The Costa Rica Men’s National Football Team, affectionately known as La Sele, finished 2014 as the highest-ranked CONCACAF squad in the world, and they are now looking forward to the 2015 Gold Cup tournament, which will be hosted in the United States and Canada. La Sele will also play in the latter nation next year as Toronto will be the host city of the 2015 Pan American Games.

While La Sele has enjoyed a fairy tale year in terms of international football, it is also important to note that the Costa Rica Women’s National Football Team, affectionately known as Las Ticas, also had a strong performance in 2014, and they will proudly represent our country in the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup, which will be hosted in Canada.

The following press release is being published courtesy of FIFA:

 

USA, Costa Rica, Mexico seeded for 2015 Gold Cup

Holders USA, Costa Rica and Mexico were installed on Tuesday as the top seeded teams for the three first-round groups of the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

CONCACAF, football’s governing body for North and Central America and the Caribbean, announced the seeds for the region’s marquee tournament along with the 13 North American cities that will host games.

The schedule will include an historic double-header in Canada, at the Toronto stadium that will also be utilised for the 2015 Pan American Games. Other venues for the 12-nation tournament are a mix of NFL stadiums and football-specific stadiums of Major League Soccer clubs.

 

• The United States, leading the way in Group A, will open the tournament on 7 July at Toyota Stadium in Dallas, followed by games at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, and Sporting Park in Kansas City.
• Costa Rica in Group B will open at the StubHub Center in Los Angeles and also play matches in Houston and Toronto.
• Mexico in Group C will play at Soldier Field in Chicago, University of Phoenix Stadium in Phoenix and in Charlotte.

 

Atlanta, Philadelphia, Baltimore and MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, will all host knockout round matches. Complete groups and schedule will be announced early next year.

Eleven teams have qualified for next year’s tournament: Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Trinidad and Tobago and USA. The final spot will be decided in March through a play-off between Honduras and French Guyana.

The biennial tournament is the official national team championship of the region.