The United States' 2028 soccer calendar is about to get a lot more packed.
Not only is the next edition of the Summer Olympics already set to be hosted by the United States - Los Angeles will host the vast majority of the events, though New York, Columbus, Nashville, St. Louis, San Diego, and San Jose are set to join LA in hosting the soccer event - but the next Copa América could see the tournament remain in the United States.
While nothing is confirmed at this moment, Copa América's return to U.S. soil would mean that three of the tournament's four editions to have taken place from 2016 onwards would have been held in the country. The lone exception would be the 2021 tournament, which was hosted by Brazil.
If the United States were to be awarded the right to host the 2028 Copa América, it would be the fourth non-CONCACAF major international football tournament to take place on American soil. It would join the 2024 Copa América, the 2025 Club World Cup, and the 2026 FIFA World Cup as part of that list of tournaments.
The first time the United States hosted Copa América was in 2016, which saw the USMNT finish fourth. The second opportunity the United States had to host the tournament came in 2024 and saw the USMNT exit in the group stage.
2028 tournament also set to feature expanded format
Alongside the news that the Copa América could remain in the United States, there is also the possibility that the tournament expands to 20 teams. Two of the past three editions have seen 16 nations take part, with the exception of the 2021 tournament, which only saw the 10 CONMEBOL (the governing association for South American football) nations take part.
If the tournament were to be expanded to 20 teams, all 10 CONMEBOL national teams would take part alongside six countries from CONCACAF (North America, Central America, and the Caribbean), and four non-UEFA guest teams.
It is possible that the USMNT will qualify automatically as hosts, which would take up one of the six CONCACAF-allocated slots. However, it is worth noting that the United States only qualified as the host in 2016; they needed to advance past the quarterfinal round in the CONCACAF Nations League to secure qualification.
If the CONCACAF Nations League were to once again double as qualification for Copa América, the USMNT would have to navigate a two-match quarterfinal tie with Haiti, which would take place during the November international window. Besides the USMNT and Haiti, Canada, Curaçao, Guatemala, Panama, Mexico, and Jamaica would be eligible to qualify for the Copa América.
Is this a sign of a future cross-confederation merger?
Even though there has been significant discussion and there is a deal between CONCACAF and CONMEBOL to pursue such collaboration, this news does not necessarily shift the conversation to a significant degree.
Sure, it would continue to build on the increased participation of CONCACAF teams in CONMEBOL tournaments and vice versa. But there are nonetheless significant challenges, and one tournament might not necessarily shift the discussion that much, especially given that the news has yet to be finalized.
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