| Coupe d'Or CONCACAF 2015 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Tournament details | |
| Host countries | Canada United States |
| Dates | July 7–26 |
| Teams | 12 (from 1 confederation) |
| Venue | 14 (in 14 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Mexico (7th title) |
| Runners-up |  Jamaica |
| Third place |  Panama |
| Fourth place |  United States |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 26 |
| Goals scored | 62 (2.38 per match) |
| Attendance | 1,090,396 (41,938 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Clint Dempsey (7 goals) |
| Best player | Andrés Guardado |
| Best young player | Jesús Corona |
| Bestgoalkeeper | Brad Guzan |
| Fair play award | Jamaica |
←2013 2017 → | |
The2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the 13th edition of theCONCACAF Gold Cup competition and the 23rdCONCACAF regional championship overall in the organization's fifty-four years of existence. It was held in the United States, with two matches being played in Canada, marking the first time the CONCACAF Gold Cup was played in that country.[1]
Mexico won the competition after surviving both the quarter-finals and semi-finals in controversial circumstances,[2][3][4][5][6] defeatingJamaica—the first Caribbean nation to reach such a stage—in thefinal.[7]Of the co-hosts,Canada was eliminated in the group stage, while theUnited States, the defending champions, lost in the semi-finals to Jamaica. The competition included athird place match for the first time since2003,[8] in whichPanama defeated the United States.
A total of 14 venues were used for the tournament. CONCACAF announced the host cities and venues for the tournament on December 16, 2014.[1] Apart fromLincoln Financial Field inPhiladelphia which hosted the final andPPL Park inChester which hosted the third place match (both located in thePhiladelphia metropolitan area), the other 12 venues hosted two matches. The assignment of matches for the knockout round and the awarding of the final were announced on March 12, 2015.[9]
| East Rutherford | Charlotte | Atlanta | Baltimore | Philadelphia |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MetLife Stadium | Bank of America Stadium | Georgia Dome | M&T Bank Stadium | Lincoln Financial Field |
| Capacity:82,566 | Capacity:74,455 | Capacity:74,228 | Capacity:71,008 | Capacity:69,176 |
 |  |  | .JPG) | |
| Foxborough |  Location of the host cities of the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup. | Chicago | ||
| Gillette Stadium | Soldier Field | |||
| Capacity:68,756 | Capacity:63,500 | |||
.jpg) |  | |||
| Glendale | Carson | |||
| University of Phoenix Stadium | StubHub Center | |||
| Capacity:63,400 | Capacity:30,510 | |||
 |  | |||
| Houston | Toronto | Frisco | Chester | Kansas City |
| BBVA Compass Stadium | BMO Field | Toyota Stadium | PPL Park | Sporting Park |
| Capacity:22,039 | Capacity:30,991 | Capacity:20,500 | Capacity:18,500 | Capacity:18,467 |
 |  |  |  |  |
A total of 12 teams qualified for the tournament. Three berths were allocated toNorth America, four toCentral America, and four to theCaribbean. For the first time, the two overall fifth-placed teams of the Caribbean zone and the Central American zone competed for the final berth of the CONCACAF Gold Cup. Previously, five berths were allocated to Central America and four were allocated to the Caribbean.[10]
| Team | Qualification | Appearances | Last appearance | Previous best performance | FIFA Ranking |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North American zone | |||||
| United States(TH) | Automatic | 13th | 2013 | Champions(1991,2002,2005,2007,2013) | 27 |
| Mexico | Automatic | 13th | 2013 | Champions(1993,1996,1998,2003,2009,2011) | 23 |
 Canada | Automatic | 12th | 2013 | Champions(2000) | 109 |
| Central American zone qualified through the2014 Copa Centroamericana | |||||
 Costa Rica | Winners | 12th | 2013 | Runners-up(2002) | 14 |
 Guatemala | Runners-up | 10th | 2011 | Fourth place(1996) | 93 |
| Panama | Third place | 7th | 2013 | Runners-up(2005,2013) | 54 |
 El Salvador | Fourth place | 9th | 2013 | Quarterfinals(2002,2003,2011,2013) | 89 |
| Caribbean zone qualified through the2014 Caribbean Cup | |||||
| Jamaica | Winners | 9th | 2011 | Third place(1993) | 65 |
 Trinidad and Tobago | Runners-up | 9th | 2013 | Third place(2000) | 67 |
 Haiti | Third place | 6th | 2013 | Quarterfinals(2002,2009) | 76 |
 Cuba | Fourth place | 8th | 2013 | Quarterfinals(2003,2013) | 107 |
| Play-off winner between Caribbean zone fifth place and Central American zone fifth place | |||||
 Honduras | Play-off | 12th | 2013 | Runners-up(1991) | 75 |
Bold indicates that the corresponding team was hosting the event.
