Several South American countries are among the best teams in the world, such as Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay. For this reason, the Conmebol qualifying tournaments are among the most competitive. A total of 10 national teams take part in this process, including Peru. But did you know that there are two countries in the region that are not participating in this tournament?
Unlike the South American countries, these two nations compete in the Confederation of North American, Central American and Caribbean Football (Concacaf). Next, we will tell you the reasons why these teams cannot compete with the rest of the southern part of America.
Which South American countries do not participate in the Conmebol Qualifiers?
Suriname and Guyana are the only countries in South America who do not participate in Conmebol tournaments. This includes both the World Cup qualification and the other competitions, including the Copa América.
Furthermore, unlike their counterparts, these two areas tend to be the least known in the region, be it on a sporting, tourist or other level. However, geographically they belong to the southern part of America.
Why don’t Suriname and Guyana play in Conmebol?
The reasons why Suriname and Guyana They don’t play in Conmebol There are mainly three: the level of football of their teams, the language and their independence.
Unlike most South American countries, Spanish is not spoken in either area. In the first, mainly Dutch is used; while in the second English.
The Guyana national team plays in Concacaf. Photo: ESPN
This is because the territory of Suriname was ruled by the Netherlands; while Guyana for the United Kingdom. Due to the language barrier, both nations did not have close relations with the rest of the Spanish-speaking countries.
Likewise, football is not the premier sport in both areas: other disciplines are usually practiced, such as cricket. This has resulted in the level of football being lower than in the rest of South American nations.
Suriname is one of the two countries in South America that does not participate in the Conmebol Qualifiers. Photo: Concacaf
Guyana and Suriname are also notable for being the last in the Americas to gain independence – in 1966 and 1975, respectively. By that time, countries such as Colombia, Chile or Argentina had already achieved their sovereignty for more than 100 years.
Furthermore, Conmebol was founded in 1961. Thus, at the time of independence of both countries, a format already existed and the number of members had been determined. For these reasons, Guyana and Suriname are now part of Concacaf.
How many languages are spoken in Suriname?
The official language of Suriname is Dutch, which joined the Dutch Language Union in 2004 and is the native language of 46.6% of the population. Sranang Tongo is the second language and is spoken by 37% of the residents. Spanish and English are also spoken. There is a presence of Portuguese-speaking people for commercial reasons, and the descendants of the Chinese, Indians and Javanese maintain the languages of their ancestors. Finally, there are the locals who speak their own language.