The 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup - Full Preview

The 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, is an association football tournament for national teams, currently held every four years by FIFA and the 2013 competition will be the 9th tournament of its kind. It will be held held in Brazil from the 15th to 30th June, as a prelude to the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

It is contested by the holders of each of the six FIFA confederation championships (UEFA, CONMEBOL, CONCACAF, CAF, AFC, OFC), along with the FIFA World Cup holder and the host nation, to bring the number of teams up to eight.

The tournament was originally organised by and held in Saudi Arabia and called the King Fahd Cup (Confederations Winners Cup or Intercontinental Championship), contested in 1992 and 1995 by the Saudi national side and some continental champions. In 1997, FIFA took over the organisation of the tournament, named it the FIFA Confederations Cup and staged the competition every two years.

Since 2005, it has been held every four years, in the year prior to each World Cup in the host country of the forthcoming World Cup. Considered a dress-rehearsal for the World Cup it precedes, it uses around half of the stadia intended for use at the following year's competition and gives the host nation, who qualifies for that tournament automatically, experience at a high level of competition during two years of otherwise friendlies. At the same time, participation was made optional for the South American and European champions.

Brazil is the most successful nation in the cup's history, winning the tournament a record three times in 1997, 2005 and 2009 and were also runners-up in 1999. France have won the tournament twice, in 2001 and 2003. Argentina, Mexico and Denmark have each won the competition on one occasion.

Brazil's players celebrate their Confederations Cup success in 2009 in South Africa

Generally, the host nation, the World Cup holders, and the six continental champions qualify for the competition. In those cases where a team meets more than one of the qualification criteria, another team is invited to participate.

Italy were awarded a spot in the 2013 competition because Spain had won both the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2012 UEFA Euro Championships. Since both competitions award their winners a place in the FIFA Confederations Cup, the runner-up of UEFA Euro 2012 received an invitation to the tournament.

2013 Qualified teams:

Brazil - Hosts
Spain - 2010 FIFA World Cup winner
Japan - 2011 AFC Asian Cup winner
Mexico - 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup winner
Uruguay - 2011 Copa América winner
Tahiti - 2012 OFC Nations Cup winner
Italy - 2012 UEFA Euro runners-up
Nigeria - 2013 Africa Cup of Nations winner

Group A: Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Italy

Group B: Spain, Uruguay, Tahiti, Nigeria

Brazil and Japan open proceedings on Saturday 15th June at Brasília's Estádio Nacional while Spain and Uruguay raise the Group B curtain at Recife's Arena Pernambuco on Sunday 16th June.

Seventeen British-based players have been named in provisional squads ahead of the 2013 tournament, and they are as follows:

Spain: Fernando Torres and Juan Mata (both Chelsea), Pepe Reina (Liverpool), Santi Cazorla (Arsenal), David Silva and Jesús Navas (both Manchester City).

Japan: Shinji Kagawa (Manchester United) and Maya Yoshida (Southampton).

Uruguay: Luis Suárez and Sebastián Coates (both Liverpool), Gastón Ramírez (Southampton).

Brazil: Julio Cesar (QPR), David Luiz and Oscar (both Chelsea).

Mexico: Javier Hernández (Manchester United, right)

Nigeria: John Obi Mikel (Chelsea) and Efe Ambrose (Celtic).

All-time Confederations Cup top scorers:

Cuauhtémoc Blanco (Mexico) 9 goals
Ronaldinho (Brazil) 9 goals
Adriano (Brazil) 7 goals
Romário (Brazil) 7 goals                        
Marzouk Al-Otaibi (Saudi Arabia) 6 goals

Stadium Venues:                                                    

Six stadiums venues are to be used, each in a different city. The Maracanã, Rio de Janerio (Capacity: 78,639), The National Stadium, Brasilia (Capacity: 72,000), The Arena Pernambuco, Recife (Capacity: 46,000), The Fonte Nova, Salvador  (Capacity: 50,433), Estadio Governador Magalhães Pinto, Belo Horizonte (Capacity: 62,160), The Castelão Arena, Fortaleza (Capacity: 63,903).

All the teams and and the players to watch out for in more detail:

Brazil: (World rank 22) The Home squad is a wild card, simply because of its youth. Coach Felipe Scolari ignored veterans like Kaka and Ronaldinho, meaning that the pressure will shift to Neymar and Leandro Damiao. No one knows if this club is ready for prime time as Neymar has been inconsistent with his national team in recent outings. This is the first time he is facing major European competition in a tournament.