An initial provisional list of 35 players had to be submitted to CONCACAF before June 7, 2015. A final list containing 23 players was to have been submitted for June 27, 2015. Three of the players named in the final list had to be goalkeepers.[11] The players named in the final list had to wear shirts numbered 1 to 23, with number 1 reserved for a goalkeeper.
Teams qualifying for the quarter-final stage were permitted to replace up to six players. The replacements had to have been named on the provisional list and would be given a shirt numbered between 24 and 29.
An injured player from the final list could be replaced by another from provisional list 24 hours before his national team's first game.
The seeded teams which headed up each group was announced on December 16, 2014: United States (Group A), Costa Rica (Group B), and Mexico (Group C).[1] Seeded teams were determined based on November 27, 2014FIFA rankings (shown in brackets).[12]
| Seeded | Unseeded | ||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
| |
The composition of the groups and the schedule of the tournament were announced byCONCACAF on March 12, 2015.[9]
David GantarHenry BejaranoRicardo MonteroWálter Quesada Yadel MartínezJoel Aguilar Elmer Bonilla Marlon MejíaWalter LópezArmando Castro Óscar MoncadaHéctor RodríguezRoberto García Fernando GuerreroCésar RamosJohn PittiMark GeigerJair Marrufo Daniel Belleau Philippe Brière Warner Castro Octavio Jara Leonel Leal Hiran Dopico William Torres Juan Zumba Hermenerito Leal Gersón López Cristian Ramírez Ricardo Morgan Garnet Page José Luis Camargo Alberto Morín Daniel Williamson Eric Boria Peter Manikowski CJ MorganteThe top two teams from each group and the two best third-placed teams qualified for the quarter-finals. All match times listed are inEastern Daylight Time (EDT).
The ranking of each team in each group was determined as follows:
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States(H) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 7 | Advance toknockout stage |
| 2 | Haiti | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | |
| 3 | Panama | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | |
| 4 | Honduras | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 1 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jamaica | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 7 | Advance toknockout stage |
| 2 | Costa Rica | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | |
| 3 | El Salvador | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 2 | |
| 4 | Canada(H) | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 2 |
| Costa Rica | 1–1 | El Salvador |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
|
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Trinidad and Tobago | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 5 | +4 | 7 | Advance toknockout stage |
| 2 | Mexico | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 4 | +6 | 5 | |
| 3 | Cuba | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 8 | −7 | 3 | |
| 4 | Guatemala | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 1 |
| Pos | Grp | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A | Panama | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | Advance toknockout stage |
| 2 | C | Cuba | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 8 | −7 | 3 | |
| 3 | B | El Salvador | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 2 |
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
| 18 July –Baltimore | ||||||||||
| United States | 6 | |||||||||
| 22 July –Atlanta | ||||||||||
| Cuba | 0 | |||||||||
| United States | 1 | |||||||||
| 18 July –Baltimore | ||||||||||
| Jamaica | 2 | |||||||||
| Haiti | 0 | |||||||||
| 26 July –Philadelphia | ||||||||||
| Jamaica | 1 | |||||||||
| Jamaica | 1 | |||||||||
| 19 July –East Rutherford | ||||||||||
| Mexico | 3 | |||||||||
| Trinidad and Tobago | 1 (5) | |||||||||
| 22 July –Atlanta | ||||||||||
| Panama(p) | 1 (6) | |||||||||
| Panama | 1 | |||||||||
| 19 July –East Rutherford | ||||||||||
| Mexico(a.e.t.) | 2 | Third place play-off | ||||||||
| Mexico(a.e.t.) | 1 | |||||||||
| 25 July –Chester | ||||||||||
| Costa Rica | 0 | |||||||||
| United States | 1 (2) | |||||||||
| Panama(p) | 1 (3) | |||||||||
| United States | 6–0 | Cuba |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
| Mexico | 1–0 (a.e.t.) | Costa Rica |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
| United States | 1–2 | Jamaica |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
There were 62 goals scored in 26 matches, for an average of 2.38 goals per match.
