MIAMI – Concacaf Thursday announced the full schedule for the 2021 Gold Cup, the region’s flagship men’s national team competition.

This year’s edition will include a new Preliminary Round (July 2-6) prior to the Group Stage (July 10-20) and a revamped Knockout Stage (July 24–Aug 1).

The Gold Cup will be played in 11 stadiums across eight metropolitan areas. Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas will host the competition’s final match Sunday, Aug. 1.

“We are extremely pleased to confirm the schedule and venues for this summer’s Concacaf Gold Cup, which promises to be a celebration of football in our great region,” Concacaf president Victor Montagliani said in a statement. “2021 is Concacaf’s 60th anniversary year and we look forward with great anticipation to watching the best men’s national teams in our confederation compete for the Gold Cup title. With an exciting new format and the prospect of welcoming passionate fans to the stadiums for these compelling matchups, I can’t wait for the football to begin on July 2nd and to crown a champion in Las Vegas on August 1st,” added Montagliani.

Prior to the start of the 2021 Gold Cup Group Stage, 12 national teams which qualified through their Concacaf Nations League performances, will compete in the Preliminary Round (Prelims) from July 2-6. These matches will take place at DRV PNK Stadium (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) and will determine the final three teams in the Gold Cup Group Stage. The six round one Prelims matches and the three round two Prelims matches were drawn in September 2020 and are available here and below.

The Group Stage of the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup will kick off on July 10 and will run through July 20. The 12 qualified nations, the AFC Asian Cup Champions Qatar (guest participant) and the three Prelims winners were drawn in September 2020 into four groups and will play as follows (full schedule available below):

Group A – Mexico, El Salvador, Curaçao and Winner Prelims 9

Group A will begin play on July 10, with El Salvador taking on Curaçao at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, before current champion Mexico faces off against Winner Prelims 9 in Arlington’s AT&T Stadium. Group A will remain in North Texas for the duration of the Group Stage.

Group B – USA, Canada, Martinique and Winner Prelims 7

Group B, stationed in Kansas City (Children’s Mercy Park), will take to the field on July 11, with Canada and Martinique facing off in the first match of the day, while six-time champion United States will take on Winner Prelims 7. USA and Canada will remain in Kansas City for the Group Stage, while Martinique and Winner Prelims 7 will travel to Frisco, TX (Toyota Stadium) for the third match date.

Group C – Costa Rica, Jamaica, Suriname and Winner Prelims 8

Jamaica and Suriname will open Group C play at Orlando’s Exploria Stadium, on July 12. Group seed Costa Rica will take on the remaining team to qualify via the Prelims in the second match of the day. For the last group stage date on July 20, Suriname and Winner Prelims 8 will travel to Houston, TX (BBVA Stadium) while Costa Rica will face Jamaica in Exploria Stadium.

Group D – Honduras, Panama, Grenada and Qatar

Group D, based in Houston, TX (BBVA Stadium), will kick off on July 13 with guest participant and AFC Asian Cup Champions Qatar versus Panama in the first match of the evening, before Honduras take on Grenada. On July 20 in Orlando, Grenada and Panama will close Group Stage play while Honduras face Qatar in BBVA Stadium.

In A first, final group stage matches will be played simultaneously. This is to ensure an even more compelling spectacle as the teams compete to reach the Knockout Stage.

At the end of the Group Stage, the top two teams from each group will advance to the Quarterfinals.

Knockout Stage – Quarterfinals, semifinals and final

State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, and AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas will play host to the quarterfinal doubleheaders July 24-25, respectively.

The semifinals will be played on July 29, in NRG Stadium in Houston, and the brand-new Q2 Stadium in Austin, Texas. The venue for each specific semifinal matchup will be confirmed at the conclusion of the Group Stage (Q2 Stadium, Austin and NRG Stadium, Houston will each host one Semifinal).

The winners of the two semifinal matches will travel to Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium to face off in the final Aug. 1.

Tickets for all Group Stage matches will go on sale to the general public May 20 at 10 a.m. local, via www.GoldCup.org for an exclusive presale opportunity. Fans are encouraged to purchase their tickets in advance to ensure the best seats.

