MIAMI, Florida – The 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup group stage kicks off this Saturday in Group A with defending champions United States taking on title aspirants Jamaica at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois.
The U.S. will be seeking to win their first back-to-back Gold Cup crowns since the 2005 and 2007 editions and a squad that is largely changed from the team that captured last week’s 2022-23 Concacaf Nations League title will get a chance to test its mettle against the Reggae Boyz.
Coach B.J. Callaghan has called upon a squad that does boast some names that formed part of the 2021 Gold Cup winning squad, including winger Gianluca Busio, MF Cristian Roldan and defensive midfielder James Sands.
Up top, the U.S. will look to the likes of Jesus Ferreira and Jordan Morris to help supply the scoring. Ferreira led all players in scoring in League A of the 2022-23 CNL with four goals, while Morris has a penchant for scoring big Gold Cup goals, having notched the winning strike in the 2017 Final against Jamaica.
The Caribbean side counters with a squad that is overflowing with talent.
Michail Antonio, Leon Bailey, Bobby Reid and new arrival Demarai Gray are among the players named to the Jamaica team that ply their trade in the English Premier League.
Bailey and Reid each had two goals in the CNL, while Antonio has shown he is a threat from anywhere on the field, having scored a world-class goal in Concacaf World Cup Qualifying for Qatar 2022 against the United States.
Overall, the U.S. lead this series 19W-9D-3L, with 52 goals scored and just 20 conceded. In Gold Cup play, the meetings between the two sides have historically been close.
The U.S. have six wins to Jamaica’s one, but their last four contests saw a 2-1 Jamaica win in the 2015 semifinals, a 2-1 U.S. win in the 2017 Final, a 3-1 U.S. win in the 2019 semifinals and a 1-0 U.S. win in the 2021 quarterfinals.
Match Officials United States vs Jamaica
Referee: CESAR RAMOS (Mexico)
1st Assistant Referee: ALBERTO MORIN (Mexico)
2nd Assistant Referee: MARCO BISGUERRA (Mexico)
4th Official: FERNANDO GUERRERO (Mexico)
VAR: ERICK MIRANDA (Mexico)
AVAR1: JORGE PEREZ (Mexico)
Did you know that the United States defeated Jamaica 1-0 (Matthew Hoppe) the last time they faced each other in the Concacaf Gold Cup?
Statistics and history in the Gold Cup between the United States and Jamaica.