Italy: (World rank 8) The Italians are in this tournament thanks to a second place finish at the Euro Cup. The team still sports grizzled veterans such as midfield general Andrea Pirlo and veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, the Juventus and Italian nation team captain. It also includes a more mature Mario Balotelli (right) that has stepped up his game in recent months, since his January move back to Italy, scoring 12 goals in 13 games for AC Milan. This team is more youthful than Spain and that alone could propel them in this competition.

Uruguay: (World rank 19) The two-time World Cup winners have been in steady decline since winning the 2011 Copa America tournament in Argentina. Uruguay's strength in recent years has been their attack and this tournament will be no exception.
Tabarez will have the luxury of choosing between Luis Suarez, Edinson Cavani, Diego Forlan and Abel Hernandez to front his team.

Spain: (World rank 1) The defending World Cup champions are undoubtedly the stand out team in this tournament. They showcase much of the same roster that earned them the 2012 Euro Cup and will be hungry to reinstate Spain as the world's top soccer country after the dual embarrassments endured by Real Madrid and Barcelona in the Champions league.
Nineteen players remain in the squad from last summer's Euros, and 18 from the 2010 World Cup. The biggest question surrounding the team will be its forward situation. Manager Vicente Del Bosque won the Euro Cup without a striker. His top options include David Villa and Fernando Torres, but neither has been reliable over the last year. Sergio Ramos (right) is the defensive rock for 'La Roja,' allowing those in front of him to play with freedom.

Japan: (World rank 32) The Samurai's have steadily improved their status in World Soccer and enter the tournament with qualification for the 2014 World Cup all but secure. CSKA Moscow's Keisuke Honda and manchester United's Shinji Kagawa pulls the creative strings in the Japanese midfield. They are drawn into a group with Spain, Tahiti, and Nigeria - this alone gives them a huge advantage in this tournament moving forward.

Nigeria: (World ranking 31) The 'Super Eagles' have experienced something of a renaissance in the past two years under manager Stephen Keshi. winning the 2013 African Cup of Nations in February with a 1-0 victory over Burkina Faso in the final.
They are also well-placed in their quest for a 2014 World Cup berth, heading Africa's Group F with eight points from four matches in the second round of qualifiers. Nigeria's Confederations Cup squad includes Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel, Maccabi Tel Aviv goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama and Dynamo Kiev forward Brown Ideye (right) who notched 21 times for the Ukrainian outfit this season. With with 'Africa Cup of Nations' top-scorer Emmanuel Emenike injured, Ideye needs to shine!

Mexico: (World rank 17) 'El Tri' have been terrible in CONCACAF competition, but still sports a team filled with elite players like Javier Hernandez, Giovanni Dos Santos and Cruz Azul's José Corona, who captained the victorious Olympic squad and has established himself as Mexico's number one goalkeeper. The team needs those three to step up as the squad's recent performances in qualifying have not been promising or inspiring.

Tahiti: (World rank 138) The tiny Pacific island-nation earned a ticket to Brazil with a 1-0 victory over New Caledonia in the 2012 Oceania Nations Cup.
Steevy Chong Hue struck the winning goal and became a national hero overnight in a country renowned more for its idyllic beaches than football.
Tahiti's side is made up mostly of amateurs but coach Eddy Etaeta has insisted the team will be no walkover for their Confederations Cup rivals. However it is highly unlikely Tahiti will makes it out of a group stage. A win would be considered a major success for this team. Their goalkeeper Xavier Samin will play a crucial role if Tahiti want to avoid any humiliating defeats.

The 2013 Confederations Cup: My predictions and the official betting:

Brazil wound up in the toughest group of the competition, Group A. Many believe Italy will take down the other teams in the group stage, but based on other European nation's previous performances in this competition, on paper at least, things do not bode well for the 'Azzurri.' The Mexican side is dangerous, but has been madly inconsistent in its World Cup qualifiers. Japan has been terrific in its qualifiers, but has not faced the level of competition that Group B will pose. The Brazilians are still a work in progress and could finish anywhere from fourth to first in this group depending on whether the other sides in the group turn up! However I expect both Brazil and Italy to finish to qualify from their group.

While Group A is the proverbial "Group of Death," Group B is anything but that. The group could best be described as "Spain versus Everyone else." Uruguay is no longer the team that captured third place in the World Cup three summers ago or the squad that won the 2011 Copa America. This is a team that has yet to win a World Cup qualifier since September 2012. Nigeria might pose the greatest danger in the group. They do possess great pace, but they lack the skill and style to hurt the Spaniards. Spain will undoubtedly win the group while Nigeria I feel will likely grab second spot.

