Everything you need to know about Copa America 2015

The 2015 Copa America begins June 11 in Chile, and Uruguay is set to defend its South American title.

This is your one-stop shop for detailed team previews of those nations taking part in the tournament, features, and more. The final will be played on July 4 in Santiago.

Team Previews

Argentina

Redemption awaits Argentina.

Representing a nation where the only thing more popular than its steak is its football, La Albiceleste will look to bounce back from their heartbreaking loss in last year's World Cup final by capturing a 15th Copa America title. ...

Few teams look as threatening as Argentina when in possession of the ball. The idea of Lionel Messi launching a counterattack down the pitch, surrounded by the likes by Sergio Aguero, Angel Di Maria, and Gonzalo Higuain, is enough to trigger nightmares.

Then there's Carlos Tevez, whose return to La Albiceleste will somehow be worked into the attacking equation, and Ezequiel Lavezzi, who can make an impact off the bench like no other.

Read Argentina's detailed team preview - including its schedule, starting XI, captain, and star player profiles, and more - here.

Bolivia

In stark contrast to the altitude of La Paz, expectations are low for Bolivia at the Copa America.

Mired in a political climate that continues to stunt its growth, Bolivian football is in a dark place as it attempts to return to its glory days of the 1990s, when El Verde qualified for the 1994 World Cup and subsequently reached the final of the 1997 Copa America on home soil.

Read Bolivia's detailed team preview - including its schedule, starting XI, captain, and star player profiles, and more - here.

Brazil

The Carnival festival is back underway.

Following its traumatic exit from last year's World Cup, a match that is surely among the most shocking results in the history of international football, Brazil is enjoying a resurgence as it looks to capture a ninth Copa America title.

Leading the revolution is manager Dunga, a bad-tempered figure who is far from popular in the streets of Brazil, largely because he values pragmatism over samba futebol, the fast-paced, free-flowing, creative style of play that values enjoyment as much as winning and defined the Selecao in past eras.

It was Dunga's defensive approach that was blamed for Brazil's collapse at the 2010 World Cup, which marked the end of his first stint as manager of the national team.

Things are going far better this time around, however.

Read Brazil's detailed team preview - including its schedule, starting XI, captain, and star player profiles, and more - here.

Chile

All the conditions are right for Chile to claim its first-ever Copa America title and transform its agonising exit from last year's World Cup into a faded memory.

Home soil, a wealth of talent, and a phenomenal manager provide La Roja with the necessary ingredients to win a tournament that has eluded Chile like rain eludes the Atacama Desert.

Few competitions can boast the value of playing at home quite like the Copa America. Six of the tournament's seven champions have won at least one edition in their own streets - a feat Chile could accomplish, given that the team won six of their eight home qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup.

Read Chile's detailed team preview - including its schedule, starting XI, captain, and star player profiles, and more - here.

Colombia

Colombia won the collective hearts of the football world with their scintillating attacking style at last summer's World Cup, and after heading into that tournament as something of a dark horse, they go into the 2015 Copa America as one of four teams with legitimate hopes of capturing the title.

Comprised largely of the same players who stole the show in Brazil with a mixture of free-flowing play and exuberant celebrations, this Colombian squad remains one of the most enjoyable on the planet to watch.

Can they parlay that into silverware?

Read Colombia's detailed team preview - including its schedule, starting XI, captain, and star player profiles, and more - here.

Ecuador

A new era in Ecuadorian football is set to kick off as La Tri look to re-establish themselves among South America's elite after a disappointing World Cup and prove they can indeed earn positive results away from the altitude of Quito.

While success in the Copa America would go a long way to dispel the myth that Ecuador only wins when its opponent is gasping for oxygen at the Estadio Olimpico Atahualpa, it's been a long time since the tournament smiled on the country that encompasses the Amazon rain forest, the Andean highlands, and the Galapagos Islands.

Ecuador has been eliminated in the group stage of the Copa America's past five editions, amassing a catastrophic record of one win, one draw, and 13 losses over the last 16 years.

Read Ecuador's detailed team preview - including its schedule, starting XI, captain, and star player profiles, and more - here.

Jamaica

Welcome to the Copa America, Jamaica. Here are three of South America's best teams to ensure you remember, one way or the other, your first invite to the continent's premier competition.

As one of two CONCACAF invitees, along with Mexico, Jamaica has been thrust into a terribly difficult section alongside Argentina (that Lionel Messi guy), Uruguay (defending champions), and Paraguay (2011 finalists).

Dreams are a beautiful thing, and many Jamaican fans will be dreaming of at least one historic upset over a South American powerhouse, but reality is often brutal. As such, it's difficult to envision a scenario in which the Reggae Boyz aren't in the basement of Group B at the conclusion of the tournament's opening stage.

