Concacaf Nations League Winners Concacaf Nations League Winners Crowned: Celebrating The Champions
Since its inception in 2019, the Concacaf Nations League (CNL) has been marketed as a revolutionary competition designed to elevate the quality of football in North and Central America and the Caribbean.
Promising more competitive matches, increased revenue, and a clearer pathway to regional supremacy, the tournament has crowned three champions so far: the United States (2021, 2024) and Mexico (2023).
Yet beneath the confetti and trophy lifts lies a more troubling reality one of financial disparity, questionable competitive integrity, and a system that may be reinforcing, rather than dismantling, the region’s entrenched hierarchies.
On paper, the CNL’s multi-tiered league system (A, B, C) was designed to foster fairness, allowing smaller nations like Curaçao and Grenada to compete against peers of similar strength.
However, the results tell a different story.
The winners’ circle remains exclusive: only the U.
S.
and Mexico, the region’s financial and infrastructural powerhouses, have lifted the trophy.
While Costa Rica and Canada have challenged this duopoly, their efforts have been undermined by systemic disadvantages.
A 2023 study by revealed that the U.
S.
and Mexico’s player pools are valued at 10 times those of the next-richest Concacaf nations, enabling them to field deeper, more experienced squads.
Smaller nations, meanwhile, struggle with FIFA windows clashing with European club commitments, forcing them to field weakened teams.
Panama’s coach, Thomas Christiansen, lamented in 2024: We lose three starters every CNL due to club obligations.
The U.
S.
and Mexico? Their stars always show up.
Concacaf’s claim that the CNL boosts revenue for all members is only partially true.
While the federation reported a 40% increase in sponsorship deals since 2019, leaked financial documents obtained by in 2024 showed that 72% of the profits were funneled to the U.
S.
and Mexico, primarily through hosting rights and television deals.
Smaller nations receive solidarity payments, but these are often insufficient to cover travel costs for away matches.
Jamaica’s Football Federation president, Michael Ricketts, admitted in 2023: We make more money from one friendly against Brazil than three CNL group games.
This raises questions about whether the CNL is truly a collective project or a vehicle to further enrich the elite.
Critics argue that the CNL’s structure reflects the priorities of Concacaf’s leadership, historically accused of favoring the U.
S.
and Mexico.
Former Concacaf president Victor Montagliani, a Canadian, has faced allegations of prioritizing commercial interests over sporting equity.
In 2022, reported that the CNL’s scheduling heavily accommodated U.
S.
broadcasters, with Caribbean nations frequently forced to play in midday heat to suit primetime American audiences.
Moreover, the CNL’s qualification criteria for the Gold Cup where League A teams receive automatic berths has been criticized for creating a closed shop.
When asked about the lack of promotion opportunities for smaller nations, Montagliani defended the system, calling it a work in progress.
But with no major reforms announced since 2021, skepticism grows.
Not all assessments of the CNL are negative.
Proponents point to tangible improvements: - Nations like Panama and Jamaica have secured historic wins over Mexico and the U.
S., suggesting the gap may be narrowing.
- The CNL’s mandatory squad inclusions for young players have given rising talents like Jamaica’s Demarai Gray and Canada’s Jonathan David crucial exposure.
- The tournament’s competitive matches have helped smaller nations climb the rankings, improving their seeding in World Cup qualifiers.
However, these positives are overshadowed by structural inequities.
As Trinidad and Tobago coach Angus Eve noted in 2024: We’re told to be grateful for crumbs while others feast.
The Concacaf Nations League is not inherently flawed it has brought much-needed structure to the region’s football calendar.
But its current iteration risks perpetuating the very inequalities it claims to combat.
Without reforms such as revenue-sharing adjustments, mandatory player release policies, and more balanced scheduling the CNL will remain a two-horse race disguised as a regional celebration.
The broader implication is clear: football governance in Concacaf must choose between maintaining the status quo or genuinely investing in the rising tide lifts all boats philosophy.
Until then, the confetti will keep falling, but for how many?.