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Friday, 05 December 2008

CONMEBOL's Executive Committee meets

Copa America: a new cycle begins and the revolving calendar remains
21 / 12 / 2007

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The members of the Executive Committee in full meeting. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20081205191359/http://www.alfieri.com.ar/">ALFIERI PHOTO</a> 
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Presided by the vice-president of CONMEBOL, Mr. Eugenio Figueredo Aguerre, a meeting of presidents of associations and members of the Executive Committee took place this Wednesday December 19 at CONMEBOL headquarters in Asunción.

The following presidents participated: Julio Humberto Grondona (Argentina), Carlos Chavez (Bolivia), Marco Polo de Nero (vice-president of CBF), Harold Mayne-Nicholls (Chile), Luis Bedoya (Colombia), Luis Chiriboga (Ecuador), Juan Angel Napout (Paraguay), Manuel Burga (Peru), José Luis Corbo (Uruguay), Rafael Esquivel (Venezuela); and the members of the Executive Committee that are detailed next: Eduardo Deluca (general secretary, Argentina), Romer Osuna (treasurer, Bolivia), Nicolas Delfino (Peru), Francisco Acosta (Ecuador) and Ricardo Abumohor (Chile). 

The next Copa America: Argentina 2011 

For the first time in 21 years, Dr. Nicolás Leoz could not preside over the meeting due to an indisposition that forced him to stay in bed. Hence, before beginning the deliberations, all his colleagues and friends of the Executive Committee and the National Associations expressed their wishes for his prompt recovery. 

It was decided that the Copa America will begin a new dispute cycle and that the revolving system for selecting host countries by alphabetical order will remain in place. According to it, Argentina 2011 would be the beginning of this new cycle. 

Each association will confirm its right of organizing the competition in advance, with sufficient lead time and, if this were not so, it would be necessary to have a substitute host. It will be Bolivia's turn after Argentina, as it corresponds to alphabetical order. In the previous cycle, when its turn to organize it came up, Bolivia in second requested postponement and later hosted the Cup in 1997. At that time Brazil took its place. 

New international dates for national teams 

FIFA announced the new international calendar, which establishes some new dates for matches between national teams. It was decided to maintain the original scheduled dates for the preliminary round for the 2010 World Cup and take the new dates for friendly matches. 

Football at high altitude 

Mr. Julio Grondona informed his peers that, during the meeting of the FIFA Executive Committee held in Tokyo on December 15, the Medical Commission of the main football entity suggested again that football games not be played above an altitude of 2.750 meters, without due physical adaptation. 

In consequence, the FIFA Executive Committee solved to support the suggestion and ordered that football not be disputed in cities above that altitude. 

In this respect, the president of the Bolivian Federation, Carlos Chavez, regretted the lightness of the analysis by this Medical Commission, pointing out that on November 14 of this year his Federation had received a letter signed by Jiri Dvorak, medical head of FIFA, where, among other things, it sustained that this commission would analyze this case at the end of 2008 or beginning of 2009. 

He also added that in Maracaibo, on July 14, 2007, presidents Joseph Blatter (FIFA) and Nicolas Leoz (CONMEBOL) signed a combined document that was made public, where it was established that, for this Preliminary round, football would be allowed to be played in the cities of La Paz (Bolivia) and Quito (Ecuador), suggesting that, in the future, the city of La Paz should have a sport scenario at a maximum altitude of 2.500 meters above sea level, with a tolerance of up to 2.800 meters." 

The Bolivian federation president pointed out that retroactive effects cannot exist on such a resolution. All the presidents of the South American Associations, once again, solidarized with Bolivia in this posture. 

It was admitted that FIFA has absolute domain over its competitions. Nevertheless, this is a competition among countries in the same continent that have agreed on how to play. Finally, it was decided that a letter will be sent to FIFA specifying the reaches of the resolution with regards to the present preliminary round. 

Santander Libertadores Cup 

After the new agreement signed with Santander Bank for a five year period, a new economic regime for the tournament was set into place, to begin in 2008. It basically contemplates increases for the participating clubs, mainly for those that dispute the First Phase and a letter with details will be remitted to each National Association. 

From now on, in the final of the tournament, in the event of parity of points and goal difference, the visitor goals will prevail and, if parity subsists after this, there will be an additional 30 minutes of play. Lastly, if the teams remain tied, a definition by penalty kicks will decide the outcome. 

It was ratified once again that the seating capacity of the stadiums used for the matches from the First Phase to semifinals must be 20.000 spectators. For the final it must be 40.000. 

Copa America Venezuela 2007 

The treasurer of CONMEBOL, Mr. Romer Osuna reported on the still to be concluded administrative and economic situation of the Copa America Venezuela 2007 which balance yielded a surplus of 4 million dollars, mount that should be distributed among the participants. 