Read Jamaica's detailed team preview - including its schedule, starting XI, captain, and star player profiles, and more - here.

Mexico

As per usual, Mexico was one of the two national teams to open up its inbox and find a formal invitation to the Copa America.

A member of CONCACAF, El Tri are regular invitees to the competition, and they'll look to spoil the South American festivities like a distant relative whose belligerent behaviour ruins the family barbecue.

However, due to the upcoming Gold Cup, which Mexico is giving priority, Super Saiyan manager Miguel Herrera called up two separate squads for the two tournaments and assigned the weaker roster to the Copa America.

That isn't to say Mexico's squad is short on talent. Far from it. A number of promising youngsters will partake in the Copa America, among them Raul Jimenez, 'keeper Jesus Corona, and Marco Fabian, who were all part of Herrera's team at last year's World Cup.

El Tri generally perform well at the Copa America. They've reached the semifinals in four of the last six editions of the tournament, reaching the final in 2001 and finishing third in 1997, 1999, and 2007.

Read Mexico's detailed team preview - including its schedule, starting XI, captain, and star player profiles, and more - here.

Paraguay

The last edition of the Copa America foreshadowed what was to come for Paraguayan football.

Paraguay finished as runners-up without winning a single game, stringing together five consecutive draws en route to the final and squeaking through the knockout stage as a result of some catastrophic penalty kicks from their opponents.

That was four years ago.

Since then, La Albirroja have evolved into a fraction of the machine they were throughout the 1990s and 2000s, an era in which they made four consecutive World Cup appearances.

Read Paraguay's detailed team preview - including its schedule, starting XI, captain, and star player profiles, and more - here.

Peru

Peru was the surprise package of the 2011 Copa America, reaching the semifinals before ultimately succumbing to eventual champions Uruguay and settling for a third-place finish.

To believe they can accomplish a similar feat this time around, though, would require optimism - or perhaps ignorance - of the highest order.

Read Peru's detailed team preview - including its schedule, starting XI, captain, and star player profiles, and more - here.

Uruguay

A population of just over three million, two World Cup titles, and a record 15 Copa America crowns.

Few nations can boast a national team that punches above its weight quite like Uruguay, who will enter the Copa America as the reigning champion following its success in 2011.

Uruguay possesses an incredibly smart football culture, one that compensates for its small population and produces squads with unparalleled versatility.

Summing up La Celeste's accomplishments is a lengthy task. They captured their first Copa America title 99 years ago in the tournament's inaugural edition and went on to win the first installment of the World Cup 14 years later.

Read Uruguay's detailed team preview - including its schedule, starting XI, captain, and star player profiles, and more - here.

Venezuela

Venezuela, the only South American team to have never qualified for a World Cup, has slowly made progress in recent years as a burgeoning force in the region.

Though Noel Sanvicente's team is being discounted by many thanks to their placement alongside continental powerhouses Brazil and Colombia in Group B, La Vinotinto have already proven that they are capable of being the plucky underdogs who make a deep run against the odds.

Can they do it again?

Read Venezuela's detailed team preview - including its schedule, starting XI, captain, and star player profiles, and more - here.

Features

Top 10 players at the 2015 Copa America

Thanks to the wealth of talent that South America routinely pumps out, the superstars at the Copa America include several of the world's best talent. In fact, a majority of players on this list could easily be included among a list of the world's top players.

Here are the top 10 players to watch during the 2015 Copa America in Chile.

Top 5 goals over last 20 years

The football world will focus its attention on South America for the second summer in a row as the 44th edition of the Copa America gets set to kick-off in Chile.

The likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar, and Alexis Sanchez will spoil football supporters once again with their dazzling skills and otherworldly ability to capture imaginations with stunning golazos.

Here's a collection of the top five goals from the past 20 years.

Betting Preview

The 44th Copa America begins June 11 in Chile. The staff at theScore put on their prognosticator hats and offered up their picks with an eye on finding value on the betting board.

Read the full betting preview - including group odds, recommended wagers, and predictions - here.

Infographics

How much is each Copa America team worth?

Much like the wealth inequality that divides the people of South America, the financial disparity between the Copa America's competing teams is massive.

For example, when Chile take the pitch against Ecuador in the competition's opener, La Roja will be hosting an opponent whose total market value is $130,673,312 lower than their own. In fact, Alexis Sanchez, Chile's highest-valued player, produces a figure that is almost equal to La Tri's entire squad.

Group A

Group B

Group C

(Infographics courtesy: Jose Silva)