2007 Copa América

As with previous tournaments, all ten members of CONMEBOL participated in the competition. In order to bring the number of competing teams to twelve, CONMEBOL invited Mexico and the United States, the two highest ranking CONCACAF teams in the FIFA World Rankings. Just as in every tournament since 1993, Mexico accepted the invitation. The United States rejected the invitation due to scheduling conflicts with the 2007 Major League Soccer season. CONMEBOL then proceeded to invite Costa Rica, the third highest CONCACAF team in FIFA's ranking. In the end, the United States accepted the invitation. • • • (holders) • • • • (invitee) • • • (invitee) • • (hosts) == Venues ==

For this Copa América, the organizing committee decided to choose eight cities to hold the tournament. A total of 14 cities presented proposal before the committee, of which they rejected proposals from Barquisimeto, Maracay, Valencia, Valera, Portuguesa and Miranda for not meeting established requirements. The cities of Barinas, Caracas, Ciudad Guayana, Maracaibo, Maturín, Mérida, Puerto la Cruz and San Cristóbal were selected to host the tournament. Later on, the organizing committee reconsidered the candidacy of Barquisimeto, based on the proposal of a new stadium to be built for the city. With a final nine host cities, the 2007 edition broke the previous records for host cities set by the 2004 Copa América in Peru, which used seven. == Officials ==

On 30 May 2007, CONMEBOL announced the list of match officials for the competition. The list included one match official from every country (except Paraguay, which had two). From these thirteen, six officiated in the 2006 FIFA World Cup: Carlos Simon, Óscar Ruiz, Carlos Amarilla, Jorge Larrionda, and Armando Archundia. • Carlos Chandía • Sergio Pezzotta • René Ortubé • Carlos Simon • Óscar Ruiz • Mauricio Reinoso • Armando Archundia • Carlos Amarilla • Carlos Torres • Víctor Rivera • Jorge Larrionda • Baldomero Toledo • Manuel Andarcia ==Draw==

The draw for the competition took place on 14 February 2007 in the Teresa Carreño Theater in Caracas. == Squads ==

Each association had to present a list of twenty-three players to compete in the competition. == Group stage ==

The first round, or group stage, saw the twelve teams divided into three groups of four teams. Each group was a round-robin of six games, where each team played one match against each of the other teams in the same group. Teams were awarded three points for a win, one point for a draw and none for a defeat. The teams finishing first, second and two best-placed third teams in each group qualified for the Quarter-finals. ;Tie-breaking criteria Teams were ranked on the following criteria: :1. Greater number of points in all group matches :2. Goal difference in all group matches :3. Greater number of goals scored in all group matches :4. Head-to-head results :5. Drawing of lots by the CONMEBOL Organising Committee All times are in Venezuela Standard Time (UTC–4). Group A ---- ---- Group B ---- ---- Group C ---- ---- Ranking of third-placed teams At the end of the first stage, a comparison was made between the third-placed teams of each group. The two best third-placed teams advanced to the quarter-finals. == Knockout stage ==

Bracket Quarter-finals ---- ---- ---- ---- Semi-finals ---- ---- Third-place match ---- Final == Result ==

• Top Goalscorer : Robinho * Most Valuable Player : Robinho [http://futbol.as.com/futbol/2007/07/14/mas_futbol/1184394463_850215.html Robinho disputará a Messi y Riquelme la Copa América y el MVP del torneo • Best Goal : Lionel Messi == Goalscorers ==

With six goals, Robinho was the top scorer in the tournament. Team of the Tournament == Final positions ==

Sponsorship Global Platinum Sponsor • LG • MasterCard Global Gold Sponsor • Telefónica (Movistar is the brand advertised) Global Silver Sponsor • Casio • Anheuser-Busch InBev (Skol is the brand advertised) Charitable Partner • UNICEF Local Supplier • PDVSA • Empresas Polar (Maltin Polar is the brand advertised) • Ole Ole • Traffic Group Match ball The official match ball for the tournament was the Nike Mercurial Veloci. The ball was presented on 14 February 2007, prior to a friendly match played between Venezuela and New Zealand, by the president of the Venezuelan Football Federation, Rafael Esquivel, to the mayor of Maracaibo, Giancarlo Di Martino – head of the local organising committee. Mascot , through the main cities of Venezuela Guaky is a scarlet macaw, a bird representative of Venezuela. He wore the traditional jersey Venezuela national football team burgundy and football shoes. Under their wings the characteristic tricolor national flag, with its eight stars on their wings. To choose the official mascot held a contest in which proposals received 4,500,000 of Venezuelan children and adolescents at a school. The winning draw corresponded to the 15-year-old Jhoyling Zabaleta. The final design was commissioned to Fractal Studio, bring life and a "strong personality, cheerful and sport" that accompanied the event during its realization. The name of the pet, Guaky was subsequently elected by an online survey, where that option was a 54.17% of preferences. Theme songs • "Gol" by Venezuelan singer Juan Carlos Luces, was the main theme song of the tournament, which was performed during the draw and the opening ceremonies. • "Baila la Copa" by Venezuelan singer Ose was an official anthem for the tournament. == References ==