superbrad Posted April 3, 2009 Share Posted April 3, 2009 A stroll down Hollywood's Walk of Fame. A visit to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, to see the newly born Asian elephant calf. And to top it off, cocktails and salsa dancing at a hot South Beach night spot in Miami. The Canadian men's soccer team can do it all in one week during the first round of the Gold Cup this summer, thanks to the organizers' decision to host the 10th edition of the CONCACAF championship in a record 13 venues in the U.S. On Thursday, Canada found out its road map at the 12-team tournament which serves as the championship of North and Central America and the Caribbean. Should Canada advance and keep winning, its Gold Cup road journey could take it from Carson, Calif., on July 3 to Columbus, Ohio, Miami, Philadelphia or Dallas, Chicago and ultimately the July 26 final in East Rutherford, N.J. "The only thing missing on our trip is a Volkswagen van with a guitar," joked Victor Montagliani, vice-president of the Canadian Soccer Association. Compare that to 2000 when the Canadians' five-match championship road involved commuting between San Diego and Los Angeles. While praising CONCACAF for the growth in the tournament recently, Montagliani said: "I think they perhaps looked at the marketing and business aspects more than the technical football aspects. "I'm not sure too many of the coaches in CONCACAF right now are probably going 'That's great. We're getting on a plane after every game and sleeping in a different bed, training on a different pitch and playing in a different venue.' I'm sure not too many coaches are happy." At least CONCACAF pays for the travel and there is some prize money. The U.S., collected US$150,000 for winning last time out. Canada, ranked 94th in the world, has been drawn in Group A with No. 32 Costa Rica, No. 70 Jamaica and No. 106 El Salvador. Canada and Jamaica were in the same World Cup qualifying group last year, with Canada tying 1-1 at home and losing 3-0 away. Costa Rica and El Salvador are currently embroiled in the final round of qualifying in the region and are slated to play two matches each in June ahead of the Gold Cup. The Canadians will kick off the tournament against Jamaica on July 3 at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif., continuing with games against El Salvador on July 7 at Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, and Costa Rica on July 10 at Florida International University Stadium in Miami. Group B consists of Grenada, Haiti, Honduras, and the U.S. and will feature first-round play in Seattle, Washington, D.C., and Foxboro, Mass. Group C, comprising Guadeloupe, Mexico, Nicaragua and Panama, plays its games in Oakland, Calif., Houston and Phoenix. The top two teams from each group advance to the quarter-finals along with the two best third-place teams. There is no word yet on who will coach Canada in the wake of Dale Mitchell's firing. Assistant coach Stephen Hart, who handled the team at the 2007 tournament, is a logical choice to be given the coaching role again on an interim basis. "We're just working through that right now," Montagliani said. "Hopefully we'll have something sooner rather than later." Canada will warm up for the tournament with a May 30 friendly in Cyprus and Montagliani said they are working on another match against a CONCACAF opponent for the last weekend of June. Montagliani, meanwhile, said the CSA is already fielding calls about the freshly vacant managerial job. "The football world, as big as it is, is small too," he said. It had been thought Gold Cup organizers might place Canada in Seattle, given its proximity to the border but Chuck Blazer, CONCACAF's general secretary, said it was just a matter of rotation. Instead the U.S. will open in Seattle against Grenada on July 4 at Qwest Field in the second half of a doubleheader that kicks off with Honduras-Haiti. Blazer said while the additional venues are costing organizers more, they believe the wider reach allows more fans to get involved. He also noted their research had shown that "the overall cost of attending events was starting to get to the point that people couldn't afford to go to two games successively with the same teams, they would make a choice." Gold Cup games will be played on synthetic surfaces in four stadiums: Seattle, Miami, Foxboro and Dallas. Grass will be laid over the existing artificial surface for the final in Giants Stadium. The Gold Cup was played in six different cities in its two most recent editions, including two venues in the Los Angeles area in 2005 (Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and Home Depot Center). Canada made it to the semifinals in the 2007 tournament, losing to the U.S. 2-1 before more than 50,000 at Soldier Field. The Canadians, under manager Holger Osieck, won the event in 2000 and finished third in 2002. Osieck quit in 2003 after Canada crashed out in the first round. Canada also failed to make the knockout rounds in 2005. Copyright © 2009 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved. http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5j_PPDSJ8IEomxi89Zc7-hI1qKq2A Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loyola Posted April 3, 2009 Share Posted April 3, 2009 Canada will warm up for the tournament with a May 30 friendly in Cyprus and Montagliani said they are working on another match against a CONCACAF opponent for the last weekend of June. Let's hope this happen.