MIAMI, Florida – This Friday at 7:00 PM ET, Concacaf will be airing a re-broadcast of two Concacaf Gold Cup classics, the first being the 2017 Gold Cup Final between the United States and Jamaica, followed by the 2003 Final between Mexico and Brazil. Both matches will be shown on Concacaf’s Facebook and YouTube pages, plus the Concacaf App.
The 2017 Gold Cup was the 14th edition of the tournament and from start to finish it was full of thrilling action.
Two nations made their Gold Cup debuts in 2017, with Curacao and French Guiana each getting their first taste of Gold Cup action.
Despite finishing the tournament with no points, Curacao performed admirably and there is no doubt that the knowledge gained from 2017 helped the Caribbean side make their historic run to the 2019 Gold Cup quarterfinals.
French Guiana also proved a tough foe and took part in one of thrilling matches in the tournament, a 4-2 group stage defeat versus Canada.
In that match, history was made as 16-year-old Alphonso Davies of Canada became the youngest player to score for the Canadian men’s national team and became the youngest ever goalscorer in a Gold Cup.
Canada, along with Costa Rica and Honduras, advanced to the knockout round out of Group A and were joined by the United States and Panama from Group B.
Yet the big story to emerge from Group B was the goalscoring exploits of Martinique FW Kevin Parsemain, who scored three goals, including a brace against eventual champions U.S.
Group C saw Mexico, Jamaica and El Salvador reach the quarterfinals, with a 0-0 draw between El Tricolor and the Reggae Boyz a harbinger of things to come in the tournament.
There was little room for error in the quarterfinals, with Costa Rica defeating Panama 1-0, Jamaica topping Canada 2-1, U.S. downing El Salvador 2-0 and Mexico edging Honduras 1-0.
That set up a pair of classic semifinals and after a tight first 72 minutes, the U.S. would emerge with a 2-0 victory over Costa Rica, while a late Kemar Lawrence free kick earned Jamaica a first ever Gold Cup victory, 1-0, over Mexico in the other semifinal.
The Final between the U.S. and Jamaica was no for the weak of heart. Jozy Altidore gave the U.S. a 1-0 lead, only to see Je-Vaughn Watson even things up 1-1. Just when it looked like extra time would be on the docket, Jordan Morris hammered in a game-winning goal for the U.S. in the 88’ to earn the U.S. their sixth title.
U.S. MF Michael Bradley took home the Golden Ball as the tournament MVP, while Jamaica GK Andre Blake earned the Golden Glove and Canada starlet Davies won both the Golden Boot and the Best Young Player award.
