Canada has been drawn in a group with Guatemala, Cuba and a preliminary qualifier still to be determined for the Gold Cup this summer, it was revealed on Friday afternoon.
Guatemala is currently ranked 116th by FIFA in the men's rankings and Cuba 165th and will be joining Canada — ranked 47th — in Group D for the tournament.
It's expected that Canada will play at BMO Field, recently named as one of 15 host stadiums for this summer's tournament, where the Canadian men have not lost since September 2010 when they were beaten 2-0 by Peru. Canada has gone 15-0-6 at the lakefront stadium since, outscoring the opposition 54-6.
As defending champions, the U.S. was seeded in Group A, and was joined by Jamaica, Nicaragua, and a to-be-determined qualifier. Mexico, 12th in the world, heads up Group B, joined by Haiti, Honduras, and invitee Qatar. Costa Rica, No. 34 and the third-ranked team in CONCACAF, tops Group C, joined by Panama, El Salvador, and a qualifier.
The fourth team to join Canada in Group D will be one of Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guyana or Trinidad and Tobago, who must play first in order to advance past the qualifying round. All in all, it was a good result for Canada, as they avoided several of the higher-ranked CONCACAF teams in their group, as well as the recent World Cup host Qataris.
The 17th edition of the Gold Cup is scheduled for June 24 through July 16, with 15 stadiums in 14 cities. It will be preceded by a 12-team qualifying competition June 16-20.
The Gold Cup final will be held July 16 at Los Angeles’ SoFi Stadium with details on other venues to be announced after Friday's draw at the home of the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams and Chargers.
— With files from The Associated Press
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