Concacaf Announces 2021 Gold Cup Schedule
Concacaf has announced the full schedule for the 2021 Gold Cup, with the tournament to kick off on July 2 in South Florida, with Bermuda set to play Barbados.
The organisation said, “Concacaf has announced the full schedule for the 2021 Gold Cup, the region’s flagship men’s national team competition. This year’s edition will include a new Preliminary Round [July 2-6] prior to the Group Stage [July 10-20] and a revamped Knockout Stage [July 24 – Aug 1].
“This summer’s Gold Cup, the 16th edition of the competition and a key part of Concacaf’s 60th anniversary celebration, will be played in 11 stadiums across eight US metropolitan areas. Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas will host the competition’s final match on Sunday, August 1.
“We are extremely pleased to confirm the schedule and venues for this summer’s Concacaf Gold Cup, which promises to be a celebration of football in our great region,” said Concacaf President and FIFA Vice President Victor Montagliani. “2021 is Concacaf’s 60th anniversary year and we look forward with great anticipation to watching the best men’s national teams in our confederation compete for the Gold Cup title. With an exciting new format and the prospect of welcoming passionate fans to the stadiums for these compelling matchups, I can’t wait for the football to begin on July 2nd and to crown a champion in Las Vegas on August 1st,” added Montagliani.
“Prior to the start of the 2021 Gold Cup Group Stage, 12 national teams which qualified through their Concacaf Nations League [CNL] performances, will compete in the Preliminary Round [Prelims] from July 2-6, 2021. These matches will take place at DRV PNK Stadium [Fort Lauderdale, FL] and will determine the final three teams in the Gold Cup Group Stage. The six round one Prelims matches and the three round two Prelims matches were drawn in September 2020 and are available here and below.
“The Group Stage of the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup will kick off on July 10 and will run through July 20. The 12 qualified nations, the AFC Asian Cup Champions Qatar [guest participant] and the three Prelims winners were drawn in September 2020 into four groups and will play as follows [full schedule available below]:
Group A – Mexico, El Salvador, Curaçao and Winner Prelims 9
“Group A will begin play on July 10, with El Salvador taking on Curaçao at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, before current champion Mexico faces off against Winner Prelims 9 in Arlington’s AT&T Stadium. Group A will remain in North Texas for the duration of the Group Stage.
Group B – USA, Canada, Martinique and Winner Prelims 7
“Group B, stationed in Kansas City [Children’s Mercy Park], will take to the field on July 11, with Canada and Martinique facing off in the first match of the day, while six-time champion United States will take on Winner Prelims 7. USA and Canada will remain in Kansas City for the Group Stage, while Martinique and Winner Prelims 7 will travel to Frisco, TX [Toyota Stadium] for the third match date.
Group C – Costa Rica, Jamaica, Suriname and Winner Prelims 8
“Jamaica and Suriname will open Group C play at Orlando’s Exploria Stadium, on July 12. Group seed Costa Rica will take on the remaining team to qualify via the Prelims in the second match of the day. For the last group stage date on July 20, Suriname and Winner Prelims 8 will travel to Houston, TX [BBVA Stadium] while Costa Rica will face Jamaica in Exploria Stadium.
Group D – Honduras, Panama, Grenada and Qatar
“Group D, based in Houston, TX [BBVA Stadium], will kick off on July 13 with guest participant and AFC Asian Cup Champions Qatar versus Panama in the first match of the evening, before Honduras take on Grenada. On July 20 in Orlando, Grenada and Panama will close Group Stage play while Honduras face Qatar in BBVA Stadium.
“In an exciting football first development to this year’s edition of Gold Cup, each group’s final group stage matches will be played simultaneously. This is to ensure an even more compelling spectacle as the teams compete to reach the Knockout Stage.
“At the end of the Group Stage, the top two teams from each group will advance to the Quarterfinals.
Knockout Stage – Quarterfinals, semifinals and final
“State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, and AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas will play host to the Quarterfinal doubleheaders on July 24 and 25, respectively.
“The Semifinals will be played on July 29, in NRG Stadium in Houston, and the brand-new Q2 Stadium in Austin, Texas. The venue for each specific semifinal matchup will be confirmed at the conclusion of the Group Stage [Q2 Stadium, Austin and NRG Stadium, Houston will each host one Semifinal].
“The winners of the two semifinal matches will travel to Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium to face off in the Final on August 1.
