With North America hosting Copa America for the first time since the Centenario in 2016, it was supposed to be the biggest edition ever. Sixteen teams, a strong crop of sides from North America, and potentially Lionel Messi’s final tournament with Argentina. Despite all the makings of great storylines, the negative aspects of the tournament took the headlines at the Copa America 2024. Those are enough to put any dreams of another Copa America in the USA on hold.
Far too much went wrong at the tournament that was easily avoidable. The recent Copa America Final showed a rare glimpse of hooliganism on US soil. Other soccer events that the United States hosts have rowdy fans, but that was nothing like this.
At the Copa America Final in Miami, fans streamed through gates and over walls, even finding ways into Hard Rock Stadium via air vents. This was not a fault of the United States, as it does not have issues in other sports. Instead, as the organization hosting the event, it was the fault of CONMEBOL. In our opinion, the United States as a country should distance itself from the South American confederation because of the tournament’s complete disorganization. Not just in Miami, but also in the incidents of violence that happened in Charlotte, as well as the poor planning of the entire competition.
The final straw was the debacle of the Copa America final, which left a bitter taste in the mouths of a lot of fans. It also made many of us realize that we don’t want the competition to return stateside. Why? Due to the games being hosted here in the US, our country unfairly received a lot of criticism about Copa America. It ended up being an embarrassment for the United States even though we weren’t in charge.
Let us be clear, the failure of the 2024 Copa America is not exclusive to the final. CONMEBOL was in over its head with stadium selection, quality of pitches and even inadequate training facilities. The United States should take a step back and think about whether it wants CONMEBOL to tarnish our good reputation in future competitions. If this was a test before the 2026 World Cup, there are major concerns for FIFA and the host nations.
In time, the Copa America can return to the United States. Yet, soccer is on a consistent growth pattern right now in the USA. Tarnishing that with poor outside management will not help promote the soccer product in North America. For instance, the Copa America has already raised pressure on the World Cup to be the pinnacle of American soccer. Pitch quality and training facilities should not be any form of talking point. Likewise, hooliganism has no place at these international tournaments or any soccer game for that matter. Until CONMEBOL can figure out how to curb that in future events, the United States should steer clear.
And yes, this is an issue stretching from CONMEBOL. World Cup Qualifying has also suffered from unruly fans taking advantage of lackluster security at major games. A game between Argentina and Brazil in Rio de Janeiro, for example, suffered delays after clashes among fans in the stands. Police actions drew criticism in that fixture as well.
Saying the Copa America should be halted in the United States is not an admittance that it should never return. Give it some time, and the United States can do a better job working with CONMEBOL to host a bigger and better tournament. Take Max Bretos, an MLS announcer, for example. As an American, he has strong opinions about the competition coming back.
“I don’t want it back in the United States in 2028,” Bretos said on his podcast this week. “I want it back, but I don’t want it back in 2028. Let someone else have it.”
PHOTOS: IMAGO
