The Copa America! (By: Fleet)

BREAKING NEWS - We have been given a green light to run a Copa America tournament for teams from North and South America starting in Season Thirteen. This tournament will eventually belong to the CFIDA for North and South America (like a combination of CONCACAF and CONMEBOL). However, until the FIDA organizations are in place to run such a tournament, it will function much like the UFCL and the UFIC as an unofficial tournament.

The concept for this tournament is that it will NOT replace the UFCL or the UFIC. Those tournaments will continue on in their current form. We think that there should always be a place for the very best teams from around the world to play each other in a Worldwide tournament. 

We also think that the addition of a Copa America will enhance the FID experience for users in the Americas, and we are considering a tournament structure that is different from the UFCL and UFIC in order to give teams a different experience.

While the final design of the tournament has not been formalized, one leading concept is to offer a tournament for the Americas that is a knockout-style single elimination tournament. In the footballing world, often teams have three tournaments they are theoretically able to qualify for-- their National League tournament, a "Champion's League" tournament pitting the top teams against each other, and a National Cup that is often a single elimination knock-out format. The concept is that the Copa America would provide that third and final piece to the club-football experience-- although a bit more multinational.

We are also considering a tournament that would be open to all active teams that are playing in the 1A division for their national league. The tournament would likely be structured so that the teams that finished their previous season at the top of their league (and thus qualified for the UFCL and UFIC) will not enter the tournament until later... thus removing some congestion to their schedules (unless they play like Ursinhos Carinhosos F.C. and kick everyone's butt). Essentially, the higher the team finishes, the longer their bye will be before they enter the tournament. Thus the teams that will play each other will tend to be of a similar caliber, unless we get a few Cinderella tales along the way.

We have determined that it is best that the UFCL and UFIC to take priority in all match scheduling. The window of time for a team from the Americas to play a team from another place tends to be small. Therefore they will be able to schedule their matches and the UFCL and UFIC will always trump the Copa America. Also, while participation and success in the UFCL and UFIC will earn a team more coefficients, we have also determined that it is easier and simpler if the Copa America does not. Therefore no teams will earn any coefficients for wins or losses in the Copa America.

Season 13 will start very soon and there is a lot of work to be done-- both to organize this into a successful tournament, and also to then run this tournament. It is likely that we will make some mistakes, and so we encourage criticism along the way, so that we can continually make this into a better and better tournament that everyone in the Americas can enjoy and feel a part of.

This is a tournament that will be designed and run for the Americas by the Americas. It is still "unofficial" but we will need people to help in the process. I warn you now that this is not an insignificant commitment. Ask anyone who has been involved with the UFCL and UFIC and they will instantly warn you that it is a lot of work, and you are frequently criticized and rarely complimented for all your efforts. Scheduling the matches is time consuming. However, we believe that if we can have a good core of users willing to make this sacrifice we will have a successful tournament. 

Discussions about the possibility of this tournament have been ongoing for sometime with users from all across the Americas-- principally the GMs, KUGs, and FIDA members from different nations. However, this is a tournament that belongs to everyone and so anyone can participate if they are willing to work well with others as a group and can make the time commitment needed. Individuals should be patient and understand that criticism of their work by the community may occur, and that that as a positive and not a negative. Bilingual and multi-lingual individuals fluent in Portuguese, Spanish and English are a nice bonus.

With some luck and diligence, I firmly believe we will add an excellent new feature to the FID experience for those playing in the Americas.