Why is the Gold Cup 2023 played in the United States and Canada? When is the next one?

Since its creation in 1991, the Concacaf Gold Cup has always been hosted or co-hosted by the United States. Given the country’s size in the region along with top quality sporting venues, travel infrastructure, the country is always pivotal to the biennial competition.

This year the tournament will be co-hosted by the US and Canada with 14 stadiums to be used in the US along with Toronto’s BMO Field. The final will be played at SoFi Stadium in the Los Angeles suburb of Inglewood, California on 16 July.

The competition will also serve as a learning curve as the 2026 FIFA World Cup looms large on the horizon with the global event set to be co-hosted by the US-Canada and Mexico.

Co-hosting

The 1993 and 2003 tournaments were co-hosted by USA/Mexico with the 2019 edition being played in the US along with Costa Rica and Jamaica. The 2023 edition of the competition will be only the second third time the event has been co-hosted by the US and Canada with the 2015 tournament being the only previous edition.

2025 Gold Cup

Given the proximity of the 2026 World Cup for the 2025 Gold Cup, CONCACAF are contemplating a special edition of the Gold Cup which could feature nations from UEFA and CONMEBOL, amongst others.

Which nations could compete in the 2025 Gold Cup?

The three host 2023 WC nations are pushing for the 2025 edition of CONCACAF’s biggest international soccer tournament to have 24 teams, which would be made up of 16 from North America, Central America, and the Caribbean, two from UEFA (Europe), two from CONMEBOL (South America), two from AFC (Asia) and two from CAF(Africa).