Caribbean club competitions kick off in August

MIAMI (CMC):

Concacaf announced yesterday that 16 clubs from the Caribbean will play in the fifth edition of the Concacaf Caribbean Shield from August 3 to 13 in St Kitts & Nevis.

In addition, 10 clubs from the Caribbean will play in the five-month long Concacaf Caribbean Cup, which starts on August 22 and will qualify three teams for the new and expanded 2024 Concacaf Champions League.

According to a media release from Concacaf, the expanded Caribbean Shield tournament and the inaugural Caribbean Cup are part of the confederation’s work towards a long-term vision to professionalise the club game across the region.

“The ongoing growth and development of Caribbean club football is a major priority for Concacaf, and we are extremely pleased to announce the structure and format of the Caribbean Shield and the Concacaf Caribbean Cup which will qualify three teams into the new, expanded Concacaf Champions League,” Concacaf general secretary Philippe Moggio said.

So far, 15 of the 16 clubs have been confirmed for the Caribbean Shield, with the final participating club, from Trinidad & Tobago, to be confirmed by May 28.

The tournament will kick off with a group stage comprising four groups of four clubs each, and the four group winners will advance to the semi-finals after round-robin play.

The semi-final winners will feature in the final and secure a berth in the 2023 Concacaf Caribbean Cup.

The clubs that have been confirmed for the Shield are: SV Dakota (Aruba), Scholars International SC (Cayman Islands), CRKSV Jong Holland (Curacao), Sagicor South East FC (Dominica), OyM FC (Dominican Republic), Solidarité Scolaire (Guadeloupe), AS Etoile De Matoury (French Guiana), Waterhouse FC (Jamaica), B1 Football Club (St Lucia), Golden Lion (Martinique), Metropolitan FA (Puerto Rico), St Paul’s United FC (Saint Kitts and Nevis), Junior Stars (Saint Martin), SV Robinhood (Suriname), and SWA Sharks FC (Turks and Caicos Islands).

The official draw for the 2023 Concacaf Caribbean Shield will take place on June 8.

So far, six clubs have secured their participation in the Caribbean Cup, which will feature two groups of five clubs each that will play each of the other clubs in their group once, either at home or away.

They are: Cibao FC (Dominican Republic), Moca FC (Dominican Republic), Club Atletico Pantoja (Dominican Republic), Cavalier SC (Jamaica), Dunbeholden FC (Jamaica), and Harbour View FC (Jamaica).

KNOCKOUT STAGE

The two best clubs in each group will advance to the knockout stage, which will comprise three rounds (semi-finals, consolation final, and grand final), with the champions, runners-up and third-place finishers advancing to the new and expanded Concacaf Champions League, which will be played in the spring of 2024.

The Caribbean Cup Champions will receive a bye to the Concacaf Champions League Round of 16.

The remaining four participants will be confirmed at a later date, and they will include two Trinidadian clubs and the champions and runners-up of the Caribbean Shield.

Concacaf noted that Haitian clubs will not participate in the upcoming Concacaf club competitions because the domestic league in the island did not have any football activities last year and has not yet resumed play, so no teams have been able to qualify.

In addition, Concacaf said there were club licensing issues that needed to be settled.

As a result, the Dominican Republic and Jamaica have been awarded an additional berth in the competition, based on the performance of clubs in the past five editions.

Concacaf indicated the Caribbean Cup schedule windows: Group Stage – August 22 to 24 (week 1), August 29 to 31 (week 2), September 19 to 21 (week 3), September 26 to 28 (week 4), and October 3 to 5 (week 5).

For the semi-finals, Concacaf has slated them for October 24 to 26 (first legs), and October 31 to November 2 (second legs).

For the consolation and grand finals, November 28 to 30 (first legs), and December 5 to 7 (second legs) have been earmarked.

The official draw for the 2023 Concacaf Caribbean Cup will also take place on June 8.

The Concacaf media release also announced a format for the Champions League from next year that will feature 27 clubs.

The tournament will include five rounds (First Round, Second Round, Quarter-finals, Semi-finals, and Final) and will continue to be played in a direct elimination format.

Furthermore, there will be three regional cup competitions covering the three regions of the confederation – the Leagues Cup that will feature North American clubs, the Central American Cup for clubs out of that Latin American region, and the Caribbean Cup, all to be played in the fall of each year.

The three new Cup tournaments will qualify clubs for the expanded Champions League.