hosts , and Italy as World Cup holders . The tournament format sees the eight teams split into two groups of four for a round-robin stage , before the top two teams from each group progress to knock-out semi-finals and then the final on June 28 . In-form Spain head to the tournament as favorites , while a resurgent Brazil side and World Cup holders Italy also ca n't be discounted . Egypt could be the dark horses of the event -- but they do have a tough group with games against both Brazil and Italy . The scrap for second in Spain 's pool could well be the other interesting storyline from the competition , as South Africa , Iraq and New Zealand fight it out for a place in the final four . • See profiles of the eight teams involved in the 2009 Confederations Cup . '' While the tournament does n't carry with it the same prestige as a World Cup , it is essentially a trial run of the main event for the host nation , and for the lower-ranked countries involved it offers invaluable experience playing against the world 's best . Ricky Herbert
LONDON , England -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- What are reigning world champions Italy , European champions Spain , and football giants Brazil doing taking on teams like New Zealand and Iraq this month ? Robinho -LRB- left -RRB- and Ronaldinho -LRB- right -RRB- celebrate Brazil winning the Confederations Cup in 2005 . It sounds like a complete mismatch , but the eight-team FIFA Confederations Cup which starts in South Africa on Sunday , will see these teams pitted against one another in what is a dress-rehearsal of sorts for next year 's World Cup . Dubbed by FIFA , world football 's governing body , the `` festival of champions '' , the tournament involves primarily the winning teams from regional competitions in each of the world 's six football federations -- Spain from Europe -LRB- UEFA -RRB- , Brazil from South America -LRB- CONMEBOL -RRB- , Iraq from Asia -LRB- AFC -RRB- , U.S. from the Americas -LRB- CONCACAF -RRB- , New Zealand from Oceania -LRB- OFC -RRB- , and Egypt from Africa -LRB- CAF -RRB- . These sides qualified for the tournament by winning their respective regional competitions , while South Africa gained automatic entry as the tournament