I don't really think it makes a huge difference. A knockout match against a big nation is always special (unless they play like England) and everyone else is just a team you have to beat, it doesn't really matter where they come from. Familiarity creates its own narratives anyway, be it a rivalry, some result/misbehavior that needs to be "avenged" or some streak that needs to be defended. And I'd much rather play the top sides regularly than once or twice every four years.
Well I didn't express it properly but what I thought of in my mind was the USMNT doing this as a 2026 preparation and then evaluating how it went afterwards.
And I think CONCACAF improving to a reasonable level is a bit of a pipe dream, the football world only ever seems to become more polarized.
I don't think it's a pipe dream, all you need to do is look at the level of players that the region is producing compared to years past.
Canada: Davies is the best player in the region at 21 and on track to be a world star and David and Larin probably the 2 best strikers in the region.
USA: Reyna and Pulisic are likely the best players we have ever had (up there with Donovan and Dempsey), but beyond that there are actual high end (for us) options all across the midfield and front line. Are we at the level of the top European and South American sides? No, of course not, but the level of talent in the player pool is light years ahead of where it has ever been.
Mexico: Not as much elite talent as in years past, but still really good.
These are the 3 best teams in the region and at least 2 of them or on an upward trajectory with teams full of guys under 23 years old. Mexico will find its legs, it always does. To say the region is not improving is to ignore the evidence in front of you. We will see in a few months if this holds true and at least 2 of those teams progress.
