Copa America 2024 will be here before you know it. From June 20 – July 14, the best National Teams across the Americas will compete for regional superiority in a battle of the hemispheres.
From New York to Los Angeles and San Francisco to Miami, Copa America will capture the attention of the American sports audience. As you wait for kickoff, we’ve got you covered with the vital info—the who, the what, the where, and more.
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Copa America and the Euros are both in June and July – learn all you need to know about both marquee Summer 2024 events!
What is Copa America?
Before we dive into the 2024 tournament, let’s cover the basics. Copa America is an international men’s tournament featuring the 10 members of CONMEBOL, the governing body of soccer in South America. The tournament was first contested in 1916 and is the oldest still-running continental tournament in the world.
Argentina and Uruguay have won 15 titles each – the most in tournament history. The next closest team is Brazil, whose team has won nine titles – the most recent of which came in 2019.
Unlike the FIFA Men’s & Women’s World Cups and other international tournaments with quadrennial occurrences, the hosting of Copa America has varied. Interestingly enough, 1959 featured one spring tournament in Argentina and another fall tournament in Ecuador. The four most-recent tournaments were held in 2015, 2016, 2019, and 2021.
Speaking of the 2016 tournament, this was a special 100th anniversary edition appropriately called Copa America Centenario. The tournament was held in 10 U.S. markets and featured the 10 CONMEBOL members, plus six teams from North & Central America. Over 1.5 million fans attended the 32 games of the Copa America Centenario, making it the most-attended tournament in Copa America history.
Eight years on from the centennial edition, will Copa America 2024 set a new record? We expect it will.
Fun Fact – eight of 10 national teams from South America have won the tournament at least once in its 47 editions. The only two countries who haven’t? Ecuador and Venezuela.
Who is playing in Copa America 2024?
As mentioned above, the 10 members of CONMEBOL will feature in Copa America 2024. Similar to 2016, the South American teams are joined by six countries from North & Central America – four of which have already qualified. Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, and the United States will be joined by Canada and Costa after each qualified in play-off games to be held in late-March.
The groups for Copa America 2024 are as follows:
| Group | Team #1 | Team #2 | Team #3 | Team #4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group A | Argentina | Peru | Chile | Canada |
| Group B | Mexico | Ecuador | Venezuela | Jamaica |
| Group C | United States | Uruguay | Panama | Bolivia |
| Group D | Brazil | Colombia | Paraguay | Costa Rica |
Fun Fact – the U.S. Men’s National Team has been invited to participate in four previous Copa Americas: 1993, 1995, 2007, and the 100th anniversary edition in 2016.
Despite hosting, the U.S. had to qualify and did so by defeating Trinidad & Tobago in a two-legged series in November. Given their standings within the FIFA National Team rankings, the U.S. team is joined by Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico as top-ranked teams in each group.
There are plenty of intriguing matchups during the group stage. Here are five of our favorites and why you should care.
Group Date Team Team Description Group A June 20 Argentina Canada Opening game, Messi Group A June 25 Chile Argentina Rematch of 2016 Copa America Centenario Final Group B June 30 Mexico Ecuador 6th all-time matchup in Copa America. Phoenix will be rocking Group C July 1 United States Uruguay #11 vs. #12 in the FIFA rankings and the two group favorites Group D July 2 Brazil Colombia Two group favorites going head-to-head
Which cities are hosting Copa America 2024?
The 32 games of the tournament are spread across 13 markets and 14 stadiums—up from 10 markets and 10 stadiums for Copa America Centenario. Gone from 2016 are Seattle, Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston, and the Rose Bowl (swapped for SoFi Stadium). In their place are new markets in Atlanta, Charlotte, Miami, Dallas, Austin, Kansas City, and Las Vegas.
The geography of the tournament’s host markets is dramatically different in 2024, which reflects two things:
- The rise in prominence of soccer in the American southeast
- Continued importance of the Hispanic audience
More on the latter, shortly. Here are the host markets for Copa America 2024:
| Market | Venue | Capacity | Rounds Hosting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta | Mercedes-Benz Stadium | 71,000 | Group (2) |
| Austin | Q2 Stadium | 20,500 | Group (2) |
| Charlotte | Bank of America Stadium | 74,867 | SF (1), Third (1) |
| Dallas | AT&T Stadium | 80,000 | Group (2), QF (1) |
| Houston | NRG Stadium | 77,220 | Group (2), QF (1) |
| Kansas City | Arrowhead Stadium | 76,416 | Group (1) |
| Kansas City | Children's Mercy Park | 18,500 | Group (1) |
| Las Vegas | Allegiant Stadium | 65,000 | Group (2), QF (1) |
| Los Angeles | SoFi Stadium | 70,000 | Group (2) |
| Miami | Hard Rock Stadium | 65,326 | Group (2), Final (1) |
| New York / New Jersey | MetLife Stadium | 82,500 | Group (2), SF (1) |
| Orlando | Exploria Stadium | 25,500 | Group (2) |
| Phoenix | State Farm Stadium | 63,400 | Group (2), QF (1) |
| San Francisco | Levi's Stadium | 68,500 | Group (2) |
Given Copa America’s prominence in South America and the inclusion of other Latin American countries, it’s apparent there’s a greater emphasis on Hispanic-heavy markets in the U.S. in 2024.
