South American Football Championship, the world's oldest international tournament for national teams. The Copa America tournament (by this name it has been known since 1975) was established by ten members of CONMEBOL - the Football Confederation South America... He is 50 years older than his European counterpart.
The first championship, in 1910, was unofficial (so called extraordinary). The Argentines decided to arrange a tournament with the participation of themselves, as well as the teams of Uruguay, Brazil and Chile. The Brazilians refused to participate at the last moment, but on May 29, 1910, the first match of the South American Championship took place in Buenos Aires: the Uruguayan national team defeated the Chileans with a score of 3: 0, and the first goal in tournament history was scored by Jose Piendibene of Penarol. Seven days later Argentina beat the Chileans even more - 5: 1.
Almost 40,000 people gathered at the stadium of the Gimnasia club to watch the game of the eternal rivals. But their expectations were disappointed - even before the start of the game, the fans set fire to one of the stands, and the match was postponed. A day later, the game took place at the Racing Club stadium, where only 8,000 spectators could see Argentina win 4-1. The second tournament, in 1916, was also unofficial - it was held in honor of the 100th anniversary of Argentina's independence. In the decisive match, Argentina and Uruguay met again, and the Uruguayans took revenge for the defeat six years ago.
From 1916 to 1959, championships were played on average every two years. Uruguay won six of the first eleven tournaments. Then the Argentines began to take over: between the 1920s and 1950s, they were the first in 11 championships out of 18. Brazilians won the championship four times, and they achieved all the victories at home. They were unlucky: in the 1960s, when the Brazilians were at their peak of success, only two tournaments were held. The rest of the countries achieved victories only occasionally. The Peruvians won championships in 1939 and 1975, Paraguay won in 1953 and 1979, and Bolivia achieved their only victory on home soil in 1963.
Many countries were dismissive of the tournament. They sent second teams or youth teams in general. Only in 1975 all ten countries - members of CONMEBOL took part in the championship.
Countries have hosted the tournament for a different number of times: Argentina hosted the championship 9 times, Chile 7, Uruguay 6, Peru 5, and Brazilians indifferent to the championship were hosts only four times. The 1987 tournament was held in Argentina, and the Uruguayans became champions, repeating their success in 1983. Brazil hosted the championship in 1989 and won first place for the first time in 40 years. Argentina won in 1991.
The 1993 championship in Ecuador was different from the previous ones. For the first time, teams from Mexico and the United States were invited to participate. The system of the rally has also changed: the teams played in three groups, and eight of them advanced to the quarterfinals. One of the debutants - Mexico unexpectedly reached the final, where, however, lost to Argentina - 1: 2. Mexico and the United States were invited to the 1995 tournament in Uruguay. And here the Americans have already shown disrespect for the owners. They advanced to the semi-finals, where they lost 0-1 to Brazil. But in the final, the Brazilians lost to the hosts, the Uruguayan footballers. The game ended 1: 1. and on penalties Uruguay won 5: 3.
In 1997, the Brazilians caught up. In the final in high-altitude La Paz, they beat Bolivia. And in 1999 in Paraguay, they again won the championship, beating the Uruguayans dry.
