On July 9th, 2013, JELD-WEN Field will play host to two Gold Cup group stage games: USA vs. Belize *& Costa Rica vs. Cuba. But just what is the Gold Cup? Founded in 1991, the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup is the 12th edition of the tournament, which features 12 of the best teams from CONCACAF, aka, the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football. Mexico have won the most, recording six Gold Cup championships, including the most recent in 2011.
-
The 2013 competition began on July 7th at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, and will conclude on July 28th at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois. During that time, the 12 teams will play games across 13 different cities, including Portland.
-
The Gold Cup is a tournament held every two years, with a potential trip to the FIFA Confederations Cup on the line. The 2013 and 2015 Gold Cup winners will face each other in a one-game playoff to determine who will represent CONCACAF in the 2017 Confederations Cup. If the same team wins the Gold Cup in 2013 and 2015, it will automatically qualify for the 2017 Confederations Cup.
-
There are different qualification procedures for each CONCACAF zone. The United States, Canada, and Mexico all automatically qualify as the only three nations in the North American zone.
-
Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago, Haiti, and Martinique qualified in the Caribbean zone by finishing in the top four of the 2012 Caribbean Cup.
-
Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador, Belize, and Panama qualified in the Central American zone by finishing in the top five of the 2013 Copa Centroamericana.
-
The 12 teams were split into three groups of four teams for the group stage of the Gold Cup. Each team will play every other team in its group once. The winner and runner up from each group along with the top two third-place teams will advance to the knockout stage.
-
JELD-WEN Field is hosting two Group C matches featuring the United States vs. Belize and Costa Rica vs. Cuba. The first game will be Costa Rica vs. Cuba at 5:30 PM PT and the United States vs. Belize will follow at 8 PM PT. Fans who purchase tickets will be able to see both matches.
- Three Portland Timbers are represented well in the 2013 Gold Cup. Timbers team captain Will Johnson will be playing for Canada, Frederic Piquionne for Martinique, and Rodney Wallace will play for Costa Rica, and will be with the Ticos for their appearance at JELD-WEN Field on Tuesday.
