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. It is currently held every two years. 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.
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 the CONCACAF Cup, for 2017.
Since the inaugural tournament in 1963, the Gold Cup was held 27 times and has been won by seven different nations, most often by Mexico (12 titles).
Although Jamaica was one of the nine teams which participated in the inaugural 1963 CONCACAF Championship, they failed to make an impact on continental level all the way through the 1980s. Since the inception of the Gold Cup, however, they have been regular guests in the knockout stage, culminating in playing two consecutive finals in 2015 and 2017. They lost the matches 1–3 to Mexico, and 1–2 to the United States, respectively.
| CONCACAF Championship & Gold Cup record | width=1% rowspan="30" | Qualification record | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Position | Squad | ||||||||||||||
 1963 | Group stage | 8th | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 16 | Squad | Qualified automatically | |||||||
| 1965 | Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||||
| 1967 | Did not qualify | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 4 | ||||||||||
| 1969 | Round-robin | 6th | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 10 | Squad | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 1971 | Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||||||||||
| 1973 | Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||||
 1977 | Withdrew | Withdrew | |||||||||||||||
| 1981 | Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||||
| 1985 | Withdrew | Withdrew | |||||||||||||||
| 1989 | Did not qualify | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | ||||||||||
 1991 | Group stage | 8th | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 12 | Squad | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 2 | ||
| 1993 | Third place | 3rd | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 10 | Squad | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 1 | ||
| 1996 | Did not qualify | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | ||||||||||
| 1998 | Fourth place | 4th | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 4 | Squad | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 18 | 5 | ||
| 2000 | Group stage | 12th | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | Squad | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 4 | ||
| 2002 | Did not qualify | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | ||||||||||
| 2003 | Quarter-finals | 7th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | Squad | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 17 | 4 | ||
| 2005 | Quarter-finals | 8th | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 10 | Squad | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 38 | 5 | ||
| 2007 | Did not qualify | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 2 | ||||||||||
| 2009 | Group stage | 10th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | Squad | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 2 | ||
| 2011 | Quarter-finals | 5th | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 2 | Squad | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 3 | ||
| 2013 | Did not qualify | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | ||||||||||
 2015 | Runners-up | 2nd | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 6 | Squad | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 1 | ||
| 2017 | Runners-up | 2nd | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 4 | Squad | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 5 | ||
 2019 | Semi-finals | 4th | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 6 | Squad | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 3 | ||
| 2021 | Quarter-finals | 7th | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 3 | Squad | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 21 | 1 | ||
| 2023 | Semi-finals | 3rd | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 5 | Squad | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 5 | ||
| Total | Runners-up | 15/27 | 63 | 23 | 11 | 29 | 72 | 99 | – | 93 | 61 | 22 | 10 | 211 | 65 | ||
| Tournament | width=120 | Round | width=150 | Opponent | width=60 | Score | width=110 | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–6 | San Salvador | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–8 | |||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 1–2 | |||||||
| 1969 | Final round | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–3 | San José | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–2 | |||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 2–3 | |||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffffbb" | 0–0 | |||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 1–2 | |||||||
| 1991 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 1–4 | Los Angeles | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–5 | |||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 2–3 | |||||||
| 1993 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–1 | Dallas | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 3–1 | |||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffffbb" | 1–1 | |||||||
| Semi-finals | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 1–6 | Mexico City | |||||
| Third place match | align=center bgcolor="#ffffbb" | 1–1 | ||||||
