Copa America

The Copa America is an international association football competition contested by the ten South American confederation sides, as well as two invitees from neighbouring FIFA confederations. In the past this has meant that countries as wide-ranging as Costa Rica, USA, Mexico, Japan and Honduras have featured in the competition, further adding to its global appeal. 

Two trophies are awarded at the end of the competition; the Copa América is given to the winner, while the Copa Bolivia is awarded to the runner-up. Uruguay are both the current champions and also the most successful team in the event's history, having lifted the trophy on fifteen occasions, with Argentina second and Brazil third with fourtenn and eight titles respectively.

Following the tournament's conception in its original form as the 'Campeonato Sudamericano de Football' in 1916, the tournament is now the oldest international football competition in the world, and has been held a total of 43 times.

Somewhat predictably given the geographical location of the tournament, the Copa America has not enjoyed a smooth and untroubled past. In 1930, following the inaugural World Cup in which Uruguay triumphed over Argentina in a bad-tempered final, it was impossible to hold the competition again until 1935 over fears for the players' and supporters' safety. This was followed by disruption over scheduling in the 1950s, with the event being staged sporadically, ranging between once every four years, to twice in 1959, leading to a perceived cheapening of the tournament with some nations eventually sending out weakened squads.

The success of the newly-founded club competition, the Copa Libertadores de América, also served to further weaken the international game's appeal, but in 1975, following an eight-year hiatus, the South American Championship re-emerged in its now format as the 'Copa America'.

This new tournament had no fixed venue, and all of its matches were played throughout the calendar year in each competing country. Three teams out of the nine participating in the group stages went through to the knock-out stages, where they would join the defending champions who had been awarded a bye into the semifinals. This format proved popular, and the tournament was contested every four years in this way until 1987.

From 1987-2001, the event was hosted every two years in rotation by the ten members of the confederation, and from 2001 it was moved to being held once every three years. The next tournament will be held in Chile in 2015, as 2014 is a World Cup year.

For all the latest Copa America Betting Tips place check out betting.betfair