Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni answered an interesting question during a recent press conference. Scaloni faced the media on Monday as the reigning World Cup champions prepare to face Canada in the Copa America 2024 semifinals. The tournament, which is being hosted by the United States, is being played simultaneously with Euro 2024.
The competitions are widely considered to be the top two international soccer tournaments outside of the World Cup. Because of this, there is a typical debate over which competition has more quality overall. Joining this discussion, reporters recently asked Scaloni his opinion on the matter.
The Argentine initially went back and forth about whether his team could win the Euros. He finally, however, asserted that there is not much difference overall between the two tournaments.
“I think the level is very even,” claimed Scaloni. “And, I would like a European team to one day be invited to a Copa America to see what it is like to play in a Copa America and the opposite, as well. But that would be a World Cup, right? So, in the end, the difficulty is the same. I don’t think there’s much difference, really. But these are just opinions.”
Scaloni’s answer to the question is hardly surprising. After all, the tournaments are fairly similar in quality, particularly in the upper echelon. His team, Argentina, also topped the Netherlands, Croatia, and France on the way to their World Cup triumph in Qatar. All three of these European sides have featured at Euro 2024 across Germany.
Nevertheless, there certainly seems to be more quality in depth at the Euros compared to the Copa America. Argentina and Brazil are undeniably the two top teams in CONMEBOL. Both teams are filled with superstars who feature among the best clubs in the world. They have also combined to collect nine of the last 14 Copa America titles since 1989.
Argentina and Brazil are also, however, the only Copa America 2024 sides in FIFA’s top 10 at the moment. In total, seven Copa America teams rank in the governing body’s top 30 list. Euro 2024, on the other hand, makes up exactly half of FIFA’s current top 30 teams. Two more European sides, Sweden and Wales, also feature in this particular list but failed to qualify for the tournament.
FIFA rankings are, however, obviously are not all that matters. After all, Brazil surprisingly crashed out of the Copa America at the hands of Uruguay. 48th-ranked Canada has also excelled at the competition and will play Argentina for a place in the final. Georgia, currently ranked 74th overall, shocked the sport by qualifying for the round of 16 at the Euros as well.
Outside of just looking at the rankings, Euro 2024 has just been more competitive than Copa America 2024. For instance, there was not one single team at the European competition to lose all three of their group stage games. Three Copa America sides, on the other hand, failed to even grab a point at the tournament. Jamaica, Bolivia, and Paraguay all lost every match while allowing 25 total combined goals.
Depth is where Euro 2024 ends the argument. Yes, the top CONMEBOL sides could certainly fight for a European title. However, Copa America is undeniably top-heavy. The European competition, on the other hand, has parity from top to bottom.
This is also clearly evident when looking at the past. While Argentina and Brazil have won nine of the last 14 Copa Americas, there have been eight different Euros winners in the last nine competitions. Spain is currently the only European team to triumph more than once at the tournament since 1988.
PHOTOS: IMAGO
