Defending CONCACAF Gold Cup champion USA placed in Group A for 2015

CHICAGO (Via U.S. Soccer) – The U.S. Men’s National Team will begin its title defense and open Group A action of the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup against the winner of the Honduras/French Guiana playoff on Tuesday, July 7, at 9:30 p.m. ET, at Toyota Park in Frisco, Texas.

The winner of the two-game playoff between Honduras and French Guiana will be determined after the two teams face each other on March 25 and 29.

Following the tournament’s opening match on July 7, the U.S. will go on to play Haiti on Friday, July 10, at 8:30 p.m. ET at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Three days later, it will wrap up group play against Panama on Monday, July 13, at 8:30 p.m. CT at Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kansas.

As defending champion from the 2013 event, a win this summer would guarantee the United States as the CONCACAF representative in the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup in Russia. Otherwise, the U.S. would face the 2015 winner in a playoff. The format and schedule will be announced in the future.

“Right away it puts you on your toes and you have to start the competition focused, concentrated and determined from the first game on,” said USA head coach Jurgen Klinsmann. “Having Panama in there – who we played the final against in the last Gold Cup – and most likely Honduras are very strong teams. We also have a close look at Haiti. We badly want to win this tournament because we want to qualify for Russia 2017. This is huge to us. The best way to do this is to win this summer so we avoid a playoff game in October.”

U.S. MNT’s 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup Schedule

• Full 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup Schedule

A total of 13 North American cities will host matches throughout the event – Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Toronto.

If the U.S. advances out of the group stage in first or second place, its quarterfinal match would take place on Saturday, July 18, at either 5 or 8 p.m. ET, at M&T Bank Field in Baltimore, Maryland. A third-place finish would see the United States at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Sunday, July 19, at 4:30 p.m. ET. The semifinals will take place on Wednesday, July 22, at 6 and 9 p.m. ET, at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. The third-place match and final will be held in Philadelphia, with the third-place game taking place on Saturday, July 25, at 4 p.m. ET at PPL Park and the Gold Cup Final on Sunday, July 26, at 7:30 p.m. ET at Lincoln Financial Field.

The 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup will run from July 7-26, with the 12 participating nations divided into three groups. Group B consists of Canada, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Jamaica, while Group C is made up of Cuba, Guatemala, Mexico and Trinidad & Tobago. The top two teams from each group advance to the quarterfinals, along with the two of the three third-place finishers.

Additional Notes:

• The U.S. has won the CONCACAF Gold Cup five times, second behind Mexico’s six titles.
• The U.S. has reached the final in the past five competitions.
• The U.S. has an all-time record of 5-6-5 against Haiti, with 22 goals scored and 19 goals against. Of their 16 games, 13 took place from 1954-1983. In the three most recent games against Haiti (2000, 2004, 2009), the MNT holds a 1-0-2 record.
• The last time the USA faced Haiti, a 2-2 draw, the teams also met at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough.
• The MNT has faced Panama in the knockout phase of the last five Gold Cups, including twice in the final. On July 28, 2013, a goal by Brek Shea lifted the U.S. to a 1-0 victory in the championship match. Panama holds the distinction of handing the U.S. its only defeat in Gold Cup group play, a 2-1 loss on June 11, 2011, in Tampa, Florida. A total of 13 of the 15 meetings between the two teams have come in either the CONCACAF Gold Cup or FIFA World Cup Qualifying. In those games, the U.S. holds a 10-1-2 record.
• The U.S. and Haiti have not faced each other since the 2009 Gold Cup when both teams were placed into Group B and played on July 11 in Foxborough. After an early goal from Davy Arnaud gave the U.S. the 1-0 lead, the U.S. fell behind 2-1 early in the second half. However, Stuart Holden was able to score the equalizer in the second minute of stoppage time to allow the USA to clinch first place in the group with a 2-2 draw and advance to the quarterfinals . Their only other matchup in a Gold Cup came on Feb. 12, 2000, in Miami. The USA won the group stage game 3-0 with goals from Cobi Jones, Eric Wynalda and Jovan Kirovski. The MNT holds a 5-6-5 record against Haiti with 13 of those 16 matchups taking place from 1954-83.
• Against Honduras, the U.S. holds a 14-4-4 record and the two sides have faced each other six times in CONCACAF Gold Cup play. In those games, the U.S. holds a dominant 5-0-1 record. The last Gold Cup matchup came on July 24, 2013, when the MNT defeated Honduras 3-1 in the semifinal behind two goals from Landon Donovan and one from Eddie Johnson to advance to the title game against Panama. Most recently, both sides met in Boca Raton, Florida, on Oct. 14, 2014. Jozy Altidore was the sole scorer for the U.S. during the 1-1 draw.
• The United States and French Guiana have never faced each other.