If these scenarios play out then Brazil will Nigeria and Spain will face Italy in the semi-finals. Brazil should have no trouble with Nigeria but Italy could pull the upset on the Spaniards. Prior to their 2012 Euro Cup victory last summer, Spain had not beaten Italy in open field play in many years. Look for Italy to pull an upset.

If Brazil faces Italy, the 'Samba Kings' should have no trouble capturing their fourth Confederations Cup trophy.

Betting:

Brazil at 11/8 are favourites to win the 2013 tournament, followed by Spain 13/8, Italy 7/1, Uruguay 9/1, Mexico 11/1, Nigeria 33/1 then Japan 40/1. Tahiti are the rank outsiders. In fact you can name you're price! However I believe there are better value betting options to consider than just Brazil to win the tournament outright.

My Best Bet:
Brazil and Italy to reach the Final 5/1
Outside Bet: Japan to qualify from Group A 5/1
Mario Balotelli (Italy) to be tournaments top goalscorer 16/1
Longshot:
Brown Ideye (Nigeria) to be to be tournament top goalscorer 80/1 (Top three 1/4 odds)

# Odds courtesy of Betfred and correct at time of writing.

Go to oddschecker for all your FIFA Confederations Cup betting.

Live TV coverage of The FIFA Confederations Cup will be shown on BBC1 and BBC3 and also on ESPN, ESPN2 and CBCSports.

See here for full TV schedule of matches and kick-off times in the UK.

The 2013 Africa Cup of Nations - Preview

The 2013 African Nations Cup will be the 29th Africa Cup of Nations (ACON), the football championship of Africa, organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

It takes place in South Africa in nine days time. South Africa and Zambia both qualify automatically as hosts and holders respectively. The opening match will be played in Johannesburg on the 19th January between South Africa and Cape Verde, with the Islanders making their finals debut. The winner of the ACON tournament will automatically qualify for the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil as the representative from CAF and will line up in group B alongside Spain, Uruguay and Tahiti.

On 29 January 2011, Libya won the right to host the 2013 tournament and Morocco won the bid to host the 2015 edition. However due to the 2011 Libyan civil war, Libya and South Africa traded years with South Africa hosting in 2013 and Libya hosting in 2017.

The Africa Cup of Nations, also referred to as the African Cup of Nations or African Nations Cup, officially CAN (French for Coupe d'Afrique des Nations), is the main international association football competition in Africa. It is sanctioned by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), and was first held in 1957. Since 1968, it has been held every two years.

In 1957 there were only three participating nations: Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia. South Africa were originally scheduled to compete, but were disqualified due to the apartheid policies of the government then in power. Since then, the tournament has grown greatly, making it necessary to hold a qualifying tournament.

Egypt is the most successful nation in the cup's history, winning the tournament a record seven times (including when Egypt was known as the United Arab Republic between 1958 and 1971). Ghana and Cameroon have won four titles each.

In May 2010, it was announced that the tournament would be moved to odd-numbered years from 2013. This will mean the tournament will now not take place in the same year as the FIFA World Cup. The 2010 tournament was unfortunately shrouded in controversy after the Togo team bus was set upon by gunfire leading to the tragic death of three officials. Togo left the competition as a result. Egypt eventually won the tournament, defeating Ghana in the final.

In 2012 the tournament was co-hosted by Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. The 2012 surprise winners were Zambia who defeated Ivory Coast in a penalty shoot-out in the final held in the Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville.

Zambia's players celebrate their ACON success after defeating Ivory Coast in the 2012 Final

The win was dedicated to the 18 players who perished in April 1993, after a plane carrying the Zambia squad crashed just miles from the site of the 2012 final in Gabon. Malia beat Ghana in the 3rd place match. Christopher Katongo of Zambia, who plays professionally for Chinese Super League club Henan Construction F.C. as a striker was voted most valuable player. Frenchman Hervé Renard was the Zambian coach.

All-time ACON top scorers:

Samuel Eto'o - Cameroon 18 goals
Laurent Pokou - Ivory Coast - 14
Rashidi Yekini - Nigeria - 13
Hassan El-Shazly - Egypt - 12
Patrick Mboma - Cameroon and Hossam Hassan - Egypt - both 11.

23 English-based players have been named in provisional squads ahead of the tournament, and they are as follows:

South Africa: Kagisho Dikgacoi (Crystal Palace, right), Dean Furman (Oldham).

Morocco: Oussama Assaidi (Liverpool).

Ghana: Albert Adomah (Bristol City).

Mali: Samba Diakite (QPR), Mahamadou Diarra (Fulham), Tongo Doumbia (Wolves), Modibo Maiga (West Ham).

