Power Ranking Every Team at Copa America 2024 (2024)

The Copa América kicks off this week with every South American team and six invited guests from the Concacaf region hoping to win the oldest continental crown in international soccer.

All but two of the competing South American nations—Venezuela and Ecuador—have tasted glory before, while a guest team never has won the trophy.

While the Copa América itself is a prize worth fighting for on its own, teams that enjoy a successful tournament also have the benefit of generating some positive momentum ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Oh, Bolivia. The home-field advantage earned by altitude is well-documented, but things have been much more difficult away from home.

The last time La Verde won a competitive match outside Bolivia was in 2015.

Breaking that streak this year doesn't feel likely.

All-time leading scorer Marcelo Moreno Martins announced his international retirement late last year, while Bolivar forward Henry Vaca is out injured. And the defense regularly concedes.

Peru finds itself as the only team in this year's tournament without a win through six matches in World Cup qualification after an entirely winless 2023.

While this year has started much better, with three wins from four friendly matches against Concacaf teams not qualified for Copa América, it could still be a rough tournament for La Bicolor.

New manager Jorge Fossati has called up many veterans, with Pedro Gallese in goal, Luis Advincula and Carlos Zambrano in defense, Christian Cueva in midfield and 40-year-old Paolo Guerrero up top.

Where are the bright, up-and-coming stars? There aren't enough candidates who can truly make a difference against the bigger sides.

It's been 10 years since Costa Rica's finest moment on the international stage, and it only now feels like that they are putting the 2014 World Cup in the rear-view mirror.

Goalkeeper Keylor Navas announced his international retirement just before this tournament, meaning manager Gustavo Alfaro needs to work out a succession plan that appears to be handing the No. 1 job to Patrick Sequeira, who plays for UD Ibiza in Spain.

A couple of veterans (namely forward Joel Campbell and center back Francisco Calvo) remain in the team, but this is the time for a new generation.

Manfred Ugalde, Warren Madrigal and Orlando Galo are among the players who could shine, but it feels like this tournament comes too soon for Costa Rica to pull off a shock in a group that also includes Brazil, Colombia and Paraguay.

With regular victories over Costa Rica in the last several years, Panama has clearly established itself as the best team in Central America.

Despite being able to lean on a squad based entirely outside Panama, manager Thomas Christiansen is still looking for a team that takes the next step and competes to be one of the best in the Americas.

After a runner-up finish at the 2023 Gold Cup, Panama fell in both the Concacaf Nations League semifinal and third-place game, compounding the feeling it's still not quite there.

The biggest issue has been finding the back of the net during well-managed matches. Ismael Diaz, Jose Fajardo and Eduardo Guerrero again will look to help provide a famous goal that can help put Panama on the football map.

There's Miguel Almiron. Julio Enciso is on the rise. After that, can anyone else score for Paraguay?

Six matches played in World Cup qualification, one goal scored—and that was against Bolivia. Summer friendly matches haven't shown that manager Daniel Garnero has found the formula up top either, with La Albirroja failing to score against Peru and falling 3-0 to Chile.

If the defense was strong enough, you'd think there could be a tribute act to the Paraguay team of 2011, which drew all three of its group games before scoreless draws in the quarterfinals and the semifinals (with Paraguay winning the shootout both times) ahead of a final defeat.

They have had some clean sheets in qualification, but goalkeeper Carlos Coronel will need to be superb for Paraguay to even advance from the group, much less make another trip to the final.

The last showing at a major tournament didn't go well, with Canada failing to earn a point at the 2022 World Cup.

Getting there, though, was a lot of fun for the north Americans, topping the qualification table in the Concacaf region as the new generation of stars rising through the ranks showed they could earn results on the field.

It's a new day now for Canada, with American head coach Jesse Marsch leading the way. After friendly matches with the Netherlands and France, his baptism by fire will continue with the tournament opener against Argentina.

Alphonso Davies, Jonathan David and Tajon Buchanan are still in the squad, but Canada will need big contributions from elsewhere if it's going to spring a surprise and make a deep run.

