Confederates gather for World Cup warm-up.
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- Written by Darren Douglas
Today the Confederations Cup gets under way in South Africa, this relatively recent addition to the international schedule will go on for the next two weeks as it continues to establish itself as a credible competition. The basic premise is that the tournament is represented by the spectrum of international teams who are the reigning champions of the other international competitions under FIFA's mandate (the respective confederation championships).
You may be surprised but this does amount to seven nations, with South Africa filling the eighth spot as the host nation. For full clarity the seven title holders are as follows:
Italy- 2006 World Cup Winners
Spain- 2008 European Championship Winners
Brazil- 2007 Copa America Winners
Egypt- 2008 African Nation Winners
Iraq- 2007 AFC Asian Cup Winners
USA- 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup Winners
New Zealand- 2008 OFC Nation Cup Winners.
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