Confederations Cup playoff to be played October 9 in USA

The United States will play their Confederations Cup playoff on October 9 on home soil, CONCACAF confirmed on Wednesday. The confederation did not announce a venue for the match.

In prior years, the winner of this year's Gold Cup would have won CONCACAF's spot in the 2017 Confederations Cup. But prior to the 2013 Gold Cup, the confederation announced that the winner of that tournament and the 2015 tournament would play in a playoff for the spot. Because the U.S. won the Gold Cup two years ago, they earned one spot in the playoff, where they will play the winner of Sunday's Gold Cup final between Mexico and Jamaica.

Despite announcing the playoff two years ago, CONCACAF never set out how the playoff would be conducted. Would there be one leg or two? Would it be played at a neutral site or on someone's home soil? It was typical CONCACAF, making things up as they want along, fair competition be damned.

On Wednesday, CONCACAF confirmed it would be a single match playoff. They also confirmed that it would be played in the U.S., giving the Americans a boost.

There were reports that the Rose Bowl had cleared an October date for a possible soccer match. If Mexico wins the final to book their spot in the playoff, the odds are that the match will be played there, where CONCACAF could cash a fat check from 93,000 fans. If Jamaica wins, the playoff will likely be played at a smaller stadium elsewhere in the country.