This Jamaica team is expected to return to the World Cup for the first time since 1998.

Manager Heimir Hallgrímsson has convinced many eligible players born in England and elsewhere to represent the national team, bringing together a base that has achieved good results in Concacaf play.

Strangely, Leon Bailey is included on the squad list, but no one expects the Aston Villa player to show up due to an ongoing dispute with the coaching staff and the federation.

Yet, the attention around Bailey's absence ignores the players who are present: West Ham United forward Michail Antonio, former Everton winger Demarai Gray and Shamar Nicholson.

The performances in the Concacaf Nations League, pushing the U.S. to the brink in the semifinal and winning the third-place game, proved Hallgrímsson can draw up a clever game plan.

The Icelandic coach will need that wisdom to combine with a little luck, but Jamaica could play spoiler even without one of its best players.

It's been a miserable start to World Cup qualification for Chile, so why is La Roja this high in our ranking?

Look no further than El Tigre. Chile hired Ricardo Gareca as its manager after the Argentine's long-time turnaround job with Peru and already appears to be reaping the benefits.

Chile has won two friendly matches under Gareca and fell 3-2 to France in the other.

Now, it's time to see what things look like in a competitive contest. Chile's golden generation, which won the 2015 tournament on home soil and the 2016 Copa America Centenario in the U.S., is still hanging on.

Well, at least a few players are such as goalkeeper Claudio Bravo and Alexis Sanchez, both of whom still play their club football in Europe, and defender Mauricio Isla.

If Chile can get contributions from other players, namely current CSKA Moscow and ex-León forward Victor Dávila, it may vanquish the memories of the rough start to qualification.

Venezuela has lost just one of its first six World Cup qualification matches, Salomón Rondón is scoring goals again, it drew with Brazil in Brazil just a few months ago and it's in the most open group of the tournament.

Optimism is high that Venezuela can make it past the quarterfinal stage for the first time since 2011.

Rather than play official friendly matches leading into the tournament, though, Venezuela settled for a preparation match against a lower-division club in the U.S.

With a back line that still has some question marks surrounding it, manager Fernando "Botha" Batista could rue the lack of a real test before the tournament kicks off.

Gone are goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, winger Hirving Lozano and forwards Raul Jimenez and Henry Martin.

Mexico has opted to go out with the old and in with the new. Goalkeeper Luis Malagon is out with an injury, there are options at wide attacker but few nail-on starters, and forward Santi Giménez is yet to have his true breakout match at international level

Still, El Tri manager Jaime Lozano has talent in the ranks. Edson Alvarez can play in midfield or as a center back, where Johan Vasquez and Cesar Montes also have emerged as reliable options. And while he has frustrated fans in the past, Uriel Antuna enters the summer after a tremendous season with Cruz Azul, both setting up and scoring goals.

Lozano may have the highest ceiling: If Mexico strings together several wins, something wild would have to happen to dislodge him as national team coach ahead of the World Cup. If Mexico can't get out of the group, he'll likely be looking for a new job.

Ecuador has all the right ingredients to be the dark-horse team at this tournament—if a squad that made the last World Cup and is producing some world-class talents can still be labeled a dark horse.

There's a good mix of veteran players and rising stars here. There are players who are at their top level with teams based in some of Europe's top leagues including Piero Hincapié, Moises Caicedo and Kendry Páez. There is a track record of recent success.

And yet there is not always harmony within the ranks. Spanish manager Felix Sanchez has proven unpopular, at least among the fanbase, even as La Tri ran out to a one-loss start to qualification.

He's had to navigate choppy waters, declining to call up forward Gonzalo Plata or defender Robert Arboleda since video emerged that appeared to show them (and one of Ecuador's underage rising stars) in a strip club in New York during March's international break.

Plus, injuries have bitten Ecuador, with Pervis Estupiñán out of the tournament with an ankle injury.

Things could go very right for Ecuador, but they also could go wrong.

It's been a long and slow process for the United States to get to this point.

It missed the 2018 World Cup but had many young players coming through European academies.

