Messi, USA’s chances and what else to watch: NPR

Argentina’s Lionel Messi celebrates with the trophy after beating Brazil 1-0 in the Copa America soccer final at the Maracana stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, July 10, 2021. Messi and Argentina will try to win their third consecutive major title when they defend their Copa America championship while Brazil hope 17-year-old Endrick will team up with Vinícius Júnior and Rodrygo for success. (AP Photo/Bruna Prado, file)

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The world’s oldest international soccer tournament kicks off Thursday night – with Atlanta hosting the Copa América opener at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Lionel Messi and defending champions Argentina will begin their defense against Canada in what could be the final international tournament for the greatest of all time.

The 48th edition of the Copa América is taking place in 14 American cities. Although it is usually reserved for South American CONMEBOL teams, six teams from the CONCACAF region, in which Mexico and the United States play, will be present.

Do they stand a chance against the South American football powerhouse, or will Messi add another major trophy to his legendary career?

NPR’s Michel Martin spoke with Jon Arnold, a football journalist who runs the newsletter Get CONCACAfedand who will cover this year’s tournament.

Here’s what it monitors:

This could be Messi’s last international tournament

The Argentine and Inter Miami FC striker is approaching the twilight of his career. But Messi shows no signs of slowing down and his team are favorites to repeat their league title, says Arnold.

“Even though Messi is getting older in a football sense, he remains one of the best players in the world. He proved it in 2022 when Argentina won the World Cup. He proved it the year before when “Argentina won this tournament, the Copa América,” Arnold said.

What the U.S. Men’s National Team Needs to Prove

Arnold says the pressure is mostly on coach Gregg Berhalter, who hopes to lead the team to the 2026 World Cup, which the United States, Mexico and Canada will host.

If things don’t go well, Arnold says, “then a lot of people will say they could do a better job and ask for another manager.” So I really think the United States has a great chance to prove that it’s on the right track. But we could also see a team that perhaps needs different direction.

But does the USMNT have a chance of winning the tournament?

Arnold says he doesn’t really see the U.S. knocking out Argentina or winning the tournament, but the team has improved.

“When you look at this tournament, it’s Argentina and their pursuers. But if the United States is in that group, that’s progress,” Arnold said.

What other countries should viewers watch out for?

Arnold says he can’t wait to see Argentina’s neighbor Uruguay.

“It’s a small country, but they’ve really punched above their weight at the international football level,” Arnold said. “They’re going to play the United States in the group stage, then they’ll probably play Brazil (or) Colombia in the next round. I think this will be a really fun team to watch if you want to go a little further than the United States. »

Invited CONCACAF teams could also make for a more competitive tournament, Arnold says.

“The United States, Mexico and even countries like Costa Rica and Panama have shown they can compete with some of these bigger South American teams in recent international competitions,” Arnold said. “So I think it will add an extra element of difficulty for a lot of South American teams who want to win their continental championship.”

What is the structure?

The 16 teams are divided into four groups. Each team will play three matches in the group stage. The top two teams from each group will advance to the knockout stage.

The groups are:

Group A: Argentina, Canada, Chile, Peru

Group B: Ecuador, Jamaica, Mexico, Venezuela

Group C: Bolivia, Panama, United States, Uruguay

Group D: Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Paraguay

The final will take place on July 14 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.

How to watch:

The games will be broadcast on FOX, FS1 and FS2. Spanish-language broadcasts will be available on Univision, TUDN and UniMas.

The matches will also be broadcast on the Fox Sports app and in Spanish on Vix+, Univision’s streaming platform.

The digital version of this story was edited by Treye Green.