October 25, 2012
NOTHING IS FINALIZED
CONCACAF. USA: more talks are needed to finalize 2016 Copa America

A day after CONMEBOL said that a special Copa America would be hosted by the USA in 2016, U.S. Soccer and CONCACAF said on Thursday it certainly was an intriguing idea, but that nothing had been finalized.

CONMEBOL said on Wednesday that Copa would be held in the U.S. in four years. The South American confederation announced that six national teams fro CONCACAF would participate in the tournament, including Mexico and the United States.

In its first statement on the matter, CONCACAF general secretary Enrique Sanz said the confederation was in the midst of talks and that further negotiations were needed before a final agreement could be reached.

"Even though playing the 2016 Copa America in the CONCACAF region with our teams and those from CONMEBOL would be a wonderful experience for all fans, we are still in the midst of talks and negotiations between all parties involved in this decision," Sanz in a statement. "This is an idea we are hoping to materialize but we are still evaluating and discussing before it becomes official but the intention is definitely there."

U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati said the idea of such a tournament was "intriguing."

"While the idea of a Centennial tournament with some of the best teams in the hemisphere is certainly intriguing, it is not something we have agreed to host or participate in at this time," Gulati told Reuters in an email.

"As CONCACAF stated, there are still a number of discussions that need to take place with CONMEBOL. U.S. Soccer would also need to be involved in discussions about hosting the tournament.

"We're looking forward to those discussions in the near future."

CONCACAF president Jeffrey Webb met with CONMEBOL executive committee members in Sao Paulo, Brazil in July, to explore the potential for collaborative efforts between the two confederations.

One of the items was a special Copa America to celebrate the 100th anniversary of CONMEBOL, which would involve CONCACAF's partnership and participation.