The Hawaiian Islands Invitational was an inter-confederation association football tournament that was founded in 2007, as the Pan-Pacific Championship. The tournament consisted of four teams, who contested a knockout style competition that spanned three days.
| Founded | 2007 |
|---|---|
| Region | CONCACAF and AFC |
| Number of teams | 4 |
| Current champions |  Busan IPark (1st Title) |
| Most successful club(s) | Busan IPark (1) Suwon Samsung Bluewings (1) Gamba Osaka (1) |
 2012 Hawaiian Islands Invitational | |
History
editWhen the Pan-Pacific Championship folded, due to turf issues at the Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, moves were put in place to attempt to reconstruct an inter-confederation, end of season tournament that would see some of the best teams from North American, Asia, and Australia go head to head. In March 2011, it was announced that the Hawaiian Islands Invitational would be set up, by ESPN Regional Television, Inc. in co-operation with the Hawai’i Tourism Authority and Major League Soccer.[1][2]
Like the former Pan-Pacific Championships, the tournament will be held at Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, and will be broadcast live on ESPN, and ESPNs subsidiary stations.[3]
Champions
editThe 2008 tournament was held in Aloha Stadium, Four teams were due to participate.
2007 MLS Cup Champion: Houston Dynamo
2007 J. League Cup Champion: Gamba Osaka
2007 North American SuperLiga: Pachuca
2007 A-League Grand Final Champion: Melbourne Victory
However, the A-League was not represented by the champion team but instead by the loser of the minor semi-final, Sydney FC. This is due to a scheduling conflict with the Grand Final on February 24, which was moved back so as not to interfere with Australia's 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) campaign. North American SuperLiga Champions Pachuca declined to enter the tournament and were replaced with runners up Los Angeles Galaxy.
The 2009 tournament was held in Home Depot Center, Four teams participated.
- Host Team: Los Angeles Galaxy
- 2008 J. League Cup Champion: Ōita Trinita
2008 K League Champion: Suwon Bluewings
2008 Chinese Super League Champion: Shandong Luneng Taishan
The 2012 tournament was held in Aloha Stadium, Four teams were selected. The teams come from the same confederations as the former Pan-Pacific Championships, CONCACAF and AFC.[4]
- Colorado Rapids – MLS
- Yokohama FC – J-League
- Busan IPark – K-League
- Melbourne Heart FC Youth Team – A-League
| Year | Host | Final | Third-place match | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | Score | Runner-up | 3rd place | Score | 4th place | ||||
| 2008 |  Honolulu, Hawaii
|
Gamba Osaka
|
6–1 |  Houston Dynamo
|
Los Angeles Galaxy
|
2–1 |  Sydney FC
| ||
| 2009 |  Carson, California
|
Suwon Bluewings
|
1–1 (P4–2) |
Los Angeles Galaxy
|
Ōita Trinita
|
2–1 |  Shandong Luneng
| ||
| 2012 | Honolulu, Hawaii
|
Busan IPark
|
3–0 | Yokohama FC
|
Colorado Rapids
|
1–0 | Melbourne Heart Youth Team
| ||
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Hawaiian Islands Invitational: New ESPN Soccer Event In 2012". PaddockTalk. 15 March 2011. Archived from the original on 29 September 2011. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
- ^ Margolis, Rachel (15 March 2011). "Hawaiian Islands Invitational: New ESPN Soccer Event in 2012". ESPN. Archived from the original on 9 December 2011. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
- ^ "COLORADO RAPIDS TO PARTICIPATE IN HAWAIIAN ISLANDS INVITATIONAL IN FEBRUARY". Gateway News. 15 March 2011. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
- ^ "Rapids to participate in 2012 Hawaiian Islands Invitational". Major League Soccer. 6 July 2011. Retrieved 7 July 2011.