On Monday, Levi’s Stadium was named as one of 13 host sites across the United States for the 2023 Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football's Gold Cup.
The Gold Cup, North America’s biennial soccer championship (akin to the European Championships or Copa América), will be held from June 16 through July 16, with the championship to be played at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.
Sixteen teams compete in the tournament, spread across four groups of four. The top two in each group advance to the knockout stage. Thirteen of the 16 spots in the tournament have already been determined, with the United States, Mexico, Canada and Costa Rica holding the top four spots. Fifteen of the teams will be from North America; Qatar was invited as a guest to round out the field.
Potential matchups to be played at Levi’s will likely be determined on Friday, when the draw is to be held to determine the groups.
The Santa Clara stadium is no stranger to hosting international soccer; it hosted the 2017 Gold Cup Final, which the United States won 2-1 against underdog Jamaica. Levi’s also hosted four games during Copa América Centenario, a special edition of the tournament featuring teams from both North and South America, in 2016. Colombia defeated the United States 2-0 in the tournament’s opening match, which featured pregame performances by J Balvin and Jason Derulo, and Mexico fell 7-0 to Chile in the quarterfinals before a crowd of 70,547, some of which threw trash on the field in response to Mexico’s dreadful performance. Mexico also played an exhibition against Colombia in Santa Clara in advance of the 2022 World Cup, losing 3-2 after taking an early 2-0 lead.
The stadium has already been selected as one of the 16 host sites for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Additionally, Copa América will once again be held in the United States in 2024, serving as a tuneup for some of the World Cup venues, so it’s possible that Levi’s will also be selected as a host site for the Western Hemisphere’s biggest soccer tournament. Three of the four games that Levi’s hosted during the 2016 tournament drew in excess of 67,000 fans; the lone exception was a dead rubber between Uruguay and Jamaica.
The San Francisco 49ers are seeking to borrow $125 million to upgrade the stadium ahead of the 2026 World Cup, with hopes that those upgrades can also attract Super Bowl LX in February of that same year. The stadium previously hosted Super Bowl 50 in 2016.
Club soccer will also be played at Levi’s Stadium in the coming months. The venue is set to host the San Jose Earthquakes for their May 6 Major League Soccer match against defending MLS Cup Champions Los Angele Football Club.