CONCACAF Tournament Modeled After UEFA Champions League

CONCACAF Modeling Tournament After UEFA Champions League

CONCACAF has announced the launch of the CONCACAF Champions League, which will see 24 teams from North America, Central America and the Caribbean competing to qualify for the ’09 FIFA Club World Cup. The event, which will replace the Champions’ Cup after this year’s tournament, will begin in August and conclude in April ’09 (CONCACAF). In Miami, Michelle Kaufman reports the idea of the event “is to give top-tier clubs in CONCACAF nations a chance to compete for a regional crown, the way European clubs compete in the prestigious UEFA Champions League.” The field will be made up of four teams from both the U.S. and Mexico, three from the Caribbean, one from Canada and 12 from Central America, although it has “yet to be announced how the four U.S. teams will be selected.” All matches “will be played Tuesday through Thursday to avoid conflicts with weekend club matches” (MIAMI HERALD, 1/29). The Champions’ Cup had been played since ’62 (USA TODAY, 1/29).