The Copa America is Providing Fuel for the FIFA 2026 World Cup Hosted by the US, Canada & Mexico

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First established in 1916, the Copa America occurs every 4 years and is organized by South America’s football (soccer) ruling body CONMEBOL.

This is the 2nd time the Copa America has been hosted by the United States (2016 was the first time). The championship-deciding match will be played at 8 PM ET on Sunday, July 14th, at the Hard Rock Stadium just north of Miami. The UEFA Euro Cup final in Berlin will be held on the same day, but starting at 3 PM ET, so you can watch both final matches.

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Argentina is the defending Copa America champion, with a 1-0 win over Brazil – which brought to an end a 28-year draught. Argentina is tied with Uruguay for the most Copa America titles, with 15 each

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The tournament has been contested by 16 teams – 10 from South America (all of which were eligible to enter) and 6 from CONCACAF (all of which had to qualify), 1 of FIFA’s 6 continental governing bodies for association football, which primarily covers North America. With the FIFA World Cup coming to the U.S., Canada & Mexico in 2026, Copa America is important in building momentum for the Sport.

If you haven’t been paying attention to the tournament, not to worry. Up until now, 4 groups of 4 teams have been participating in an initial round-robin over the last several days. The top 2 teams in each group qualify for the quarterfinals, the rest are sent home. From that point on, the Copa America tournament is a straight knockout competition, with 30 minutes of extra time and a penalty shootout, if necessary, after any game that is tied at full-time.

The quarterfinals will be held from July 4-6, and the semifinals will be held from July 9-10. There will be a third place match on July 13 and the final on July 14.

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Here’s how to watch the games …

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In the U.S.:

Broadcast - Fox Sports, Fox Sports 1 and Univision
Streaming - FuboTV, Sling TV, TUDN and ViX

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The U.S. has been eliminated from the tournament after losing to powerhouse Uruguay on Monday.

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The U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team was defeated by Uruguay last night and has been eliminated from the Tournament. Pennamite Christin Pulisic, age 25, captained the Team

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In Canada:

Broadcast - TSN, RDS (French)
Streaming - TSN app, TSN+, RDS app/website (French)

Note: Canada plays in the quarterfinals on July 5th.

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Competing in its first ever Copa America, Canada has qualified for the knockout stages. Full-back Alphonso Davies, a spry 23 year old from Ghana, is the Team Captain

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And here is the schedule.

As of Monday, Jamaica, Paraguay, Peru, Chile, Mexico, USA and Bolivia had been knocked out of the competition.

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Temperatures during the final match on July 14th in Miami Gardens could be in the mid-90s. Already, the extreme heat in host cities has affected players and officials. One thing is certain – this will be a “hot” game to watch

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Argentinian Lionel Messi, now age 37, will not play at another Coupa America. We will miss him on the field greatly … but we must all be very pleased that he will continue to develop football (soccer) if he exercises his Inter Miami ownership option. Will we see Messi play at the FIFA 2026 World Cup on this soil? That’s a question only he can answer.

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