Congo DR: Gabriel Zakuani (Peterborough), Youssouf Mulumbu (West Bromwich Albion).

Zambia: Emmanuel Mayuka (Southampton).

Nigeria: John Obi Mikel, Victor Moses (both Chelsea), Shola Ameobi (Newcastle), Danny Shittu (Millwall).

Ivory Coast: Kolo Toure, Yaya Toure, Abdul Razak (all Manchester City), Cheick Tiote (Newcastle), Arouna Kone (Wigan, front right), Gervinho (Arsenal) .

Algeria: Adlene Guedioura (Nottingham Forest).

Togo: Emmanuel Adebayor (Tottenham).

Stadium Venues:
The venues were announced on 4 May 2012. The National Stadium (Johannesburg) will host the opening match and the final. Other the venues selected for matches are Mbombela Stadium (Nelspruit), Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium (port Elizabeth), Royal Bafokeng Stadium (Rustenburg) and Moses Mabhida Stadium(Durban)

Teams:

Group A: South Africa, Angola, Morocco, Cape Verde

Group B: Ghana, Mali, Niger, Congo DR

Group C: Zambia, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia

Group D: Ivory Coast, Tunisia, Algeria, Togo

The top two teams from each group qualify for the the knockout stages beginning on the 2nd February.
The semi-finals take place on the 6th February and the final is on the 10th February.

Africa Cup Of Nations: The betting and the players to watch out for!
Ivory Coast at 7/4 are favourites to win the 2013 tournament, followed by Ghana 7/1, hosts South Africa 9/1 then Nigeria 10/1 and holders Zambia at shades of 12/1. Togo and Ethopia are the rank outsiders. However I believe there are better value betting options to consider than the Ivory Coast.

Ivory Coast, last years beaten finalists are on paper at least the stand-out side. They boast a wealth of internationally recognised talent in the form of Yaya Toure, Kolo Toure, Didier Drogba, Arouna Kone, Salomon Kalou and a host of other familiar faces are all there, and having come so close last time they and their fans will be in expectant mood.However not only have they been put in Group D with former champions Algeria and Tunisia and a Togo team with all to gain and nothing to lose, but tradition suggests potential trouble for the title favourites, and at 7/4 they look far too short a price.
Ghana will be missing their best player, Andre Ayew, who has a hamstring injury. One of Africa's finest players, Ayew the Marseille winger/striker will be sorely missed. His absence deals a potentially fatal blow to the Black Stars' hopes of becoming champions.

I like the look of Morocco at 18/1 - France-based players Zakaria Bergdich (Lens), Abdelhamid El Kaoutari (Montpellier), Younes Belhanda (Montpellier) and Chahir Belghazouani (AC Ajaccio) arrive in fine form, and they have a good striker in Youssef El Arabi of La Liga side Granada CF.

Mali's squad is packed with power and talent - Samba Sow (Lens), Cheick Fantamady Diarra (Rennes) and Sambou Yatabare (Lens) are names to look out for. Mali and Algeria are both 16/1 outsiders to win the tournament but both look capable of causing an upset in this years competition. Mali came third at the 2012 finals and are the obvious choice to progress from Group B along with Ghana, but DR Congo pose a threat if only because they are coached by wily Frenchman Claude le Roy. A small wager on either Mali and Algeria making the final could be a shrewd bet.

Algeria have in Ryad Boudebouz (FC Sochaux) and Foued Kadir (Marseille) two of the most technically gifted players in the tournament. Boudebouz and Kadir are both attacking midfielder players and are sure to excel in South Africa.

Other players to look out for in the tournament. I can see debutant's Cape Verde causing an upset or two, because they have one of the tournament's finest young footballers in Lille's Ryan Mendes, an explosive attacker with flair and good finishing ability. Also look out for flying winger Odair Fortes (Stade Reims) and striker Julio Tavares (Dijon).

Burkino Faso have two outstanding attacking players in Lorient's Alain Traore and Rennes' Jonathan Pitroipa. Burkin Faso have been drawn in one of the two more winnable groups, alongside Zambia, Nigeria and Ethiopia and their odds of 6/1 to win their group, look overpriced!

My Best Bet:
Morocco to Win the Tournament at 14/1
Outside Bets:
One of Mali or Algeria to Reach The Final both at 5/2
Longshot:
Burkina Faso to Win Group C at 6/1

# Odds courtesy of Betfair and correct at time of writing.

Go to oddschecker for all your ACON betting.