7 goals
6 goals
4 goals
2 goals
1 goal
Roy MillerDavid RamírezBryan RuizMaikel ReyesDustin CoreaCarlos RuizCarlos DiscuaAndy NajarRodolph AustinJobi McAnuffGiovani dos SantosJesús CoronaPaul AguilarRoberto NurseBlas PérezAlberto QuinteroRomán TorresAndre BoucaudCordell CatoJoevin JonesYohance MarshallOmar GonzalezAron JóhannssonGyasi Zardes1 own goal
Kenwyne Jones (against Mexico)The following Gold Cup awards were given at the conclusion of the tournament: the Golden Boot (top scorer), Golden Ball (best overall player) and Golden Glove (best goalkeeper).[13][14][15][16]
| Golden Ball | ||
|---|---|---|
| Andrés Guardado | ||
| Golden Boot | ||
| Clint Dempsey | ||
| 7 goals | ||
| Golden Glove | ||
| Brad Guzan | ||
| Young Player Award | ||
| Jesús Manuel Corona | ||
| Fair Play Trophy | ||
| Jamaica | ||
The total amount of prize money offered by CONCACAF for the tournament isUS$2.75 million, with $1 million being the top prize.[17] Listed below is a breakdown of how the total amount is to be distributed:
The 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup was used for qualification for the2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, to be played in Russia, and theCopa América Centenario, to be played in the United States in 2016.
As champions of the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup, Mexico qualified for a one-offplay-off match against theUnited States, the champion of the2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup, to decide which team would represent CONCACAF in the2017 FIFA Confederations Cup. Mexico won the match 3–2 after extra time.[18]
In addition,Panama,Trinidad and Tobago,Haiti, andCuba, being the top four teams in the tournament not already qualified, qualified forplay-offs which determined the remaining two teams to participate in theCopa América Centenario in 2016.[19] TheUnited States,Mexico,Costa Rica (winners of the2014 Copa Centroamericana), andJamaica (winners of the2014 Caribbean Cup) had already qualified before the tournament, with Panama and Haiti rounding out the six representatives CONCACAF sent to the Copa América Centenario following their play-off victories over Cuba and Trinidad and Tobago, respectively.
Multiple officials of Traffic Sports were identified in the2015 FIFA corruption case, which alleged that bribes related to the 2015 Gold Cup amounted to two-thirds of the cost of staging the tournament.[20]
Worldwide TV broadcasting rights[21]
| Country/Region | Broadcaster | Notes |
|---|---|---|
 Australia | Setanta Sports | |
 Azerbaijan | ESPN Azerbaijan | |
 Brazil | SporTV | |
| Canada | Sportsnet World,Sportsnet 360,Univision Canada | Simsub viaFox |
 China | LeTV | |
| Costa Rica | Repretel,Teletica | |
| El Salvador | Telecorporacion Salvadoreña | |
 France | Ma Chaîne Sport (MCS) | |
| Guatemala | Canal 3 and Canal 7 | |
 Honduras | Televicentro | |
 Hong Kong | iCable | |
 Indonesia | Orange TV [id][22] | |
| Latin America | Gol TV | |
 Malaysia | Astro | |
| Mexico | Televisa,TV Azteca | |
| Middle East and North Africa | Abu Dhabi Sports Channel | |
 Netherlands | Fox Sports | |
| Panama | TV Nacional de Panamá, Medcom | |
 Portugal | Sport TV | |
 Singapore | Starhub | |
 Spain | beIN Sports,Mediapro | |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | Supersport | |
 Taiwan | Sportcast | |
 Thailand | Grammy | |
 United Kingdom Republic of Ireland | BT Sport,[23]Bet365 (online streaming) | |
| United States | Fox (English) Univision (Spanish) |
"You Are Unstoppable" by Austrian singerConchita Wurst was the official anthem for the tournament.[24]
"All the Way" byReykon featuringBebe Rexha was used forUnivision's coverage of the tournament.[25]
Awolnation's "I Am" was used forFox's coverage.
On July 6, theJamaica national football team refused to attend a 7pm practice session at theStubHub Center because of astrike over bonus fees.[26] The next day,Jamaica Football Federation presidentHorace Burrell announced the situation had been "settled" and thanked the players for backing down.[27]
Cuban attackerKeiler Garcíadefected to the United States inChicago on July 8, the day before his team's opening game againstMexico atSoldier Field. He did not show up for the team breakfast in the hotel and was absent from the subsequent training session.[28] Because of problems obtainingUS visas for players and staff, and the defection of García, Cuba only had 16 players available for the opening game against Mexico.[29]Arael Argüellez also defected in Chicago, after being visited in the hotel by friends. He failed to turn up for the national team's flight to Phoenix to Cuba's second match, againstTrinidad and Tobago.[30]
On July 14,Darío Suárez did not return from his trip to a supermarket prior to the match against Guatemala inCharlotte.[31] Later the same day, midfielderAriel Martínez was reported in tears on the bus returning to the hotel following the 1–0 victory overGuatemala to qualify for the quarter-final stage. Upon arrival, he exited the bus, said goodbye to the coach and then ran off into the night.[32]
Cuba's opening game againstMexico was affected byUnited States visa issues. The head coachRaúl González Triana and six players (Adrián Diz,Arichel Hernandez,Daniel Luis,Andy Vaquero,Maikel Reyes andSandy Sánchez) were unable to enter theUnited States before the match against Mexico which took place on the third day of the competition. They had all recently been involved in the2015 CONCACAF Men's Olympic Qualifying Championship qualification tournament inAntigua and Barbuda and it had caused some administration issues.
