US Soccer proposes joint North-South American tournament in 2020

After the success of the 2016 Copa America Centenario, it seemed like the potential for a followup to that tournament was only inevitable. Wheels are at least in motion to hold such an event. Andrew Das of the New York Times is reporting that Carlos Cordeiro has invited 10 federations from South America to participate in a joint North-South American tournament next year.

According to the report, the participating nations would be guaranteed $200 million for playing in the tournament that would be scheduled to coincide with the 2020 UEFA European Championship. Das also noted that the tournament would not replace any future editions of the Gold Cup based on a statement from Concacaf. However, a complicating factor is that CONMEBOL is set to move the Copa America to align with the Euros starting next year possibly putting the joint tournament in conflict with that plan.

Cordeiro made big promises about the commercial side of the game during his campaign to become USSF President. Obviously, hosting a tournament like this would follow up on the success of the Copa America Centenario which earned the federation a tidy sum and allowed it to build a significant surplus once the tournament concluded. With the US set to host the 2026 World Cup, it would be another way to shore up the finances of the federation so that US Soccer could work on reaching its on-field goals as well.