 

Full 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup Schedule
*Listed in ET (local time)

Friday, July 2 – DRV PNK Stadium, Fort Lauderdale, FL (Prelims Round One)
16:30 (16:30) M1: Haiti vs Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
19:00 (19:00) M6: Bermuda vs Barbados
21:30 (21:30) M3: Trinidad and Tobago vs Montserrat

Saturday, July 3 – DRV PNK Stadium, Fort Lauderdale, FL (Prelims Round One)
16:30 (16:30) M5: Guadeloupe vs Bahamas
19:00 (19:00) M4: Cuba vs French Guiana
21:30 (21:30) M2: Guatemala vs Guyana

Tuesday, July 6 – DRV PNK Stadium, Fort Lauderdale, FL (Prelims Round Two)
16:30 (16:30) M9: Winner Prelims 3 vs Winner Prelims 4
19:00 (19:00) M7: Winner Prelims 1 vs Winner Prelims 6
21:30 (21:30) M8: Winner Prelims 2 vs Winner Prelims 5

Saturday, July 10 – Dallas Metropolitan Area (Group A)
17:00 (16:00) El Salvador vs Curaçao (Toyota Stadium)
22:00 (21:00) Mexico vs Winner Prelims 9 (AT&T Stadium)

Sunday, July 11 – Children’s Mercy Park, Kansas City, KS (Group B)
18:30 (17:30) Canada vs Martinique
20:30 (19:30) USA vs Winner Prelims 7

Monday, July 12 – Exploria Stadium, Orlando, FL (Group C)
18:30 (18:30) Jamaica vs Suriname
21:00 (21:00) Costa Rica vs Winner Prelims 8

Tuesday, July 13 – BBVA Stadium, Houston, TX (Group D)
19:00 (18:00) Qatar vs Panama
21:00 (20:00) Honduras vs Grenada

Wednesday, July 14 – Dallas Metropolitan Area (Group A)
19:30 (18:30) Winner Prelims 9 vs El Salvador (Toyota Stadium)
21:30 (20:30) Curaçao vs Mexico (Cotton Bowl Stadium)

Thursday, July 15 – Children’s Mercy Park, Kansas City, KS (Group B)
19:30 (18:30) Winner Prelims 7 vs Canada
21:30 (20:30) Martinique vs USA

Friday, July 16 – Exploria Stadium, Orlando, FL (Group C)
18:30 (18:30) Winner Prelims 8 vs Jamaica
20:30 (20:30) Suriname vs Costa Rica

Saturday, July 17 – BBVA Stadium, Houston, TX (Group D)
19:30 (18:30) Grenada vs Qatar
21:30 (20:30) Panama vs Honduras

Sunday, July 18 – Groups A and B
17:00 (16:00) Martinique vs Winner Prelims 7 (Toyota Stadium)
17:00 (16:00) USA vs Canada (Children’s Mercy Park)
22:00 (21:00) Mexico vs El Salvador (Cotton Bowl Stadium)
22:00 (21:00) Curaçao vs Winner Prelims 9 (Toyota Stadium)

Tuesday, July 20 – Groups C and D
19:00 (19:00) Costa Rica vs Jamaica (Exploria Stadium)
19:00 (18:00) Suriname vs Winner Prelims 8 (BBVA Stadium)
21:00 (21:00) Panama vs Grenada (Exploria Stadium)
21:00 (20:00) Honduras vs Qatar (BBVA Stadium)

Saturday, July 24 – State Farm Stadium, Glendale, AZ (Quarterfinals)
19:30 (16:30) QF1: 1D vs 2A
22:00 (19:00) QF2: 1A vs 2D

Sunday, July 25 – AT&T Stadium, Arlington TX (Quarterfinals) 
19:00 (18:00) QF3: 1C vs 2B
21:30 (20:30) QF4: 1B vs 2C

Thursday, July 29 – Q2 Stadium, Austin, TX and NRG Stadium, Houston, TX (Semifinals)*
19:30 (18:30) SF1: Winner QF1 (1D or 2A) vs Winner QF4 (1B or 2C)
22:00 (21:00) SF2: Winner QF2 (1A or 2D) vs Winner QF3 (1C or 2B)

Sunday, August 1 – Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas, NV (Final)
20:30 (17:30) Winner SF1 vs Winner SF2

Front Row Soccer editor Michael Lewis has covered 13 World Cups (eight men, five women), seven Olympics and 25 MLS Cups. He has written about New York City FC, New York Cosmos, the New York Red Bulls and both U.S. national teams for Newsday and has penned a soccer history column for the Guardian.com. Lewis, who has been honored by the Press Club of Long Island and National Soccer Coaches Association of America, is the former editor of BigAppleSoccer.com. He has written seven books about the beautiful game and has published ALIVE AND KICKING The incredible but true story of the Rochester Lancers. It is available at Amazon.com.