Panama at the CONCACAF Gold Cup

The CONCACAF Gold Cup is North America's major tournament in senior men's football and determines the continental champion. Until 1989, the tournament was known as CONCACAF Championship.[1] It is currently held every two years.[2] From 1996 to 2005, nations from other confederations have regularly joined the tournament as invitees. In earlier editions, the continental championship was held in different countries, but since the inception of the Gold Cup in 1991, the United States are constant hosts or co-hosts.

The teams of Trinidad and Tobago (red) and Panama (white) before their 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup Quarter-Final. Panama won on penalties and finished 3rd in the tournament.

From 1973 to 1989, the tournament doubled as the confederation's World Cup qualification. CONCACAF's representative team at the FIFA Confederations Cup was decided by a play-off between the winners of the last two tournament editions in 2015 via the CONCACAF Cup, but was then discontinued along with the Confederations Cup.[3]

Since the inaugural tournament in 1963, the Gold Cup was held 25 times and has been won by seven different nations, most often by Mexico (11 titles).

Although Panama was one of the nine teams which participated in the inaugural 1963 CONCACAF Championship, it took 30 years for them to make a second appearance on a continental tournament. However, they have continually participated since 2005 and reached the knockout stages every time, even playing two finals. They lost both of them to the United States on penalties in 2005 and 0–1 in 2013.

In 2015, Panama finished third in the tournament, drawing all six matches 1–1 after normal time.