Copa America 2021

[Satchmo Distel]

Tournament under threat:

https://www.theguardian.com/football...emoved-as-host

[Sean of the Shed]

Is there any country in South America right now that could safely host this? I could see them doing something really awful like moving it to Qatar.

[jason voorhees]

When I saw "...emoved as host" I thought they were talking about Colombia and the 89 missing people since the protests began in April. Then I saw they were already removed.

Ecuador and Peru are in decent shape Covid-wise. Peru also stepped in for the Libertadores final when Chile got protested out of the running.

But yes, in a pinch Qatar and the US would work, especially with the US turning the corner in major cities. All the players could get J&J'd as well if they haven't gotten to Miami yet. They'd also play in front of fans. They could even do double-headers with MLS, and the MLS could continue to get fans in South America.

[ursus arctos]

The reported alternatives are Paraguay and/or Chile, which have reportedly said that they can host on the original timetable, or the US, though all parties agree that at least a short delay would be needed in that event.

CONMEBOL needs the money badly

[Antepli Ejderha]

Moved to Brazil.

Just as well there's little Covid-19 there, what could go wrong?

[Sean of the Shed]

Sorry kids, it's not safe to stay at Mr Jackson's any more, we're going to send you to live with Mr Savile.

[cantagalo]

One of the unforeseen benefits of 2014 is that there are four largely unused, white elephant stadiums in Brasilia, Manaus, Natal and Recife. The plan apparently is to play each group in two of the stadiums, though the Governor of Pernambuco has refused permission for Recife to be used. The final would be at the Maracana. This arrangement would avoid disruption to the Campeonato Brasileiro which started at the weekend.

Of course, that doesn't begin to address the ethical or health issues.

[Discordant Resonance]

Indeed - hasn't Manaus, in particular, been notably hit by the recent waves of Covid?

[ursus arctos]

Has improved somewhat recently, but was particularly bad in the first quarter of this year

https://www.scientificamerican.com/a...-of-the-world/

[cantagalo]

Rio Grande do Norte have also refused so that's the original plans out of the window.

A few states have now agreed to stage games: Sao Paulo, Bahia and Mato Grosso.

The proposals have not been well received by the media and, in particular, the sporting press. At the weekend there were enormous anti-Bolsonaro demonstrations in most big cities.

Brazil's current Covid death rate is 8.64 per 1m per day, just over half the rate in Paraguay and Uruguay but only slightly lower than Argentina and Colombia.

[danielmak]

Then there's also the problem that some players who played in Manaus claimed that temperatures were so hot on the pitch that the players were hallucinating. And if I remember correctly, none of the sides that played there did well in their next games. What are the odds that Brasil does not play at that stadium?

[ursus arctos]

No team played more than once in Manaus: England, Italy, Croatia, Cameroon, USA, Portugal, Honduras and Switzerland

Two made it to the last 16, none to the last eight

[ursus arctos]

Presumably Bolsonaro can force matches on to the Federal District, so S?o Paulo, Salvador, Cuiaba and Bras?lia would be enough

Brazil would obviously get SP and Argentina would be sent to the sticks

[danielmak]

No team played more than once in Manaus: England, Italy, Croatia, Cameroon, USA, Portugal, Honduras and Switzerland

Two made it to the last 16, none to the last eight

Yes, and I remember England, USA, and Italian players talking about the brutal heat. Again, no Brazil games there. I know they've played friendlies there. But I will be stunned if they are scheduled to play in Manaus.

[ursus arctos]

Amazonas hasn't even approved hosting yet.

[danielmak]

One other thing about CA21. I'm on the fence. I'm not a huge fan of inviting teams outside CONEMBOL and hate that they invite a bunch of teams outside the Americas. So, this year being CONMEBOL only is nice. But the fact that 4/5 of each group advances is a bit of a drag. I probably would prefer the Sub-20 model: two groups for a first round and top 2 advance to a final round. But I get that people like to see a winner in a final match.

