102512_messilionel_isi_usmntbs032611300 Brad Smith/isiphotos.com
Copa America 2016?

Lionel Messi, Neymar, Etc. May Be Coming to U.S.

CONMEBOL is in talks to bring Copa America to the United States in four years. We have a long way to go before it's a reality, but this could happen, folks.
BY Noah Davis Posted
October 25, 2012
5:24 AM
Hide the wife and kids. Actually, bring them to a soccer game. A really good soccer game.

There's an increasing possibility that the United States will host a special 2016 Copa America between the already scheduled 2015 and 2019 event. The tentative plans call for a 16-team tournament featuring 10 South American squads and six from CONCACAF, including the U.S. and Mexico.

That means Lionel Messi, Neymar, Radamel Falcao, and so on battling the Stars and Stripes and the Tricolores in front of hundreds of thousands of fans. Sounds pretty cool, right?

Hang on a second. The details are not close to done. CONMEBOL officials announced the news yesterday in what smells like a classic "If we say it's going to happen, someone will have to make it happen" gambit. Grant Wahl reports there is plenty more to work out and that U.S. Soccer will issue a release later today.

One of the problems is the timing, which is set for July. In other words, right after the European Championship. Are clubs going to release their players? Probably not.

But details, details. Those come later. For now, let's just enjoy what might come to pass. You know like Argentina 4-3 Brazil on American soil.

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