FIFA Confederations Cup facts for kids
| Organising body | FIFA |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1992 |
| Abolished | 2017 |
| Region | International |
| Number of teams | 8 (from 6 confederations) |
| Last champions |  Germany (1st title) |
| Most successful team(s) |  Brazil (4 titles) |
The FIFA Confederations Cup was an exciting international association football tournament for men's national teams. It was held every four years by FIFA. This special competition brought together the champions from each of the six main football regions around the world. It also included the current FIFA World Cup winner and the country hosting the tournament. This made for a total of eight strong teams competing for the trophy.
Between 2001 and 2017, the tournament often took place in the country that would host the World Cup the following year. It served as a practice event, helping the host nation get ready for the much larger World Cup.
The last champions were Germany. They won the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup by beating Chile 1–0 in the final match. In March 2019, FIFA announced that the tournament would no longer be held. Its place was taken by an expanded FIFA Club World Cup and the 2021 FIFA Arab Cup.
Contents
The FIFA Confederations Cup: A Global Football Tournament
What Was the Confederations Cup?
The FIFA Confederations Cup was a unique football competition. It gathered the best teams from different parts of the world. The goal was to see which continental champion was the strongest. It was a chance for teams to test their skills against top opponents before the World Cup.
How the Tournament Started: The King Fahd Cup
The tournament began in Saudi Arabia. It was first held in 1992 and again in 1995. Back then, it was called the King Fahd Cup. The Saudi national team and a few continental champions played in it. This early tournament was named after the Saudi ruler who helped organize it.
FIFA Takes Over: The Confederations Cup Era
In 1997, FIFA took charge of the tournament. They renamed it the FIFA Confederations Cup. At first, it was held every two years. FIFA later recognized the first two King Fahd Cup events as official Confederations Cup editions.
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After 2005, the tournament switched to being held every four years. It always happened one year before the FIFA World Cup in the same host country. This made it a "dress rehearsal" for the World Cup. It used some of the same stadiums and gave the host nation valuable experience. Sometimes, teams like Germany or France chose not to participate. When this happened, another strong team, often the runner-up, was invited instead.
Why the Tournament Ended
The 2021 tournament was planned for Qatar. Qatar was also set to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup. However, there were worries about the very hot summer weather in Qatar. This led to discussions about moving the World Cup to a cooler time of year.
Because of the heat, FIFA decided to move the 2021 Confederations Cup to another country. This way, it could still be played in its usual June/July timeframe. Later, in March 2019, FIFA officially announced that the Confederations Cup would be stopped. It was replaced by a bigger FIFA Club World Cup and the 2021 FIFA Arab Cup.
A New Idea: Similar Competitions Today
Even though the Confederations Cup is gone, the idea of bringing together continental champions lives on. In 2021, football leaders from Europe (UEFA) and South America (CONMEBOL) started talking about a new competition. This new event would feature the winners of the Copa América and the UEFA European Championship. On June 1, 2022, Argentina played Italy in the 2022 Finalissima. This match was a relaunch of an older competition between these two continental champions.
How the Games Were Played
The eight qualified teams were divided into two groups. Teams from the same football region usually weren't in the same group. Each team played every other team in their group once. This meant each team played three matches in the group stage.
Group Stage Excitement
After the group matches, the top two teams from each group moved on to the semi-finals. The winner of one group played against the second-place team from the other group. Teams earned points for wins and draws. Their position in the group was decided by points, then goal difference, and then goals scored.
Knockout Rounds and Finals
The winners of the semi-finals played in the grand final match. The teams that lost in the semi-finals played each other for third place. If a knockout stage game was a draw after regular time, extra time was played. If it was still a draw, a penalty shoot-out decided the winner.
Champions and Top Teams
Who Won the Confederations Cup?
The table below shows all the winners and finalists of the FIFA Confederations Cup. The first two editions were originally the King Fahd Cup, but FIFA later recognized them as part of the Confederations Cup history.
