The Copa America, formerly known as the South American Football Championship, is one of the biggest international trophies in football. Founded in 1916, the tournament is now held every four years, rotated across the members of CONMEBOL, and it crowns the champions of South America. The regular tournament is only behind the World Cup and European Championships in terms of prestige, and it is set to get even bigger.
To mark 100 years since the first championship was held in Argentina in 1916, there’s a special centenary edition this year ahead of the “normal” competition in 2017. The Copa America Centenario will be held in the USA in June, and it will mark the anniversary with a bumper edition of the tournament. It will certainly be a focus of attention this summer, and here we have all you need if you’re looking for the best betting odds on the tournament.
Due to the limited number of nations within South America, the tournament often invites guests to increase the numbers and global appeal. The usual tournament format requires 12 teams, while there are only 10 sides in South America. Mexico have been invited to play in the tournament nine times, while Jamaica joined them in Chile last year.
For the special 2016 edition, there are even more teams, and even more games to bet on. The 10 South American nations are joined by six sides from North America this time around. Just how will the North American sides fare in a tournament that is becoming known for its competitive nature?
The regular tournament sees three groups of four, with four of those 12 exiting. The top two in each group head into the quarter finals, alongside the two best third place finishers. That tends to weed out the odd straggling side, giving us eight talented teams who can cause a threat on their day.
The South American World Cup qualifying campaign sees all 10 sides face each other in a league format, which has helped improve the smaller nations. The gap between the big sides and the rest is narrowing, so this won’t just be dominated by Brazil and Argentina. Chile and Uruguay have won the last two tournaments, while Peru have finished third in 2011 and 2015.
In fact, with the European Championship expanding to 24 teams, you could argue that the Copa America is the tightest international tournament in the world. Each side packs some kind of quality, and they know each other so well. That should give us some good value betting odds, and give you a big winner if you call it right.
The best way to get the best value on the Copa America is through our live odds comparison. It gives you the best available odds, and saves you having to individually check each bookie one at a time.
This year, the tournament takes on a more standard tournament format. There are 16 sides in four groups, with the top two going through. There are still some tight matches in the groups, which will keep things exciting.
Should that excitement tap into the football frenzy that the last World Cup created in the US, this could be a very interesting competition. It’s certainly one to keep an eye on during the summer, especially at a time when we’re desperate for any kind of football to keep us entertained. Why not stave off the summer boredom with a bet in this year’s Copa?