The 2017 Confederations Cup begins on Saturday, June 17. Here are the countries competing in the two groups in the tournament.
The Confederations Cup will be celebrating its 10th year as a competition when it kicks off on June 17. There are eight countries competing in the tournament and they’ll be split into two separate groups. Some are making their debuts, while others are veterans of the competition. Here are the groups and countries who qualified for the 2017 Confederations Cup.
Group A
Group A consists of Russia, New Zealand, Portugal and Mexico. Both Russia and Portugal are making their first appearances in the competition. New Zealand have been to the competition on three different occasions, while Mexico have been six times, the most appearances out of the eight qualifying countries.
Russia are hosting the 2018 World Cup, therefore, they automatically qualify for the Confederations Cup. New Zealand will be making their fourth appearance in the Confederations Cup. They qualified by winning the 2016 OFC Nations Cup.
Portugal are also making their debut in the competition. They qualified by winning the 2016 European Championship, beating France in extra time of the final. Mexico is the veteran country of this tournament, having played six times before this year. They qualified by winning the 2015 CONCACAF Cup.
Group B
Group B consists of Cameroon, Chile, Germany and Australia. This will mark the first time that Chile have qualified for this competition, while Cameroon, Germany and Australia have all been at least twice.
Cameroon are making their third appearance in the Cup. They qualified by winning the 2017 African Cup of Nations, coming from behind to beat Egypt 2-1 in the final. Germany will also be making their third appearance in the competition. They qualified by winning the 2014 World Cup, and are the highest FIFA ranked country in the tournament.
Chile qualified for their debut by defeating Argentina in penalties in the 2015 Copa America. Australia, on the other hand, will be making their fourth showing in the Confederations Cup, the most of any country in Group B. They qualified by winning the AFC Asian Cup in 2015.
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The group stage begins on Saturday, June 17. Russia and New Zealand square off in the first match of the tournament.