The year 2024 was an eventful one in the Concacaf region both on and off the field. Qualifying for FIFA World Cup 26™ started with teams from around the Caribbean and Central America in hot pursuit of one of the three automatic bids at stake, plus two play-off berths.

Liga MX side Pachuca stood tall among all their peers by capturing the Concacaf Champions Cup to earn spots in both the FIFA Club World Cup 2025™ and the FIFA Intercontinental Cup 2024™.

The CONMEBOL Copa America 2024 held in the USA brought sour ends for the host nation and neighbors Mexico, however Canada enjoyed a semi-final finish. Meanwhile, in the women’s game, USA returned to the top of the Olympic podium by winning the gold at Paris 2024.

World Cup qualifying
The first round of qualifying in March produced history-making results, as both Anguilla and British Virgin Islands eliminated Turks & Caicos Islands and US Virgin Islands respectively to advance past a round in qualifying for the first time.

Thirty teams split into six groups of five started the second round in June, with each team playing two matches. While it was no surprise to see World Cup stalwarts like Costa Rica and Central American giants Honduras and Panama enjoy strong starts, several teams hoping to reach a first World Cup, or return to the global showpiece for the first time in decades, made emphatic statements.

Curacao and Haiti each flexed their scoring muscles to collect maximum points from Group C, while Nicaragua have their fans dreaming after winning their first two contests in Group D. The same can be said for Guatemala in Group E, as they sit atop the standings. Group F will be intriguing until the end, as hopefuls Suriname and Puerto Rico are poised to do something special.

Continental competitions
The attention in the region shifted to the Concacaf Nations League Finals in March, when 2026 co-hosts USA and Mexico overcame challenges from Jamaica and Panama respectively in the semi-finals to set up a date in the final. In the decider, goals from Tyler Adams and Gio Reyna paved the way for a 2-0 USA victory and a Nations League ‘three-peat’.

In June, the race to secure the final berth from the Concacaf region in the 2025 Club World Cup and the Intercontinental Cup 2024 came down to the 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup final on 1 June between Liga MX stalwarts Pachuca and 2023 Major League Soccer (MLS) champions Columbus Crew. The night belonged to Pachuca, as Venezuela international Salomon Rondon scored a pair of goals in a 3-0 triumph.

Pachuca would then go on to make a spirited run at the FIFA Intercontinental Cup 2024™, defeating CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores champions Botafogo of Brazil and African champions Al Ahly of Egypt to reach the final before falling to Spanish titans Real Madrid in the final.

The 2024 CONMEBOL Copa America proved mostly frustrating for the six Concacaf nations involved. USA and Mexico crashed out in the group stage, prompting coaching changes, as USA turned to Mauricio Pochettino and Mexico appointed Javier Aguirre. Jamaica and Costa Rica also fell short of progressing to the knockouts, but that wasn’t the case for Canada and Panama. Under new boss Jesse Marsch, the Canadians reach the semi-finals before finishing fourth, while Panama made the final eight.