The Union of Central American Football said Tuesday that the Copa Centroamericana – the championship of Central American national teams and a qualifying tournament for the CONCACAF Gold Cup – will be held in the United States during FIFA’s international window in September.
The idea of hosting the 2014 tournament, usually held in January, in the United States was raised publicly at UNCAF meetings in Costa Rica last month, but discussions evolved last week with the suggestion that El Salvador is bidding to host.
Possible sites reportedly include Washington, Dallas, Houston, and multiple locations in California.
Held every two years, the Copa Centroamericana – formerly Copa UNCAF – has been contested since 1991 and currently involves all seven member nations, with the top five qualifying for that year’s Gold Cup. The last 10 tournaments have been hosted twice each by the five most successful federations: Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama and El Salvador.
On the field, Costa Rica have won four of the last six tournaments, including the 2013 title as the host country. El Salvador, Belize and Nicaragua have never won the tournament, although Nicaragua (2009) and Belize (2013) have both qualified for the Gold Cup at the expense of Guatemala in recent years.
