5 international tournaments to look forward to in 2019
So the end is near at the 2018 FIFA World Cup. This time next week either France, Belgium, England or Croatia will celebrate becoming world champions. The feeling of nothingness will hit most football fans, who'll get even more depressed when they realize that the next World Cup won't take place in four years. With FIFA awarding the competition to Qatar, we'll have to wait nearly four and a half years before the next World Cup, as the action is set to start in late-November 2022 in the competition.
However, Sunday's final doesn't mean that we'll have to wait for the next Euros to see top-level international football. 2019 will actually be a great year for international football, with a number of exciting tournaments taking place in the same year.
Note that the following list contains men's competitions. The women's World Cup will also take place next year.
#5 CONCACAF Gold Cup
Played on June 18 - July 18, the 15th edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup will decide the North, Central American, and Caribbean region champion.
The USA will host the tournament and they'll also be looking to defend the title after beating Jamaica 2-1 in the 2017 final.
USMNT and Mexico have dominated the tournament, winning all but one title thus far, but the gap in quality is diminishing in the region, evident by the fact that the US missed Russia 2018 and there hasn't been a USA - Mexico final at the Gold Cup since 2011 when the Mexicans won in a classic 4-2 affair.
Jamaica has been in two straight finals, while World Cup debutants in 2018 Panama made it into the final in 2013.
USA, Mexico and Panama are three of six nations who have already qualified for the tournament.
The performance in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers also secured qualification for Trinidad and Tobago, Costa Rica and Honduras.
The rest of the field will be decided in a qualification tournament which starts in September.