Written By Leander Schaerlaeckens at YahooSports.com
The United States men’s national team drew a deathly group against Colombia, Costa Rica and Paraguay in Group A of this summer’s stateside Copa America Centenario in a glitzy ceremony on Sunday night.
The tournament, marking the 100th anniversary of South America’s continental championship with a one-off edition pitting all of the Americas against each other, will take place from June 3 through June 26. Games will be staged in 10 cities nationwide, with the final happening June 26 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
The Americans will open the tournament on June 3 against Colombia in Santa Clara, Calif., followed by contests against Costa Rica in Chicago on June 7 and Paraguay in Philadelphia June 11.
Group B will consist of Brazil, Ecuador, Haiti and Peru.
Group C is made up of Mexico, Uruguay, Jamaica and Venezuela.
And Group D comprises Argentina, Chile, Panama and Bolivia.
Even though the U.S. had just the eighth-best FIFA ranking in the draw – 32nd – it was seeded in Pot 1 courtesy of its hosting the tournament. So too were Mexico, Brazil and Argentina, for no apparent reason other than that they were the most reputable nations in their respective regions – maybe.
But that assured that the Yanks would likely encounter a strong opponent from Pot 2, which was loaded with defending Copa America champion Chile, Colombia, Uruguay and Ecuador – all currently ranked between fifth and 13th in the world. Pot 3, meanwhile, had the USA’s CONCACAF rivals from North America, Central America and the Caribbean. Pot 4 included the four remaining CONMEBOL countries from South America.
It seemed a given that the Americans should draw a tough group, given the depth of the field. But they could hardly have had a worse draw. By pulling the top-ranked teams out of Pot 3 and 4 and the second-best team from Pot 2, the Yanks will find themselves struggling just to survive the group.
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