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superbrad Posted April 3, 2009 Author Share Posted April 3, 2009 quote:Originally posted by loyola Canada will warm up for the tournament with a May 30 friendly in Cyprus and Montagliani said they are working on another match against a CONCACAF opponent for the last weekend of June. Let's hope this happen.... The other interesting quote... Montagliani, meanwhile, said the CSA is already fielding calls about the freshly vacant managerial job. "The football world, as big as it is, is small too," he said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Can. in UK Posted April 3, 2009 Share Posted April 3, 2009 quote:Originally posted by superbrad The other interesting quote... Montagliani, meanwhile, said the CSA is already fielding calls about the freshly vacant managerial job. "The football world, as big as it is, is small too," he said. Anyone want to take a guess at what he's saying there? Does he mean: "There are loads of coaches out there but the only ones calling (and the only ones interested) are people we've already interviewed in the recent past"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Posted April 3, 2009 Share Posted April 3, 2009 quote:Originally posted by Can. in UK Anyone want to take a guess at what he's saying there? Does he mean: "There are loads of coaches out there but the only ones calling (and the only ones interested) are people we've already interviewed in the recent past"? I think basically he's saying. Don't yell at us if we hire Hart. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El Hombre Posted April 3, 2009 Share Posted April 3, 2009 quote:Originally posted by Can. in UK Anyone want to take a guess at what he's saying there? Does he mean: "There are loads of coaches out there but the only ones calling (and the only ones interested) are people we've already interviewed in the recent past"? Hmm...I took it a different way in that he's surprised that the news travelled so quickly. I thought it was a positive. But that just might be due to my hopeless naivete and optimism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red card Posted April 3, 2009 Share Posted April 3, 2009 Montagliani did mention last night on the fan590 soccer show that he's looking to change the culture of soccer in Canada - in the same vein as their hiring of Morace for the women's team. When Bob chastised him for taking too long to fire Mitchell, Montagliani mentioned that he hoped people (I'm assuming he is implying others at CSA) take this as a lesson learned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gian-Luca Posted April 3, 2009 Share Posted April 3, 2009 quote:Originally posted by El Hombre Hmm...I took it a different way in that he's surprised that the news travelled so quickly. I thought it was a positive. But that just might be due to my hopeless naivete and optimism. Perhaps - but that's the interpretation that I had as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villus Posted April 3, 2009 Share Posted April 3, 2009 I will probably be going to the game at Home Depot center, hopefully Canada can get more games in the Californian zone (selfish I know). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loud Mouth Soup Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 quote:Originally posted by Can. in UK Does he mean: "There are loads of coaches out there but the only ones calling (and the only ones interested) are people we've already interviewed in the recent past"? "Hello?" "Hey Victor, it's Dale. Filled my job yet?" "No." "Can I...can I have it back?" "No." "......oh. Okay. I'll call back in a week then, okay?" "......" "Victor? Hello? Are you there?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tuscan Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Alright hold on a second. Who the F*CK is this tournament being set up for??!!? Honestly, as little as it should honestly matter, we aren't getting a single game anywhere near the Canadian border (aside from Columbus)! The US is playing in Seattle. The Sounders have just debuted in MLS. How af*ckingbout that?? This f*cking competition is a f*cking SHAM! Does the US hold THAT MUCH control over CONCACAF??! This is a bloody f*cking joke! This tournament is doing nothing but benefit the USSF while ripping off everyone else in CONCACAF. And don't tell me that it is all good and swell that we are at least playing games between WCQ! The money matters more at this point than the playing time. Plain and simple. This is sh*t. Straight up. When does Canadian Gill get a lick of the ring? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest speedmonk42 Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Just think of the money they are pissing away by not having the likes of Canada - Jamaica - ect.... in Toronto or Montreal. Pretty much every game save US and Mexico would outsell any venue in the states here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prizby Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 i hope Canada will host a pre-Gold Cup game! its a shame that they never host exhibition games Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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