Uruguay vs Panama

Hard Rock Stadium in Miami hosts an exciting 2024 Copa America Group C day-one encounter between Uruguay and Panama.

Uruguay might be the joint-best team at Copa America with 15 titles, alongside Argentina, but it’s been over a decade since they last won the tournament. Making it out of the group stages shouldn’t be an issue, considering they’ve reached the knockouts in their last two appearances. Starting on the front foot could be of the essence, with Marcelo Bielsa entering the event amid an eye-catching run of form, having only lost two of their last 14 internationals (W9, D3). Defensively robust, they’ve kept a clean sheet in five of their seven most recent outings, including two warm-up matches against Panama’s cross-continent rivals Mexico (4-0) and Costa Rica (0-0) in June friendlies. Confidence is bursting at the seams, considering La Celeste’s perfect H2H record against Panama (W4).

The fact they’ve failed to get on the scoresheet across their last three meetings with Uruguay could clip Panama’s wings in this opening fixture. A 1-0 loss to Paraguay in their final preparation game doesn’t bode well either, as they bid to advance past the Copa America group stages for the first time in their second appearance. Despite entering this game as betting outsiders, Los Canaleros can draw inspiration from their notable resurgence under Danish manager Thomas Christiansen, which has seen them move from 81st in June 2020 to 43rd in the FIFA rankings. Reaching the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup final was no small feat, even if they lost to Mexico 1-0. History backs Panama for an early upset, as they got their only previous Copa America campaign off to a winning start.