Listed below is each market, its population, population percentage that identifies as Hispanic / Latino, and population percentage under age 18, according to the 2020 U.S. Census. Nine-of-13 host markets feature a higher percentage of Hispanics than the national average of 19.1%. In fact, of the nine markets, eight feature Hispanic populations of at least one-third of the total and one – Miami – features a population that’s nearly three-fourths Hispanic.
To expand briefly on Miami, it’s obvious why the market is hosting the Final. As of 2010, 9% of Miami-Dade County’s population was of South American descent – the largest percentage of Hispanics outside of Cubans. Miami is home to, among others, sizable Colombian, Venezuelan, Peruvian, Argentine, Chilean, and Ecuadorian communities.
| Market | Population (2020) | Hispanic Pop. (2020) | Pop. Under 18 (2020) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta | 498,715 | 5.0% | 17.6% |
| Austin | 961,855 | 33.1% | 19.5% |
| Charlotte | 874,579 | 14.9% | 23.2% |
| Dallas | 1,304,379 | 42.0% | 24.8% |
| Houston | 2,304,580 | 44.5% | 24.6% |
| Kansas City | 580,090 | 10.7% | 22.8% |
| Las Vegas | 641,903 | 34.1% | 23.5% |
| Los Angeles | 3,898,747 | 48.4% | 20.3% |
| Miami | 442,241 | 72.3% | 16.9% |
| New York / New Jersey | 8,804,190 | 28.9% | 20.9% |
| Orlando | 307,573 | 34.2% | 21.2% |
| Phoenix | 1,608,139 | 42.7% | 25.3% |
| San Francisco | 873,965 | 15.4% | 13.6% |
| United States | 331,449,281 | 19.1% | 21.7% |
Which Copa America teams are playing where?
Looking to see which teams will be playing in which host markets for Copa America 2024? Look no further than the table below. Which market has the best variety in teams in the group stage? On paper, at least, New York and San Francisco have an intriguing mix of teams.
| Market | Team #1 | Team #2 | Team #3 | Team #4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta | Argentina | Canada | Panama | United States |
| Austin | Jamaica | Venezuela | Costa Rica | Paraguay |
| Dallas | Peru | Chile | United States | Bolivia |
| Houston | Mexico | Jamaica | Colombia | Paraguay |
| Kansas City | United States | Uruguay | Peru | Canada |
| Las Vegas | Ecuador | Jamaica | Paraguay | Brazil |
| Los Angeles | Brazil | Costa Rica | Venezuela | Mexico |
| Miami | Uruguay | Panama | Argentina | Peru |
| New York | Chile | Argentina | Uruguay | Bolivia |
| Orlando | Canada | Chile | Bolivia | Panama |
| Phoenix | Colombia | Costa Rica | Mexico | Ecuador |
| San Francisco | Ecuador | Venezuela | Brazil | Colombia |
Where can I watch Copa America 2024?
You can watch Copa America in English and Spanish thanks to broadcast partnerships with FOX Sports and Univision / TUDN. Keep an eye on releases from both networks for specific channel assignments.
Coincidentally, the European Championship (Euros) will be contested at the same time (kicks off one week earlier on July 14). Much to the benefit of fans, FOX Sports and Univision / TUDN also have rights to the Euros, meaning the best from Europe and the best from the Americas will feature on both networks for hours almost every day.
Mornings and afternoons with the Euros, evenings with Copa America – what could be better?
Fun Fact – over 1.5 million fans attended the 32 games in 2016’s Copa America Centenario, making it the most-attended Copa America ever. Additionally, over 100 million viewers watched the tournament at home on FOX Sports and Univision.
Why the excitement around Copa America?
If the idea of the top teams from the Americas facing off in stadiums across the U.S. doesn’t already get you excited, maybe the following will help.
- Three participants with a combined 10 FIFA Men’s World Cup trophies will be participating, including defending champions, Argentina.
- Speaking of Argentina, all eyes—per usual—will be on the U.S.-based Lionel Messi. Oh, by the way, they’re also defending Copa America champions after defeating Brazil in the 2021 edition
- Copa America will serve as test run for markets due to host the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup. It’s only some 700 days away!
- With 2026 nearing, Copa America will play an important role in prepping the young U.S., Mexican, and Canadian teams
The ultimate Copa America 2024 road trip
Great, you’re all in! As a sign of my gratitude for your excitement, I’ve already mapped out the perfect Copa America road trip. One group stage game each day without repeating stadiums.
13-day jaunt from Atlanta to San Francisco and literally everywhere in between. Over 270 hours and 18,700 miles on the road. What do you think? I’ll load the iPod with songs!