The 2022 World Cup showed there's still plenty of work to do, but that young group should be coming into its prime just in time for the 2026 finals on North American soil.

No one disputes there's talent in the team and that many players are playing at top clubs. The debates come about how things will—or won't—work together.

Manager Gregg Berhalter termed a 5-1 loss to Colombia a "wake-up call," and the team. looked to be much more attentive in a 1-1 draw with Brazil a few days later.

The Stars and Stripes need to be alert because this is one of the last chances they have to test themselves against top competition, including Group C rival Uruguay, before the 2026 tournament.

Get out of the group? It's likely another date with Brazil or Colombia awaits in the quarterfinal.

The Americans will lean on Christian Pulisic, who scored a free-kick stunner against Brazil, but also are crossing their fingers for a healthy Tyler Adams in the middle and several error-free showings from goalkeeper Matt Turner and his defense.

Colombia comes to the tournament with a retro shirt design, and it's OK to have some nostalgia about this team. There's James Rodriguez, throwing it back to 2014 and doing it again.

There's Rafael Santos Borré scoring goals like he did when he was with River Plate. There's Davinson Sánchez looking every bit as sharp as he did during his Tottenham days.

You have to cast your mind back pretty far to remember Colombia's last defeat as well, with the Cafeteros having won their last eight contests and going unbeaten in their last 21 since a 2022 defeat to Argentina in World Cup qualification.

Critics will say Colombia's schedule has allowed for that, with both qualification games against Argentina and trips to Brazil and Uruguay still pending, but it's an impressive run that will be on the line in Group D.

All the talent is there for Brazil. When isn't it? The concern is how it will all come together.

Brazil hoped it would be Carlo Ancelotti guiding this group back to Copa América glory. Instead, the Real Madrid presence will be Éder Militão, Rodrygo and Vinicius Júnior fresh off a UEFA Champions League win and a manager with no European experience leading the way in the form of Dorival Júnior.

Despite a lack of international-name recognition, his tenure started relatively well, or at least better than how Brazil closed out 2023. The Seleção drew with Venezuela and lost to Uruguay in October, then lost in Colombia and to Argentina in Rio de Janeiro in November—their first-ever home defeat in World Cup qualification.

There were moments in both the March friendly matches and pre-tournament games against Mexico and the U.S. when Brazil looked like that classic team so many of us visualize when thinking of the South American giants. But there were also moments when it didn't.

Our No. 2 slot isn't just down to being #Bielsalievers, though the presence of legendary manager Marcelo Bielsa on the bench doesn't hurt.

This Uruguay team is deep, it executes its manager's ideas well and goes into the tournament with just two losses in the last two years—in a March friendly and a September 2023 trip to Ecuador during World Cup qualification.

The results Uruguay secured after that defeat—a draw in Colombia, a dominant home victory over Brazil, a stunning 2-0 win in Argentina and a blowout against Bolivia—make clear this team is finding its stride.

While Liverpool forward Darwin Núñez is key to capitalizing off the intense press Bielsa utilizes, the presence of ex-Anfield striker Luis Suárez gives another scoring threat off the bench.

There is steel in midfield, speed in transition and a defense not only able to squeeze opposing attackers but also surge forward and initiate dangerous attacking moves.

Uruguay is a team that appears to have it all and should contend for its first trophy since 2011.

As the world and Copa América champions, we're not exactly going out on a limb by putting Argentina in the top slot of our rankings.

However, little it's shown since Lionel Messi lifted the World Cup in Qatar indicates it's getting much worse.

Messi is still there, and while he's no longer fighting for Champions League trophies, he's tearing it up with Inter Miami and always seems happiest when he's in blue and white on national team duty.

Some of his old pals will help him defend the title as well with Angel Di Maria, Emiliano Martinez and Lautaro Martinez among 21 players from the 2022 squad who are in manager Lionel Scaloni's team for the Copa America.

Scaloni didn't select Paulo Dybala, but his absence likely won't be missed with more than enough attacking talent who can help Argentina find the goals.