Italy, Brazil await Confederation Cup draw
Last Updated: Friday, November 21, 2008 | 6:42 PM ET
CBC Sports
Reigning World Cup champion Italy will be one of eight teams competing at the 2009 Confederations Cup in South Africa. (Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)Coaches and representatives from eight of the top soccer nations in the world will gather in Johannesburg on Saturday when FIFA conducts the official draw for next summer's Confederations Cup (CBCSports.ca, 9:55 a.m. ET).
Soccer's governing body will determine the first-round matchups for the tournament, which takes place from June 14-28, 2009, in four cities across South Africa.
The Confederations Cup features soccer's reigning seven continental winners and host nation squaring off in a round-robin tournament. The eight-team field will be divided into two groups during Saturday's draw, with the top two teams in each pool advancing to the semifinals.
The 2009 competition will feature Italy (2006 World Cup champions), Spain (2008 European champions), Brazil (2007 South American champions), the United States (2007 Gold Cup champions), Iraq (2007 Asian Cup champions), Egypt (2008 African Cup of Nations champions) and New Zealand (2008 Oceania Nations Cup champions).
Brazil is set to appear in the competition for a record sixth time, while Italy and Spain will make their debuts in the competition, which was first held in 1992 in Saudi Arabia.
Brazil won the 2005 Confederations Cup, defeating Argentina 4-1 in the final in Frankfurt, Germany.
The Confederations Cup has traditionally been used to test a host country's state of preparedness for the World Cup. South Africa will become the first African nation to host the World Cup when it stages the 2010 tournament.