Full 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup Schedule
*Listed in ET [local time]
Friday, July 2 – DRV PNK Stadium, Fort Lauderdale, FL [Prelims Round One]
- 16:30 [16:30] M1: Haiti vs Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- 19:00 [19:00] M6: Bermuda vs Barbados
- 21:30 [21:30] M3: Trinidad and Tobago vs Montserrat
Saturday, July 3 – DRV PNK Stadium, Fort Lauderdale, FL [Prelims Round One]
- 16:30 [16:30] M5: Guadeloupe vs Bahamas
- 19:00 [19:00] M4: Cuba vs French Guiana
- 21:30 [21:30] M2: Guatemala vs Guyana
Tuesday, July 6 – DRV PNK Stadium, Fort Lauderdale, FL [Prelims Round Two]
- 16:30 [16:30] M9: Winner Prelims 3 vs Winner Prelims 4
- 19:00 [19:00] M7: Winner Prelims 1 vs Winner Prelims 6
- 21:30 [21:30] M8: Winner Prelims 2 vs Winner Prelims 5
Saturday, July 10 – Dallas Metropolitan Area [Group A]
- 17:00 [16:00] El Salvador vs Curaçao [Toyota Stadium]
- 22:00 [21:00] Mexico vs Winner Prelims 9 [AT&T Stadium]
Sunday, July 11 – Children’s Mercy Park, Kansas City, KS [Group B]
- 18:30 [17:30] Canada vs Martinique
- 20:30 [19:30] USA vs Winner Prelims 7
Monday, July 12 – Exploria Stadium, Orlando, FL [Group C]
- 18:30 [18:30] Jamaica vs Suriname
- 21:00 [21:00] Costa Rica vs Winner Prelims 8
Tuesday, July 13 – BBVA Stadium, Houston, TX [Group D]
- 19:00 [18:00] Qatar vs Panama
- 21:00 [20:00] Honduras vs Grenada
Wednesday, July 14 – Dallas Metropolitan Area [Group A]
- 19:30 [18:30] Winner Prelims 9 vs El Salvador [Toyota Stadium]
- 21:30 [20:30] Curaçao vs Mexico [Cotton Bowl Stadium]
Thursday, July 15 – Children’s Mercy Park, Kansas City, KS [Group B]
- 19:30 [18:30] Winner Prelims 7 vs Canada
- 21:30 [20:30] Martinique vs USA
Friday, July 16 – Exploria Stadium, Orlando, FL [Group C]
- 18:30 [18:30] Winner Prelims 8 vs Jamaica
- 20:30 [20:30] Suriname vs Costa Rica
Saturday, July 17 – BBVA Stadium, Houston, TX [Group D]
- 19:30 [18:30] Grenada vs Qatar
- 21:30 [20:30] Panama vs Honduras
Sunday, July 18 – Groups A and B
- 17:00 [16:00] Martinique vs Winner Prelims 7 [Toyota Stadium]
- 17:00 [16:00] USA vs Canada [Children’s Mercy Park]
- 22:00 [21:00] Mexico vs El Salvador [Cotton Bowl Stadium]
- 22:00 [21:00] Curaçao vs Winner Prelims 9 [Toyota Stadium]
Tuesday, July 20 – Groups C and D
- 19:00 [19:00] Costa Rica vs Jamaica [Exploria Stadium]
- 19:00 [18:00] Suriname vs Winner Prelims 8 [BBVA Stadium]
- 21:00 [21:00] Panama vs Grenada [Exploria Stadium]
- 21:00 [20:00] Honduras vs Qatar [BBVA Stadium]
Saturday, July 24 – State Farm Stadium, Glendale, AZ [Quarterfinals]
- 19:30 [16:30] QF1: 1D vs 2A
- 22:00 [19:00] QF2: 1A vs 2D
Sunday, July 25 – AT&T Stadium, Arlington TX [Quarterfinals]
- 19:00 [18:00] QF3: 1C vs 2B
- 21:30 [20:30] QF4: 1B vs 2C
Thursday, July 29 – Q2 Stadium, Austin, TX and NRG Stadium, Houston, TX [Semifinals]*
- 19:30 [18:30] SF1: Winner QF1 [1D or 2A] vs Winner QF4 [1B or 2C]
- 22:00 [21:00] SF2: Winner QF2 [1A or 2D] vs Winner QF3 [1C or 2B]
Sunday, August 1 – Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas, NV [Final]
- 20:30 [17:30] Winner SF1 vs Winner SF2
“The venue for each specific semifinal matchup will be confirmed at the conclusion of the Group Stage [Q2 Stadium, Austin and NRG Stadium, Houston will each host one Semifinal].
“Matches will be widely available for fans across the region and the world to follow and enjoy through the Confederation’s partner networks, including Fox Sports [USA-English], Univision [USA-Spanish], OneSoccer [Canada-English], Televisa [Mexico-Spanish], Futbol de Primera [USA-Spanish Radio] and other local partners in the Caribbean, Central America and the world.
“The 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup is sponsored by Allstate, Angry Orchard, Chick-fil-A, Corona Hard Seltzer, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, MGM Resorts International, Modelo beer, Nike, Scotiabank, Toyota Motor North America and Valvoline.
“Fans planning to attend the Gold Cup Final in Las Vegas should book their rooms with MGM Resorts International via this link for the best available rates: https://book.passkey.com/go/concacaf21.
Enhancements to the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup
“For the 2021 Gold Cup, Concacaf introduced a series of football first enhancements to add more anticipation for fans and increase competition between the teams. This included a first-ever Gold Cup draw, which took place in September 2020, the introduction of a Prelims to qualify the final three teams into the group stage and a new format in the knockout stage which means teams on opposite sides of the bracket will meet from the quarterfinals onwards. The 2021 Gold Cup will also include the AFC Champion, Qatar, as a guest participant and it will be the first Gold Cup to use Video Assistant Referees [VAR].”