[cantagalo]

11 days from the start of the Copa America, Conmebol have announced the host cities.

They are Rio de Janeiro, Brasilia, Cuiaba and Goiania.

They have yet to decide which group plays where or, in the case of Goiania, which of the city's three stadia will be used. The largest, the Serra Dourada, is old and dilapidated and hasn't been used for 18 months. The other two are much smaller. I suppose with no crowds that's not really a problem, but they won't look very impressive on television.

With the awful four qualifying from each group of five format, I can't say I'm looking forward much to this one.

[cantagalo]

Conmebol has now confirmed the timetable and venues.

In Goiania, the Ol?mpico stadium will be used and in Rio the Maracana will host only the final, with all the other Rio games at the Nilton Santos.

Before all that, there is a week of World Cup qualifiers to get through.

[Nesta]

Glad that's all, uh, sorted out

[Satchmo Distel]

The naming of the stadium has an interesting history

The stadium is known by a number of names. The nickname Engenh?o ([ẽʒẽˈɲɐ̃w̃]) refers to the location of the stadium. The stadium was named after former FIFA president and International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Jo?o Havelange. Havelange died after an attack of pneumonia during the 2016 Olympics at age 100. Between 2015 and 2017 the Rio municipality allowed Botafogo to refer to the stadium as Est?dio Nilton Santos (English: Nilton Santos Stadium). The name honors Nilton Santos, regarded as one of the greatest defenders in the history of the game and a member of the World Team of the 20th Century. Botafogo made initial efforts to have the name change official but this was not immediately successful.^[7] In February 2017, the city of Rio de Janeiro officially renamed the stadium Est?dio Ol?mpico Nilton Santos.^[8] Structural problems in the roof were identified in March 2013 that caused the stadium to be closed for repair. The stadium's capacity was increased to 60,000 for the Games.^[9]

[cantagalo]

Yes, the Engenhao was originally built for the 2007 Pan American Games and my first visit there was to see the athletics. No-one ever referred to it as the Joao Havelange as he was as reviled in Brazil as everywhere else. Even in those days when the Brazilian economy was booming, people questioned whether the construction costs, inflated by the usual backhanders, could have been better used elsewhere.

It is in the North Zone of Rio, 4 or 5 miles north of the Maracana in a poor part of the city but the stadium has done little to regenerate the area. Although it is served by an overground train service, it is not on the Metro and richer residents of the South Zone and tourists are reluctant to venture there. Although it has always been used for football, it is essentially an athletics stadium with the running track still intact and the viewing experience for the spectator is not great - not that that will matter for this Copa America.

Botafogo have tried to make it there home. The seats have been changed to black and white and there is a statue of Nilton Santos outside. Unfortunately, the Copa America games are likely to be the highlight of its year as a desperate Botafogo team struggle to come to terms with (at least) a season in Serie B.

[cantagalo]

There's a big row brewing behind the scenes. Team captain Casemiro has given an enigmatic interview suggesting that many Brazilian players, and significantly Tite, are reluctant to play the Copa America. There are rumours that Tite may be dismissed after the Paraguay World Cup qualifier on Tuesday and replaced by Renato Gaucho.

Things are further complicated by the fact that CBF president, Rogerio Caboclo has just been suspended for allegedly sexually harassing an employee.

[The Awesome Berbaslug!!!]

They had tim vickery on second captains today. What a fucking shit show the whole thing is. Why is Conmebol insisting on an extra fucking copa america during covid, Particularly when they have 12 fucking rounds of world cup qualifying games left?

[ursus arctos]

Because they've sold the television rights

[Satchmo Distel]

Imagine being a gifted young player whose first two international tournaments are going to be this and Qatar 22. How to make a player hate doing something he ought to be loving. But maybe international football has always been a pain in the arse for many top players? I recall posting on the Pele documentary thread that he played most of his career in fear, and winning a World Cup was just a release from that fear until he had to play in the next one.