Live coverage of the 2013 African Cup of Nations on TV will be shown on ITV4 and British Eurosport in the UK. ITV4 will broadcast 20 live African Cup of Nations games including 12 group matches, 4 Quarter Finals, both Semi Finals, the third-place play off and the African Cup of Nations Final.

British Eurosport will broadcast all 32 games live from the tournament including the African Cup of Nations Final On TV. See here for the full TV schedule of matches and kick-off times.

The Latest World Cup News

Ivory Coast captain Didier Drogba's participation in the World Cup is in serious doubt after he broke a bone close to his elbow.
The Chelsea striker, 32, picked up the injury 16 minutes into his side's 2-0 friendly win over Japan yesterday, in Saitama.
However coach Sven-Goran Eriksson said there was still a chance the talismanic Drogba could feature in South Africa.
"He got a bad injury and may have an operation, but he is not out. The doctors can't say any more than that," he told BBC Radio 5 live - BBC Sport

Nigeria suffered a blow just under a week away from the start of the World Cup as they announced that star midfielder John Obi Mikel had been left out of the squad because he did not want to aggravate a knee injury.
The 23-year-old Chelsea star will be replaced in the Nigeria squad by uncapped Brown Ideye, who plays for Sochaux in France - Fifa.com

Brazil have two injury worries in the shape of goalkeeper Julio Cesar and left-back Michel Bastos.
Cesar, 30, missed training for the second consecutive day on Friday and had intensive physiotherapy on the back injury he suffered in Wednesday's 3-0 win against Zimbabwe.
The 26-year-old Bastos damaged his ankle in training.
However, both players are expected to be fit for Brazil's opening fixture against North Korea on the 15th June - BBC Sport

New Zealand coach Ricki Herbert remains bullish about his side's chances at the World Cup despite going down 3-1 to Slovenia (Group opponents of England) in a warm-up match in Maribor on Friday.
Two excellent free-kicks from star Milivoje Novakovic, and a tap-in from Andraz Kirm was enough to see off the challenge from the All Whites, who saw Rory Fallon drive home their solitary goal - Fifa.com

Italy midfielder Andrea Pirlo faces a race against time to be fit for the finals after suffering a calf injury in Thursday's 2-1 friendly defeat to Mexico.
The 31-year-old will miss the World Cup holders' opener against Paraguay on the 14th June and there are fears he could be ruled out of the whole tournament.
The AC Milan playmaker has left the Azzurri's training camp in the Italian Alps to recover at home but is scheduled to fly to South Africa with the team on the 8th June.
"It's an injury which worries me but there's time," said team doctor Enrico Castellacci - BBC Sport

France suffered a shock 1-0 defeat against China in their final warm-up match on Friday.
China, who are ranked 84th in the world, scored the only goal in the friendly on Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean in the 68th minute.
France play Uruguay in their opening match on the 11th June and are hoping to avoid a repeat of their group-stage exit during Euro 2008 - BBC Sport

Chile striker Humberto Suazo may be forced to sit out the World Cup if he is deemed to have used a banned substance when trying to overcome injury, according to Chilean newspaper El Mercurio.
Having acquired a hamstring problem that threatened to rule him out of the competition in a friendly against Israel last Sunday, the powerful forward underwent a course of platelet injections, which have been proven to speed up the muscle healing process. These injections, however, may be illegal according to revised WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) rules.
The 29-year-old was in prolific form during the qualifying campaign, registering on 10 occasions to send the Chileans through as the second best team from South America.
Chile is appearing in its first World Cup since 1998, and faces Honduras in its opening Group H game on the 16th June - Goal.com

Holland coach Bert van Marwijk fears Arjen Robben may miss the World Cup after the winger suffered a hamstring injury against Hungary.
Robben appeared as a second-half substitute in today's friendly against Hungary and scored twice in the 6-1 romp before hurting his hamstring in the closing stages.
The Bayern Munich ace will undergo a scan on the problem on Sunday, meaning he will not travel with the rest of the Dutch squad to South Africa this evening.
Van Marwijk is hoping that Robben's injury will not prove serious enough to rule him out of the World Cup, but he is braced for the worst - Skysports.com

Denmark's injury problems are mounting.
Thomas Kahlenberg is set to miss Denmark's World Cup warm-up match against South Africa tomorrow.
The Wolfsburg midfielder is struggling with injury while Jon Dahl Tomasson is also doubtful for the match. The Feyenoord striker was absent from yesterday's training session and was to be assessed today.
Goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen, defender Simon Kjaer and striker Nicklas Bendtner are already missing as Denmark complete their preparations for their Group A matches against Holland, Cameroon and Japan - Fifa.com