Argentine capital not among 2011 venues

La Plata, capital of Buenos Aires province, will stage the opening match and final of the 2011 Copa America staged by Argentina, provincial governor Daniel Scioli said.

The tournament will also be played at venues in Mendoza and San Juan in the major Andean wine-producing region in the west, the northwestern cities of Salta and Jujuy and the province of Santa Fe.

The national capital and Rosario, another leading football city, have been overlooked.

The 10 members of the South American Football Confederation will take part and invitations have been extended to Mexico and Japan, who have played in the tournament before.

Argentina last held the South American championship, the world's oldest surviving international tournament, in 1987 when Diego Maradona's world champions finished fourth. They jointly hold the record of 14 titles with Uruguay.

The modern City of La Plata stadium, better known as Estadio Unico, was inaugurated in June 2003 and is in the process of being fitted with a moveable roof.