| 1998 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#ffffbb" | 0–0 | Miami | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 3–2 | Los Angeles | ||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 2–0 | |||||||
| Semi-finals | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–1 (asdet) | ||||||
| Third place match | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–1 | ||||||
| 2000 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–1 | Miami | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–2 | |||||||
| 2003 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–1 | |||||
| align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 2–0 | |||||||
| Quarter-finals | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–5 | Mexico City | |||||
| 2005 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 4–3 | Carson | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffffbb" | 3–3 | Los Angeles | ||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–1 | Houston | ||||||
| Quarter-finals | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 1–3 | Foxborough | |||||
| 2009 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–1 | Carson | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–1 | Columbus | ||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 1–0 | Miami | ||||||
| 2011 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 4–0 | Carson | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 2–0 | Miami | ||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 1–0 | Harrison | ||||||
| Quarter-finals | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–2 | Washington, D.C. | |||||
| 2015 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#ffffbb" | 2–2 | Carson | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 1–0 | Houston | ||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 1–0 | Toronto | ||||||
| Quarter-finals | align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 1–0 | Baltimore | |||||
| Semi-finals | align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 2–1 | Atlanta | |||||
| Final | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 1–3 | Philadelphia | |||||
| 2017 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 2–0 | San Diego | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffffbb" | 0–0 | Denver | ||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffffbb" | 1–1 | San Antonio | ||||||
| Quarter-finals | align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 2–1 | Glendale | |||||
| Semi-finals | align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 1–0 | Pasadena | |||||
| Final | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 1–2 | Santa Clara | |||||
| 2019 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 3–2 | Kingston | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffffbb" | 0–0 | Houston | ||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffffbb" | 1–1 | Los Angeles | ||||||
| Quarter-finals | align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 1–0 | Philadelphia | |||||
| Semi-finals | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 1–3 | Nashville | |||||
| 2021 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 2–0 | Orlando | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 2–1 | Orlando | ||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–1 | Orlando | ||||||
| Quarter-finals | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–1 | Arlington | |||||
| 2023 | Group stage | align=center bgcolor="#ffffbb" | 1–1 | Chicago | ||||
| align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 4–1 | St. Louis | ||||||
| align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 5–0 | Santa Clara | ||||||
| Quarter-finals | align=center bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 1–0 | Cincinnati | |||||
| Semi-finals | align=center bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | 0–3 | Paradise |
| Rank | Player | Matches | Gold Cups |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kemar Lawrence | 22 | 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2023 |
| 2 | Andre Blake | 18 | 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2023 |
| Damion Lowe | 18 | 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2023 | |
| 4 | Je-Vaughn Watson | 17 | 2011, 2015, 2017 and 2019 |
| 5 | Jermaine Taylor | 16 | 2005, 2011, 2015 and 2017 |
| 6 | Alvas Powell | 15 | 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2021 |
| 7 | Darren Mattocks | 14 | 2015, 2017 and 2019 |
| Shamar Nicholson | 14 | 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2023 | |
| 9 | Andy Williams | 13 | 1998, 2000, 2003 and 2005 |
| Cory Burke | 13 | 2017, 2021 and 2023 |
Darren Mattocks is Jamaica's leading top scorer at continental championships, and scored in the 2015 final against Mexico.
| Rank | Player | Goals | Gold Cups |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Darren Mattocks | 5 | 2015 (2), 2017 (2) and 2019 |
| 2 | Andy Williams | 3 | 1998, 2003 and 2005 |
| Demar Phillips | 3 | 2011 | |
| Shamar Nicholson | 3 | 2019 (2) and 2021 | |
| 5 | Roderick Reid | 2 | 1991 |
| Hector Wright | 2 | 1991 and 1993 | |
| Devon Jarrett | 2 | 1993 | |
| Paul Davis | 2 | 1993 | |
| Paul Hall | 2 | 1998 | |
| Ricardo Fuller | 2 | 2005 | |
| Jermaine Hue | 2 | 2005 | |
| Luton Shelton | 2 | 2005 and 2011 | |
| Ryan Johnson | 2 | 2011 | |
| Giles Barnes | 2 | 2015 | |
| Garath McCleary | 2 | 2015 | |
| Romario Williams | 2 | 2017 | |
| Dever Orgill | 2 | 2019 | |
| Damion Lowe | 2 | 2019 and 2023 | |
| Cory Burke | 2 | 2021 and 2023 | |
| Demarai Gray | 2 | 2023 |