Arichel Hernández did not enter theUnited States at all because of visa problems.[33]
During the quarter-final match betweenMexico andCosta Rica,Walter López's assistant referee Eric Boria marked a penalty for Mexico, in the last minute of stoppage time in the second half of extra time, for a push by Costa Rican defenderRoy Miller onOribe Peralta. Mexico'sAndrés Guardado scored the penalty, eliminating Costa Rica.[34] Daniel Jiménez ofLa Nación described the elimination as "a theft",[35] although Costa Rica's coach defended the call saying "he [the referee] is human. He saw something in the area and that's why he called the penalty."[36] Miller himself claimed Peralta's reaction was "exaggerated" and that there had only been minimal contact between them.[37] In an interview conceded toPrensa Libre on July 23, Wálter López admitted that the call was mistaken, alleging that "due to my position on the field, I was unable to properly see the action. It was my assistant who helped me".[38][39]
In the semi-final match between Mexico andPanama, the US refereeMark Geiger lost control[40] of the match which began with him showing a questionable red card to Panama'sLuis Tejada in the 24th minute.[40] Later, as a 10-man Panama was a minute away from winning the match 1–0, he also awarded Mexico a controversial penalty kick for a handball.[41] While defending in the penalty box against the Mexican midfielderCarlos Esquivel, Panama's captainRomán Torres lost balance and fell backwards on the ball, touching it[42] (fouls for handling the ball must be deliberate[43]). The decision to award the penalty kick outraged the Panama team who walked off the field and threatened to abandon the match.[44] While the players were involved in a long scuffle with the officials, coaches and other players on the sidelines, the fans repeatedly pelted them with beer glasses and objects.[44] Panama returned to the field after approximately ten minutes.[44]Andrés Guardado scored the penalty and forced the match into extra time, which Mexico subsequently won.[45] After the final whistle, the Panamanian players and coaching staff ran en masse on the field towards the referees, who had to be escorted off the field by security.[46][47] Later, Guardado said in the interview that it hurt to take the penalty and he considered missing the kick on purpose, but "had to be professional".[48] Mexico's coachMiguel Herrera argued there was no reason for Guardado to purposely miss the kick, referencingthe controversial decision that awarded a penalty to the Netherlands over Mexico at theWorld Cup. "I didn't hear that question in the World Cup when we were knocked out for a penalty that wasn't", he said. "It seems that only Mexico should declare itself guilty."[49]
On July 23, the Football Associations from bothPanama andCosta Rica released their respective statements on their websites regarding such controversies, and requesting the removal of the CONCACAF referees committee members.[50][51]
On July 24, the CONCACAF Disciplinary Committee suspended the Panamanian goalkeeperJaime Penedo for two matches for insulting the referee. This meant he would miss the Cup's third-place game and aWorld Cup qualifier game in November. On top of missing the third-place game because of the red card, forwardLuis Tejada was given an additional one match suspension for insulting the referee.[52]
After the semi-final match against Mexico, the Panamanian players reunited in their locker room and brandished a banner which read "CONCACAF Ladrones ("CONCACAF thieves") and three times "Corruptos" ("corrupt"), while pointing thumbs down in protest. The image was then circulated on Twitter.[53] The CONCACAF Disciplinary Committee subsequently finedPanamanian Football Federation $15,000 for this display.[52]
Both theCosta Rican Football Federation andPanamanian Football Federation publicly called for those within the Referee Committee at CONCACAF to be removed from their position.[54][55]
CONCACAF announced that they would discuss the matter at their executive committee meeting.[56]
United States captainMichael Bradley criticized the organization of the tournament, commenting that there was too much traveling involved for teams and the stadiums had poor playing surfaces, while questioning the need for the two best third-placed teams to qualify to the next round.[57] Mexico's head coachMiguel Herrera was also critical of the travel arrangements "It's a disorder in the airplanes, having rival teams on the same flight, with so much people from CONCACAF, we were all squeezed in, we didn't even have room for our luggage, there was no room for our baggage, Mexico has been transporting their luggage on road and that's how we have been working".[57] Both Herrera and Bradley were fined by CONCACAF for their comments.[58]