In this respect he pointed out that he maintains permanent contact with the Venezuelan Federation, even with the participation of general secretary Eduardo Deluca, in order to accelerate the liquidation process of the resulting profit for each association. It was determined that Mr. Eugenio Figueredo travel to Venezuela as an emissary in order to close this chapter. 

Agreement with the Japanese Association 

A successful agreement with the Japanese Football Association was officially announced. It creates a new club's competition, for which the champions of the South American Cup and the champion of the Yamazaki Nabisco Cup, Japan's league cup, will face each other yearly. 

The agreement between the South American and Japanese authorities was signed December 9 in Tokyo, and has four year duration. It will begin in 2008. 

It will only consist of only one match that will be played in Japan. There is already an established date for 2008, July 30 and it will take place in Osaka. The finalists are Arsenal, of Argentina, new champion of the 2007 South American Cup and Shrimp Osaka, winner of the 2007 Japanese Yamazaki Nabisco Cup. 

This new competition will be named the Nabisco Cup and it will only be disputed by CONMEBOL teams. Hence, if the champion of the Nissan South American Cup were a team belonging to another confederation, the better positioned South American team will be the one that disputes this new international contest. 

Request of the Mexican Federation 

There was a meeting with the General Secretary of the Mexican Football Federation, Mr. Decio de María, who was the bearer of some petitions made by his entity. These requested that the same economic regime applied to South American clubs in the Libertadores and South American cups also be applied to the Mexican clubs. 

It also asked that referees from their country be kept in mind to referee some of the matches in those same competitions. CONMEBOL agreed to analyze and respond to both petitions. 

Uneasiness

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 <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20081205191359/http://www.alfieri.com.ar/">ALFIERI PHOTO</a> 
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At the request of the president of the Chilean Football Federation, Harold Mayne-Nicholls, a severe warning was requested for Mexico in view of the unethical and aggressive anti fair play declarations made by Mexican football leaders that damage the image of CONMEBOL and its competitions, emphasizing that they are coming from a country that's invited to participate in the South American tournaments. 

These unmeasured criticisms, are being reiterated by the whole Mexican media with high tint of aggressiveness. 

In this respect, he pointed out that the Mexican team America, in the final of the South American Cup on December 5, refused to receive the silver medal as vice champion, for which CONMEBOL analyzes a possible economic and sport sanction, as it has done in previous opportunities. 

The same leader regretted some versions poured permanently by the Fox Sports network that question the task of referees, match commissioners and leaders of the South American Football Confederation, generating ill will and disbelief toward the activities of the womb of South American football and her tournaments. He also referred to partialist comments about certain teams. 

CONMEBOL once again reiterates its posture of absolute equanimity toward its ten member associations and toward all the clubs in the continent. 

More retribution from TV is requested 

The Brazilian representative, Mr. Marco Pole de Nero, requested that CONMEBOL analyze the possibility of requesting bigger retribution from television for its tournaments. It expressed that, for example, in his country, the Brazilian championship perceives 125 million dollars for the rights, and in the case of a state tournament, 35 million in the same currency. In function of this, it is not logical for CONMEBOL to receive inferior values for its tournaments. 

In that same sense, Harold Mayne-Nicholls, of Chile, expressed that, in most South American countries, the American foreign currency has been depreciating flagrantly in the last years, and this decreases the compensation obtained by participating clubs. He also noted that the crisis that television confronted soon after September 11, 2001 has already been overcome and television chains have recovered their well-being, but this is not reflected in the prizes for the clubs. 

South American Women's U-17 Chile 2008 

The tournament will be disputed in Chile from January 12 to January 30. The First Phase will take place in Melipilla and Santiago, while the final round will be in the city of Villarrica, 850 kilometers south of the Capital. 

Channel 13 of Chile will transmit all the matches, and in case some countries were interested in the transmissions, the rights will be given to them gratuitously, but logically just covering the cost of the satellite. This so women's football can be seen. 

The matches for the First Phase of this tournament will be disputed between 19:00 and 21:00. And the Final Phase, 20:00 and 22:00 hours. 

South American Women's U-20 Brazil 2008 

This championship will be carried out from the 7th to the 23rd of March in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, in cities to be confirmed. 

Futsal and Beach Soccer Commission

This commission met and established dates and headquarters for the different tournaments, details of which will be given separately in the Communiqués section. 

Press Department 
Luque, Greater Asunción, December 20, 2007

Executive Director: Eduardo Deluca; Commercial Director: Alberto Almirall;
Editorial Director: Jorge Barraza; Editor: Eduardo Barraza;
Colaborators: Andrés Castelli and Martín Barraza; Photography: Alfieri Photo
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