- published: 11 Feb 2016
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The Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF; /ˈkɒn.kəkæf/ KON-kə-kaf) is the continental governing body for association football in North America, Central America and the Caribbean. Three South American entities, the independent nations of Guyana and Suriname and the French department of French Guiana, are also members.
CONCACAF was founded in its current form on 18 September 1961 in Mexico City, Mexico by the fusion of the NAFC and the CCCF, and it became one of the six continental confederations affiliated with FIFA. Its primary administrative functions are to organize competitions for national teams and clubs, and to conduct World Cup qualifying tournaments. Men's football in the region has been dominated by Mexico, and in recent years United States has improved rapidly. Both have won all but one of the editions of the CONCACAF Gold Cup. The United States has been very successful in the women's game, being the only CONCACAF member to win any of the three major worldwide competitions in women's football—the World Cup (twice), the Olympics (three times), and the Algarve Cup (eight times).