Q2 Stadium, home of Austin FC, has been awarded a 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal match to take place in July 2021.
Following the announcement of the FIFA Women’s World Cup Champion U.S. Women’s National Team (USWNT) exhibition match against Nigeria on Wednesday, June 16, Q2 Stadium will host Austin’s first-ever official men’s and women’s international soccer matches.
The 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup will feature 16 national teams, 12 of which have qualified via the 2019-20 CONCACAF Nations League. This includes the six-time champion U.S. Men’s National Team (USMNT) and 11-time champion Mexican Men’s National Team.
They will be joined by the 2019 AFC Asian Cup champions and 2022 FIFA World Cup host, Qatar, and three additional teams qualifying via the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup Qualifiers taking place on July 6, 2021.
The 2021 Gold Cup will officially kick off with a new Preliminary Round at DRV PNK Stadium. Twelve nations who qualified through CONCACAF Nations League will compete for the final three spots in the 16 team Gold Cup Group Stage. The Round One and Two matchups were drawn on September 10, 2020.
The current groups for the 2021 Gold Cup are outlined below:
- Group A: Mexico, El Salvador, Curacao, and Winner Prelims 9
- Group B: USA, Canada, Martinique, and Winner Prelims 7
- Group C: Costa Rica, Jamaica, Suriname, and Winner Prelims 8
- Group D: Honduras, Panama, Grenada, and Qatar
In a significant format development, all final group stage matches will be played concurrently. This will create an even more compelling spectacle as the teams compete to reach the knockout stage.
At the end of Group Stage play, the top two finishers in each group will advance to a knockout stage. The knockout stage will be played as follows:
- Quarterfinal #1: Winner Group D vs Second Place Group A
- Quarterfinal #4: Winner Group B vs Second Place Group C
- Quarterfinal #2: Winner Group A vs Second Place Group D
- Quarterfinal #3: Winner Group C vs Second Place Group B
- Semifinal #1: Winner Quarterfinal #1 vs Winner Quarterfinal #4
- Semifinal #2: Winner Quarterfinal #2 vs Winner Quarterfinal #3
Final: Winner Semifinal #1 vs Winner SF #2
CONCACAF has also announced the other dates and venues for the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds of the 2021 Gold Cup with Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada to host the final match.
CONCACAF will announce the schedule, ticketing information, and other details in the coming weeks.