1910 Buenos Aires. 1. Argentina, 2. Uruguay
1916 Buenos Aires. 1. Uruguay, 2. Argentina
1917 Montevideo. 1. Uruguay, 2. Argentina
1919 Rio de Janeiro (Play Offs). Brazil - Uruguay 1: 0 (Friedenreich). Attendance: 28,000
1920 Viña del Mar. 1. Uruguay, 2. Argentina
1921 Buenos Aires. 1. Argentina, 2. Brazil
1922 Rio de Janeiro (Playoffs). Brazil - Paraguay 3: 1 (Formiga 2, Neko; G. Rivas). Attendance: 20,000
1923 Montevideo. 1. Uruguay, 2. Argentina.
1924 Montevideo. 1. Uruguay, 2. Argentina
1925 Buenos Aires. 1. Argentina, 2. Brazil
1926 Santiago. 1. Uruguay, 2. Argentina
1927 Lima. 1. Argentina, 2. Uruguay
1929 Buenos Aires 1. Argentina 2. Paraguay
1935 Lima. 1. Uruguay, 2. Argentina
1937 Buenos Aires (Play Offs). Argentina - Brazil 2: 0 (De la Mata 2). Attendance: 80,000
1939 Lima. 1. Peru, 2. Uruguay
1941 Santiago. I. Argentina, 2. Uruguay
1942 Montevideo. 1. Uruguay, 2. Argentina
1945 Santiago. 1. Argentina, 2. Brazil
1946 Buenos Aires. 1. Argentina, 2. Brazil
1947 Guayaquil. 1. Argentina, 2. Paraguay
1949 Rio de Janeiro (Playoffs). Brazil 7-0 Paraguay (Ademir Menezes 3, Tezurinha 2, Jair Rosa, Pinto 2). Attendance: 55,000
1953 Lima (Playoffs). Paraguay - Brazil 3: 2 (A. Lopez, Gavilan, R. Fernandez; Baltazar 2). Attendance: 35,000
1955 Santiago. 1. Argentina, 2. Chile
1956 Montevideo. 1. Uruguay, 2. Chile
1957 Lima. 1. Argentina, 2. Brazil
1959 Buenos Aires. 1. Argentina, 2. Brazil *
1959 Guayaquil. 1. Uruguay, 2. Argentina
1963 Bolivia. 1. Bolivia, 2. Paraguay
1967 Montevideo. 1. Uruguay, 2. Argentina
1975 Bogota (1st match): Colombia 1-0 Peru (P. Castro). Attendance: 50,000
Lima (2nd match): Peru 2-0 Colombia (Oblitas, O. Ramirez). Attendance: 50,000
Caracas (Playoffs): Peru 1-0 Colombia (Sotil). Attendance: 30,000
1979 Asuncion (1st leg): Paraguay 3-0 Chile (C. Romero II, M. Morel)
Santiago (2nd leg): Chile 1-0 Paraguay (Rivas). Attendance: 55,000
Buenos Aires (playoffs): Paraguay 0-0 Chile. Attendance: 6,000 (Paraguay won on goal difference)
1983 Montevideo (1st leg): Uruguay 2-0 Brazil (20, 27, Ronaldo 46). Attendance: 30,000
America's Cup is the oldest competition among the teams, which has survived to this day. The tournament dates back to 1916, but it received its current name only in 1975. America's Cup is the main competition for football teams in South America (after the World Cup, of course), organized under the auspices of CONMEBOL (Confederation of South American Football).
Until 1975, the tournament was not particularly popular and many CONMEBOL members ignored the competition, often sending youth squads, but with the emergence of the name Copa America, all ten South American countries (Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela) began to measure their strength on a regular basis. Moreover, each time two teams from other football federations were invited to the America's Cup, and since 1993, the Mexican national team has become a regular guest of the tournament. Other invitees included teams from Costa Rica (1997, 2001, 2004), Honduras (2001), Japan (1999) and the United States (1993, 1995, 2007). At the same time, the United States refused to participate in the America's Cup several times, and in 2001, Canada's invitation was withdrawn for security reasons.
So, in the early years, the competition was called the South American Championship of National Teams, and many of the rallies were held unofficially. We bring to your attention the winners of those tournaments, in order the winner, the silver medalist, the bronze medalist.
1916 * - Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil
1917 - Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil
1919 - Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina
1920 - Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil
1921 - Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay
1922 - Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay
1923 - Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay
1924 - Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay
1925 - Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay
1926 - Uruguay, Argentina, Chile
1927 - Argentina, Uruguay, Peru
1929 - Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay
1935 * - Uruguay, Argentina, Peru
1937 - Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay
1939 - Peru, Uruguay, Paraguay
1941 * - Argentina, Uruguay, Chile
1942 - Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil
1945 * - Argentina, Brazil, Chile
1946 - Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay
1947 - Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay
1949 - Brazil, Paraguay, Peru
1953 - Paraguay, Brazil, Uruguay
1955 - Argentina, Chile, Peru
1956 * - Uruguay, Chile, Argentina
1957 - Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay
1959 - Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay
1963 - Bolivia, Paraguay, Argentina
1967 - Uruguay, Argentina, Chile
* - unofficial championships
And since 1975, the name Copa America was born. The first draws of the tournament did not have a host country, and even the finals were held in a home / away system. And only in 1987, Argentina became the first hostess, which then became the fourth. We bring to your attention the results of the final matches of the America's Cups, as well as the host countries (in brackets).
1975 - Peru - Colombia - 0: 1, 2: 0
1979 - Paraguay - Chile - 3: 0, 0: 1
1983 - Uruguay - Brazil - 2: 0, 1: 1
1987 - Uruguay 1-0 Chile (Argentina)
1989 - Brazil 1-0 Uruguay (Brazil)
1991 - Argentina 3-2 Brazil (Chile)
1993 - Argentina - Mexico - 2: 1 (Ecuador)
1995 - Uruguay - Brazil - 1: 1 (5: 3 - on pens) (Uruguay)
1997 - Brazil - Bolivia - 3: 1 (Bolivia)
1999 - Brazil - Uruguay - 3: 0 (Paraguay)
2001 - Colombia - Mexico - 1-0 (Colombia)
2004 - Brazil - Argentina - 2: 2 (4: 2 - on pens) (Peru)
2007 - Brazil - Argentina - 3-0 (Venezuela)
2011 - Uruguay 3-0 Paraguay (Argentina)
Trophies won:
15 - Uruguay
14 - Argentina
8 - Brazil
2 - Paraguay, Peru
1 - Colombia, Bolivia
In 1910, a railway line was opened that connected the capital of Argentina, Buenos Aires, with Chile. To commemorate this event, the Argentine government organized football tournament, having invited the national teams of Uruguay, Brazil and Chile. Two teams out of three (Brazil refused) accepted the invitation. On May 29, the guests (the national teams of Uruguay and Chile) opened the tournament at the Gimnasia stadium in Buenos Aires. The Uruguayans won 3: 0.
