CONCACAF decided that its representative team in the Confederations Cup would be defined in a single match, in which an official title would also be awarded. Mexico won the match 3–2 after extra time, winning the title and also qualifying for the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup.[1]
Background
Even though the CONCACAF Gold Cup takes place on a biennial basis, under previous guidelines prior to 2013, only the champions of the Gold Cup that was held two years before the FIFA Confederations Cup qualified as CONCACAF's representative. The decision to face the champions of the two previous editions was made to give the same importance to each edition of the Gold Cup.[2]
CONCACAF announced the introduction of a playoff and super cup match on April 5, 2013,[3] where a trophy would also be awarded. Starting from the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, the CONCACAF representative would be decided by a playoff between the two CONCACAF Gold Cup champions prior to the Confederations Cup. Then CONCACAF President Jeffrey Webb stated this "will allow the champion of every single Gold Cup edition to have the same competitive opportunity to represent CONCACAF in the worldwide competition."[3][failed verification] In the case where the same national team wins both Gold Cup editions, the playoff would not be played and the team qualifies directly to the Confederations Cup.[3]
CONCACAF originally announced on July 23, 2015, that the playoff would be played as a single match on October 9, 2015, in the United States.[5] After the conclusion of the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup on July 26, CONCACAF announced the Rose Bowl in Pasadena as the venue.[6] The date was later amended to October 10 in order "to allow fans in attendance to enjoy a day-long of festivities, including Futbol Fiesta, a free, interactive fan zone outside the Rose Bowl."[7][8]
Ticketing
On August 27, 2015, CONCACAF announced the ticket allocation process for the match.[9] Both the United States Soccer Federation and the Mexican Football Federation received 30% of the tickets each, which was distributed through supporter groups. Another 30% was sold through a lottery where the general public could apply. The final 10% was given to local teams and sponsors. This system was to prevent the crowd being dominated by either team's supporters despite being on U.S. soil similar to previous Gold Cup finals.[10]
Squads
Each team could select up to 23 players for their squads. On September 15, 2015, CONCACAF announced the provisional team lists.[11] The final 23-player squads were announced by CONCACAF on October 5, 2015.[12]
Twelve named substitutes, of which up to three may be used.
Match notes
35' originally charged to R. Jiménez, changed to Peralta at half-time.
Abolition of the Confederations Cup
A 2019 edition was initially planned, featuring the winners of the 2017 and 2019 Gold Cups. In November 2016, CONCACAF announced that the television rights for the 2019 edition have been sold to Fox Sports.[14] On July 26, 2017, with their victory in the final of the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup, the United States ensured they would participate at a minimum in the 2019 CONCACAF Cup should they fail to win the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup.[15]
However, on March 15, 2019, FIFA announced that the Confederations Cup would be abolished, with an expanded FIFA Club World Cup taking place instead.[16] This therefore also meant there would be no future editions of the CONCACAF Cup.