| Ed. | Year | Host | First place game | Third place game | No. of Teams |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Champions |
Score |  Runners-up |
 Third place |
Score | Fourth place | ||||
| 1 | 1992 |  Saudi Arabia |
 Argentina |
3–1 |  Saudi Arabia |
 United States |
5–2 |  Ivory Coast |
4 |
| 2 | 1995 | Saudi Arabia |
 Denmark |
2–0 | Argentina |
 Mexico |
1–1 (aet) (5–4 p) |
 Nigeria |
6 |
| 3 | 1997 | Saudi Arabia |
 Brazil |
6–0 |  Australia |
 Czech Republic |
1–0 |  Uruguay |
8 |
| 4 | 1999 |  Mexico |
Mexico |
4–3 | Brazil |
United States |
2–0 | Saudi Arabia |
8 |
| 5 | 2001 |  France |
1–0 |  Japan |
Australia |
1–0 | Brazil |
8 | |
| 6 | 2003 |  France |
France |
1–0 (a.e.t./g.g.) |  Cameroon |
 Turkey |
2–1 |  Colombia |
8 |
| 7 | 2005 |  Germany |
Brazil |
4–1 | Argentina |
 Germany |
4–3 (aet) | Mexico |
8 |
| 8 | 2009 |  South Africa |
Brazil |
3–2 | United States |
 Spain |
3–2 (aet) |  South Africa |
8 |
| 9 | 2013 | Brazil |
Brazil |
3–0 | Spain |
 Italy |
2–2 (aet) (3–2 p) |
Uruguay |
8 |
| 10 | 2017 |  Russia |
Germany |
1–0 |  Chile |
 Portugal |
2–1 (aet) | Mexico |
8 |
Teams That Reached the Top Four
This table shows which teams performed best in the Confederations Cup, reaching the top four spots.
| Team | Titles | Runners-up | Third place | Fourth place |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brazil |
4 (1997, 2005, 2009, 2013 *) | 1 (1999) | – | 1 (2001) |
 France |
2 (2001, 2003 *) | – | – | – |
 Argentina |
1 (1992) | 2 (1995, 2005) | – | – |
 Mexico |
1 (1999 *) | – | 1 (1995) | 2 (2005, 2017) |
| Germany |
1 (2017) | – | 1 (2005 *) | – |
 Denmark |
1 (1995) | – | – | – |
 United States |
– | 1 (2009) | 2 (1992, 1999) | – |
 Australia |
– | 1 (1997) | 1 (2001) | – |
 Spain |
– | 1 (2013) | 1 (2009) | – |
 Saudi Arabia |
– | 1 (1992 *) | – | 1 (1999) |
 Japan |
– | 1 (2001 *) | – | – |
 Cameroon |
– | 1 (2003) | – | – |
 Chile |
– | 1 (2017) | – | – |
 Czech Republic |
– | – | 1 (1997) | – |
 Turkey |
– | – | 1 (2003) | – |
 Italy |
– | – | 1 (2013) | – |
 Portugal |
– | – | 1 (2017) | – |
 Uruguay |
– | – | – | 2 (1997, 2013) |
 Ivory Coast |
– | – | – | 1 (1992) |
 Nigeria |
– | – | – | 1 (1995) |
 Colombia |
– | – | – | 1 (2003) |
 South Africa |
– | – | – | 1 (2009 *) |
-
* hosts
Amazing Player Records
Many talented players made their mark in the Confederations Cup. Here are some of the top goal scorers.
Top Goal Scorers
The player with the most goals in a single tournament was Romário from Brazil, who scored 7 goals in 1997.
Here are the overall top goal scorers in the history of the tournament:
| Player | Country | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Ronaldinho | Brazil |
9 |
| Cuauhtémoc Blanco | Mexico |
|
| Fernando Torres | Spain |
8 |
| Adriano | Brazil |
7 |
| Romário | Brazil |
|
| Marzouk Al-Otaibi | Saudi Arabia |
6 |
| David Villa | Spain |
|
| Alex | Brazil |
5 |
| John Aloisi | Australia |
|
| Luís Fabiano | Brazil |
|
| Fred | Brazil |
|
| Robert Pires | France |
|
| Vladimír Šmicer | Czech Republic |
Special Awards
At the end of each tournament, special awards were given to outstanding players and teams. These included the Golden Ball for the best player, the Golden Boot for the top scorer, and the Golden Glove for the best goalkeeper. There was also a FIFA Fair Play Trophy for the team that showed the best sportsmanship.
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| Tournament | Golden Ball | Golden Boot | Goals | Golden Glove | FIFA Fair Play Trophy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 |
Fernando Redondo |
Gabriel Batistuta
|
2 | Not awarded | Not awarded |
| 1995 |
Brian Laudrup |
Luis García |
3 | ||
| 1997 |
Denílson |
Romário |
7 | South Africa |
|
| 1999 |
Ronaldinho |
Ronaldinho |
6 | Brazil New Zealand |
|
 2001 |
 Robert Pires |
Robert Pires |
2 | Japan |
|
| 2003 |
Thierry Henry |
Thierry Henry |
4 | Japan |
|
| 2005 |
Adriano |
Adriano |
5 | Oswaldo Sánchez |
 Greece |
| 2009 |
Kaká |
Luís Fabiano |
5 | Tim Howard |
Brazil |
| 2013 |
Neymar |
Fernando Torres |
5 | Júlio César |
Spain |
 2017 |
Julian Draxler |
Timo Werner |
3 | Claudio Bravo |
Germany |
See also
In Spanish: Copa FIFA Confederaciones para niños