A week later, the Argentine national team beat the Chileans with a more convincing score - 5: 1. A correspondence dispute between the two leading South American teams ended in victory for the hosts. Now the Argentines had to prove their superiority in face-to-face meeting. Decisive match caused an extraordinary stir. Even before the start of the game, the fans staged a firefight in the stands, and then set one of the stands on fire. The players who were in the locker rooms at that time did not dare to enter the field. The match took place the next day at another stadium in Buenos Aires and ended in a convincing 4-1 win for the Argentines. However, this tournament did not receive the status of an official South American championship, as the continental football federation did not yet exist at that time. The South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) was not formed until 1916. Since then, the countdown of the South American championships began (since 1975, this tournament has been called the America's Cup).
South American tournaments are second only to the world championships in importance. South Americans think so. Europeans have their own dissenting opinion on this matter. However, the dispute about whose football is better - technically sophisticated, artistic Latin American or rational, athletic, but tactically more flexible and varied European - is unlikely to be resolved. One thing is indisputable: the European and South American championships are second only to the world championships in terms of the level of play and importance, and they are always of great interest on all continents.
Impulsive, subject to rapid mood swings, somewhat disorganized South Americans could not manage to give a clear rhythm to their championships. Either they were held annually (and in 1959 there were even two tournaments), then there were long pauses, one of which dragged on for eight years. In Europe, there is much more order: all tournaments are held at four-year intervals. And the composition of the participants is stable. In South America, it ranged from three to twelve.
Tournaments, with a few exceptions, were one-round tournaments. Only in 1975 "a combined system was introduced: at the first stage, everyone met with everyone, at the final stage there was an Olympic system. But there were some exceptions. So, in 1989 and 1991, micro-tournaments in one round were held at all stages. Thirty-eight tournaments out of 41 took place in any one country, but three times (1975, 1979, 1983) the rivals visited each other. best teams Central and North America... In 1993, the Mexican national team took second place, and in 1997 - third. In 1995, the US team entered the top four.
If the passion for experimentation does not leave the football figures of South America, then it is possible that in the foreseeable future they will go to these tournaments strongest teams all continents and they will turn into alternatives to the world championships. We can only hope that the overly proud and ambitious FIFA will not allow this. In general, the South Americans scored a lot. The average scoring of their tournaments is 3.4 goals per match. And their record figure (6.2), achieved in 1927, seems somehow fabulously implausible. In 13 championships the average result exceeded the “4” mark. Mother Europe cannot boast of such numbers. However, for very objective reasons. Firstly, high performance falls on the 1920s - 50s - the era of reckless, open, attacking football. Had the European Championships been held during this period of time, the picture would have been different. Actually, for the purity of the experiment, the results of the last 10 tournaments should be compared (so many of them were held in Europe). And here the picture is somewhat different: South America - 2.6 goals per match, Europe (taking into account preliminary tournaments) - 2,8.
Secondly, the abundance of goals scored on the American continent testifies to a significant difference in the class of teams. There, every third match ended with large account(the difference is three or more balls). In Europe, every fifth game ended with a large score. Three grands make the weather in the South American championships: Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil. They won a total of 35 times (out of 41). Representatives of 9 countries won in 12 championships in the Old World. The conclusion suggests itself. It is surprising that the Brazilians, who performed better at the world championships than the national teams of Uruguay and Argentina, are significantly inferior to them in inland competitions. Only seven times they became the best on their continent, and their main rivals - 14 times. In four cases out of seven, the Brazilians won at home. The field factor sometimes plays a decisive role in South America. Powerful doping in the form of frantic support of its fans doubles, triples, or even tenfolds the strength of impulsive, impressionable, temperamental southerners. What else can explain the victory of the Bolivian national team, which occupies a very modest place on the hierarchical ladder of South American football? With five victories, including in two final meetings over Argentina (3: 2) and Brazil (5: 4), the Bolivian footballers became champions. It happened in 1963 - when the championship was held in Bolivia. And in 1997 Bolivia took 2nd place, losing only to Brazil in the final. Where do you think that America's Cup took place?
Seven times the tournaments were held in Uruguay, and the hosts triumphed all seven times. The Argentines were the organizers of the championships eight times. They won on six occasions. And one more statistical confirmation of what was said. Twenty times out of thirty-eight (52.6 percent) the hosts won the tournament. In Europe, the hosts' achievements are much more modest (3 wins in 12 tournaments - 25 percent). Only the national teams of Chile and Ecuador failed to take advantage of their home walls. Five times the winner had to be determined in an additional match, and each time one of the participants in these meetings was the Brazilian national team (meaning the South American Championship before 1967). She lost twice: in 1937 to the Argentines (0: 2) and in 1953 to the Paraguayan national team (2: 3). Three additional matches ended in victory for the Brazilians. In 1919, they defeated the Uruguayan national team (1: 0), in 1922 - the Paraguayan team (3: 1). And in 1949, they again won a victory over the same opponent (7: 0).
Oleg Abarnikov © 2010 specially for the site http: www.copa-america.ru