An indomitable beast and nine hunters for the lurking will be animate from this Friday (11) the tenth Copa America of Women’s Football, a tournament in which Brazil is the undisputed star willing to revalidate his crown at 2,850 meters.
The event, a showcase for talent and claims for better conditions for women in football, will start with the duel between Ecuador and Uruguay from 7 pm on local time (17h of Brasilia) at the Independent Del Valle Club stadium, outside the Ecuadorian capital.
With an enviable curriculum and legendary Marta in charge, the Brazilian team will seek its ninth title in the most important competition of the region, which will be held for the fourth time in Ecuador.
From Brazil, “we have to wait for them to defend their World Cup, that they will show their football. And that they will also surprise this audience, the girls who want to be soccer players (…), to show them that this discipline or this field of football is also important,” said sports analyst Martha Codova.
Fourth in the world ranking of FIFA (International Football Federation), the Canarinha National Team is well ahead of one of its bolder rivals in the first phase: runner-up Colombia.
Both, along with Paraguay, Venezuela and Bolivia are part of group B; and Ecuador, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Peru, A.
The competition, which will extend until August 2, will give the two finalists to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games and the following three for the Pan American Games of Lima 2027, to which Peru is classified as a host.
Pela Revanche
Colombia appears in 18th in the FIFA ranking, but that means no less talent. Players like Mayra Ramírez, Linda Caicedo, Daniela Montoya or Catalina Usme print strength to a cast that wants rematch.
The Colombians let out the title in their own home in the 2022 edition.
“Colombia is undoubtedly one of the candidates to secure second place in the Olympic Games,” said Cordova, noting that the country has exported “exceptional players” in recent years.
Caicedo is a Real Madrid star, and Ramírez plays at Chelsea, an English club that, hiring her in January 2024, made her the most expensive player in women’s football at the time.
Another selection that seeks to resume the brightness of 2006 is Argentina, the only selection to have declined the Brazilian since 1991, when the competition began.
Inequality Showcase
The Copa America is also a space to address inequalities that persist in women’s football. This year, the Uruguayan team raised its claim for better working conditions with a protest.
On Saturday, a week from their tournament debut, the celestials decided not to attend training directed by Uruguayan Ariel Longo.
“This measure is not against our passion, but for a fair right,” wrote the players on social networks, marking the Uruguayan Football Association.
“We deserve fair treatment for our efforts and dedication,” they added.
The protest was resolved on Tuesday, according to the professional footballers’ union.
Working conditions, the cost of players’ transfers, the number of audience in the stands or ticket prices to see matches reflect the differences that still exist between women’s and male football.
The amount of entries for this Women’s America Cup is between US $ 3 (R $ 16.38) for the group stage and US $ 5 (R $ 27.31) for the final. A long way away from the nearly $ 2,000 ($ 10,900) that cost a ticket for the end of the last Men’s America Cup in the United States in 2024.
As events become more popular and gain more support, prices will eventually go up to other women’s tournaments, “Eduardo Moscoso, coach of the Ecuadorian team, told AFP.
He added that for now, low prices are the way to “attract people to accompany us and for the stadiums to be full.”
For Cordova, it is essential that these tournaments are not only frequented by soccer schools or the families of the players.
“Men should also attend, because the search for equality is precisely what happens in society, not only in the female level,” said the analyst.
List of Women’s Copa Champions
1991 Brazil
1995 Brazil
1998 Brazil
2003 Brazil
2006 Argentina
2010 Brazil
2014 Brazil
2018 Brazil
2022 Brazil
