The FIFA Confederations Cup is an official FIFA tournament, held every four years. In recent times, it has been seen as a warm-up event to the FIFA World Cup™, but is by no means a minor competition. In fact, due to the nature of its participants, it is often referred to as the 'Champions of Champions' tournament.

In the 2009 edition, the continental champions from South America, North and Central America and the Caribbean, Africa, Europe and Asia will join hosts South Africa in competing for the trophy.

The Confederations Cup started life as the King Fahd Cup invitational tournament which pitted hosts and organisers Saudi Arabia against three chosen opponents in 1992 and 1995. It was in 1997 that it became an official FIFA tournament and was renamed the FIFA Confederations Cup. From 2005, the scheduling of this previously biannual competition was changed to see it played once every four years and staged the year before the FIFA World Cup in the Host Country.

Germany have only played in two Confederations Cups, despite being eligible for four. For the 2005 tournament, with Brazil the holders of both the Copa America and the FIFA World Cup, Argentina filled the extra slot, as they had finished runners-up in the Copa America. Curiously, despite its 'Champions of Champions' nickname, the winner of the FIFA Confederations Cup has never gone on to win the FIFA World Cup™ the following year.

Qualification
Each confederation hosts a qualifying tournament for its national member associations, with the format varying from continent to continent. The Copa America acts as the preliminary competition for CONMEBOL. This tournament is also the oldest international tournament still taking place, with the first one having been staged in 1916. Additional nations - generally from CONMEBOL's North and Central American counterpart, CONCACAF - are often invited to participate, but an invitee has yet to reach the final. Uruguay and Argentina have been the dominant force in the Copa America, with 14 titles apiece. The most recent edition of the tournament took place in Venezuela in June and July 2007, with Mexico and USA as invitees, and was won by Brazil.

The first CONCACAF Gold Cup was held in 1991 in the United States. It replaced the CCCF Championship (1941-1961) and the CONCACAF Championship (1963-1971). The participating teams are from North and Central America and the Caribbean Islands but the tournament has been dominated by Mexico and USA.

The CAF Africa Cup of Nations is a biennial tournament for the members of the Confederation of African Football. Egypt has won the tournament five times, more than any other nation, although Ghana and Cameroon are close behind with four Cup of Nations titles each. The competition was first played in 1957 and has been staged every two years since. Qualification for the Cup of Nations is always fiercely contested, with 52 countries battling for 16 finals berths. Ghana will stage the next edition in 2008.

The UEFA European Championship, often referred to as the EURO, is the only confederation competition that employs seeding for its preliminary competition. The EURO finals involve 16 teams in four groups of four. Germany has made the most appearances in the finals, qualifying on nine occasions, and have been successful on three of those. The next European champions and FIFA Confederations Cup representatives will be decided in Austria and Switzerland in 2008.

The AFC Asian Cup is the AFC's preliminary tournament, with the winner automatically qualifying for the FIFA Confederations Cup. The next edition of the Asian Cup will take place in July 2007 and is to be staged in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam, the first time that four countries have co-hosted the tournament. Historically, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Japan have enjoyed greatest success in in this tournament, winning it three times apiece.