Gold Cup Preview

Canada opens the three week long CONCACAF Gold Cup when they face Martinique at the Rose Bowl today.

Background:

The tournament was first played in 1991 when the USA won the first of their four Gold Cups. Mexico has won the most with 6 titles and Canada won in 2000. The tournament is played every two years in the summer.

Group Stage

The group stage consists of the following 3 groups of 4 nations as follows:

Group A:

Canada, Martinique, Mexico, Panama

Venues:

Rose Bowl, Pasadena - Century Link Field, Seattle - Sports Authority Field, Denver

Group B:

El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Trinidad & Tobago

Venues:

Red Bull Arena, Harrison - Sun Life Stadium, Miami - BBVA Compass Stadium, Houston

Group C:

Belize, Costa Rica, Cuba, USA

Venues:

Jeld-Wen Field, Portland - Rio Tinto Stadium, Salt Lake City - Rentschler Field, Hartford

The last match in the group stage will be played on July 16th. Two teams from each group will progress the quarterfinals which will be played on the 20th & 21st of July. The semi-finals will be played on July 24th at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas and the final goes July 28th at Soldier Field in Chicago.

Vancouver Whitecaps FC Connections:

The Blue and White will be represented by three players at this year's edition of the Gold Cup. Midfielder Russell Teibert and goalkeeper Simon Thomas will play for Canada and defender Carlyle Mitchell (currently on loan at FC Edmonton) will play for Trinidad & Tobago. Canada's interim manager, Colin Miller, was the 'Caps assistant manager and is currently the manager at FC Edmonton. Newly hired Benito Floro will attend the tournament as an observer before he takes control of the Canadian team full-time from August 1st.

Television:

matches will be shown on Sportsnet World in Canada