team Euro 2016 championships for 16 days.
By Paul Nicholson in Los Angeles
September 15 – A piece of Central America came to Downtown Los Angeles on Saturday night with the finals of the Central American Cup played out in front of a passionate and vocal Latino crowd approaching 50,000.
September 11 – The race is hotting up in the Caribbean for qualifying places at the CFU Caribbean Cup finals in Jamaica this November. The finals will not only crown the Caribbean champions but will also provide the region’s qualifiers for the CONCACAF 2015 Gold Cup and the 2016 Copa America Centennario, both to be played in the US.
By Paul Nicholson in Miami
December 8 – CONCACAF has completed the final draw for the CONCACAF Women’s Championship 2014. The eight team finals, to be played this October, will not only crown a CONCACAF champion but will also qualify three teams for the finals next year in Canada (Canada qualify automatically as hosts) with a fourth team getting a play-off against the third-placed CONMEBOL team.
September 2 – The final national team squads for the Central American Cup Tigo 2014 that kicks off tomorrow have been announced, boasting multiple World Cup players amongst MLS and Europe-based players. However, there is a strong contingent of home-based players in each squad, serving not only as a reflection of each nation’s best 11, but also as a point of comparison for each nation’s respective club leagues.
By Paul Nicholson
August 20 – With just two weeks to go before the start of the Central American Cup 2014, telecoms group Tigo have stepped up as title sponsors for the championship which is being played in the US for the first time.
By Paul Nicholson
August 13 – The debut of a team from Belize in the CONCACAF Champions League will have to wait for at least another season after confederation inspectors ruled that their pitch was unplayable. Belize Premier League champions Belmopan Bandits will be replaced in the competition by Costa Rica’s Club Sport Herediano.
August 4 – A regional club Futsal championship will make its debut in CONCACAF at the end of this month in Guatemala. The draw for the inaugural CONCACAF Futsal Club Championship was held last week with six clubs representing their member associations.
July 31 – Honduras is to host the CONCACAF U17 boys championship in February next year. Meanwhile the confederation has announce that the crucial 2014 CONCACAF Women’s Championship, the regional qualifier for the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Canada next year will be played in four host cities in the United States: Chicago, Kansas City, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
July 25 – Jamaica has stepped up to host the CONCACAF U20 championship next January. Before that the Caribbean island is hosting the finals of the CFU Men’s Caribbean Cup this November 9-18.
July 18 – Costa Rican fans living in the US will have the opportunity to see their World Cup heroes back in competitive action this September when the Copa Centroamericana kicks off in Washington with the Los Ticos taking on Nicaragua in the opening match.
By Andrew Warshaw
July 11 – Canada is hoping to use next year’s Women’s World Cup as a springboard to bidding for the men’s equivalent in 2026 when in theory it should be CONCACAF’s turn to host.
By Ben Nicholson
June 24 – The MLS has experienced a 6.1% year-on-year average increase in attendance, as recorded prior to the start of the FIFA World Cup. The league average attendance currently sits at 18,497 spectators per game.