Dr. Nicolas Leoz, the president of the South American football confederation (CONMEBOL), has revealed that the Oceania Confederation (OFC) has approached him, requesting a place in the next Copa America.
“For the moment we’re sticking to the current format (12 nations), with, in addition to the South American countries, the CONCACAF and a guest country,” said Leoz.
Members from CONCACAF representing North America and the Caribbean have been invited to play in previous Copa America competitions, with Mexico playing in this year’s tournament in Peru.
But Leoz refused to rule out the possibility of extending the competition.
“But we don’t rule out increasing the number of participants,” he added.
The presence of Australia or indeed another Oceania nation would not be without precedent. During the 1999 tournament in Paraguay, Japan were invited to participate, and going back further, CONMEBOL toyed with the idea of inviting Italy in 1995.