CONCACAF, football’s governing body for North and Central America and the Caribbean, announced the seeds for the region’s marquee tournament along with the 13 North American cities that will host games.
The schedule will include an historic double-header in Canada, at the Toronto stadium that will also be utilized for the 2015 Pan American Games.
Other venues for the 12-nation tournament are a mix of NFL stadiums and football-specific stadiums of Major League Soccer clubs.
The United States, leading the way in Group A, will open the tournament on July 7 at Toyota Stadium in Dallas, followed by games at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, and Sporting Park in Kansas City.
Costa Rica in Group B will open at the StubHub Center in Los Angeles and also play matches in Houston and Toronto.
Mexico in Group C will play at Soldier Field in Chicago, University of Phoenix Stadium in Phoenix and in Charlotte.
Atlanta, Philadelphia, Baltimore and MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, will all host knockout round matches.
Complete groups and schedule will be announced early next year.
Eleven teams have qualified for next year’s tournament: Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Trinidad and Tobago and the United States.
The final spot will be decided in March through a play-in series between Honduras and French Guyana.
The biennial tournament is the official national team championship of the region- AFP
