These are the facts that make the European Championship and Copa America so different
Víctor García
July 12, 2024

This Sunday, ‘Planet Football‘ is getting ready to enjoy -or suffer- a double dose of finals. The top trophies of European and American football will be raised in the hands of the captain of the winning team. Berlin (Spain-England) and Miami (Colombia-Argentina) will have the privilege of staging the usual faces of the definitions: ecstasy and dismay, glory and drama, tears of success or failure. But the Copa America and the European Championship, beyond the similarity of the instance, exhibit no minor differences, starting with the economic aspect.

One of the aspects that distinguish both competitions is the economic aspect, reflected in the prizes to be distributed among the participating countries. UEFA earmarked 331 million euros (more than 355 million dollars) to be distributed among the 24 teams competing in the European Championship. For the mere fact of participating, each team earns 9.25 million euros and, in addition to the amount added for advancing to the next round, prizes are also awarded for each matchday, as the winner receives 1 million euros for each match won and half a million euros per team in the event of a tie.

MORE THAN 30 MILLION FOR SPAIN AND ENGLAND

The teams of Spain and England, protagonists of the final in Berlin, will receive a figure of about 28 million euros with the sum of everything they have accumulated along the way. To this must be added the 8 million euros for the champion and 5 million euros for the runner-up. The America’s Cup in the United States, by contrast, allocated 72 million dollars in prizes – a difference of 250 million – to the participating federations. For the mere fact of competing, each team receives US$2 million (US$8 million less compared to the European teams), while the prizes will obviously increase as the round progresses. The runner-up team will earn an estimated US$7 million by adding the winnings from the previous rounds. And the champion will take home a total figure of around $16 million, less than half of what the European champion will pocket.

BEST FIFA RANKING IN EUROPE

In terms of competition, the first difference lies in the number of participants, 24 teams in the Euro (the first time there are so many teams) and 16 in the Copa America. In other words, the European champion will have successfully jumped 7 hurdles to reach the title, while the American champion 6, a greater number of minutes of play that is amplified if we add the extensions (an instance that the Copa America only considers for the final). But it is not only the quantitative aspect, but also the qualitative aspect, comparing the higher average FIFA ranking of the teams that have taken part in Germany, compared to those that came to the United States.

Messi in action. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/Shutterstock)

THE FINALISTS’ OPPONENTS

Spain reach the Olympic Stadium in Berlin having beaten Germany (the hosts) in the quarterfinals and France in the semifinals, as well as leaving Italy behind in the group stage. The English, meanwhile, eliminated the surprising Switzerland and the ever-candidates Netherlands at the same stage. Argentina, defending champion of the Copa América, is undefeated going into the final, with four wins (Canada, Chile and Peru in the group stage) and one draw (a draw with Ecuador in the quarterfinals, which was settled on penalties). And then a repeat victory over Canada (including a 2-0 win), the most unlikely of the semifinalists. Colombia, the other protagonist of the final, has not only maintained its long unbeaten record in the tournament, but also won its group, displacing Brazil to second place, and beating Uruguay in the semifinals; in other words, two candidates for the title. Beyond the victory over the inexperienced Panama in the quarterfinals, it is worth mentioning that the Cafeteros are looking forward to Sunday’s decisive match.

VETERAN vs. YOUTH

In terms of individual stars, the captains of the Miami final will be competing for the throne of the tournament’s star player. As usual, which is not the same as fair, the star of the champion will be celebrating twice on Sunday. Leo Messi, who is 37, and James Rodriguez, who just turned 33 this week, are the candidates to lift the trophy and become the star of the tournament.

On German soil, the generational contrast is notorious, since apart from many emerging figures such as Frenchman Zaire Emery (18) or Portuguese Neves (19), among the candidates for the best player of the Euro, who will be on the field this Sunday, 21-year-old Englishman Bellingham and Spanish youth Lamine Yamal (17 years old as of Saturday), who became an immovable piece, adding talent, technique and magic to a gear that works, just like the Spanish. It is true that there are some stars in America to be excited about, but they are not yet candidates to compete for the center with Lio and James, leaders of the finalists of the Copa America 2024. This is the opposite scenario to that of European soccer in the midst of a generational change.

Apart from other differences, such as the quality of the pitches and the crowds in the stadiums, aspects that also favor the Old World competition, everything confirms that the Euro and the Copa America are still far apart. In the current version of the competition held in the USA, CONMEBOL incorporated 6 CONCACAF teams through a qualifying stage, which has resulted in more matches, but not necessarily in more competitiveness. In fact, several of these teams are very discreet in soccer and participate to increase the number of countries in the Copa America, but not necessarily to make the continental competition more competitive.

THE EXCITEMENT AND PASSION IS THE SAME

This Sunday, the differences will not matter for the teams lifting the trophies on both sides of the Atlantic. Alvaro Morata representing “La Furia Roja” or Harry Kane representing the “3 Lions” team will feel the same as their eventual Miami revelry colleagues, the experienced and talented Messi and Rodriguez. These wide economic and competitive gaps separating the two trophies will be erased on Sunday. The emotions of those celebrating, whether in Buenos Aires or Bogota, will be exactly the same as those in Cibeles or Trafalgar Square. After all, football, for those who celebrate or mourn (whether on the pitch, in the stands or on the streets) after the carousel of emotions of a final, the cup won or lost will always have the same weight on the scales of passions.

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