CONCACAF Groups Set for Semifinal Round of World Cup Qualifying
CHICAGO (June 20, 2004) - The U.S. Men's National Team has learned their Group 1 opponents for their semifinal round of FIFA World Cup qualifying, as all four seeded teams in their bracket advanced with positive results on Sunday evening. Joining the United States in their four-team, six-game CONCACAF qualifying group, which will be played from Aug. 18 to Nov. 17, 2004, are Jamaica, Panama and El Salvador, who eliminated Haiti, St. Lucia and Bermuda, respectively.
June 21, 2004
CHICAGO (June 20, 2004) - The U.S. Men's National Team has learned their Group 1 opponents for their semifinal round of FIFA World Cup qualifying, as all four seeded teams in their bracket advanced with positive results on Sunday evening. Joining the United States in their four-team, six-game CONCACAF qualifying group, which will be played from Aug. 18 to Nov. 17, 2004, are Jamaica, Panama and El Salvador, who eliminated Haiti, St. Lucia and Bermuda, respectively.
The USA will open the semifinal round of FIFA World Cup qualifying in Jamaica on Aug. 18. The six-game, round-robin group continues with the U.S. at home on Sept. 4 in Foxboro, Mass. (against El Salvador), and on the road on Sept. 8 in Panama. The four-team group concludes with a road game on Oct. 10 in El Salvador and then consecutive home games on Oct. 13 (against Panama) and Nov. 17 in Columbus, Ohio (against Jamaica).
Next up for the U.S. is a match on July 11 against Poland at Chicago's Soldier Field (6 p.m. CT on ESPN2), the team's final preparation match before the semifinal round begins. For information on how you can buy advance tickets to each of the USA's FIFA World Cup qualifying home matches, before they go on sale to the public, log on to www.ussoccerfan.com.
Below are the updated second round qualifying results from FIFA World Cup qualifying in the CONCACAF region. The results are broken down by the three groups that will be formed for the semifinal round by each series winner. The semifinal round will consist of three four-team groups playing a six-game round robin competition, with the top two finishers from each group moving onto the final round of qualiyfing in 2005. Based on the results, Group 1 and Group 2 were both completed with the top seeds winning each match-up, while Group 3 had a mild upset in St. Kitts & Nevis eliminating 2002 semifinal round qualifiers Barbados. The only spot not yet finalized is Mexico's, but they are are all but assured of advancing with a 10-0 victory in their first leg over Dominica.
SEMIFINAL ROUND GROUPS (Aug. 18 - Nov. 17, 2004)
Group 1
USA
Jamaica
Panama
El Salvador
Group 2
Costa Rica
Canada
Guatemala
Honduras
Group 3
Mexico or Dominica
St. Kitts & Nevis
St. Vincent & The Grenadines
Trinidad & Tobago
SECOND ROUND RESULTS
Group 1 Pairings -- Results (winners advance to Group 1 in semifinal round)
Date Result Venue; City
June 13 USA 3, Grenada 0 Crew Stadium; Columbus, Ohio
June 20 USA 3, Grenada 2 National Cricket Stadium; St. George's, Grenada
USA advances 6-2 on aggregate
Date Result Venue; City
June 12 Haiti 1, Jamaica 1 Orange Bowl; Miami, Fla.
June 20 Jamaica 3, Haiti 0 National Stadium; Kingston, Jamaica
Jamaica advances 4-1 on aggregate
Date Result Venue; City
June 13 Panama 4, St. Lucia 0 Estadio Rommel Fernández; Panama City, Panama
June 20 Panama 3, St. Lucia 0 National Stadium; Vieux Fort, St. Lucia
Panama advances 7-0 on aggregate
Date Result Venue; City
June 13 El Salvador 2, Bermuda 1 Estadio Cuscatlan; San Salvador, El Salvador
June 20 El Salvador 2, Bermuda 2 National Sports Centre; Hamilton, Bermuda
El Salvador advances 4-3 on aggregate
Group 2 Pairings -- Results (winners advance to Group 2 in semifinal round)
Date Result Venue; City
June 12 Cuba 2, Costa Rica 2 Estadio Pedro Marrero; Havana, Cuba
June 20 Costa Rica 1, Cuba 1 Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto; Alajuela, Costa Rica
Costa Rica advances 3-3 on aggregate (with two away goals)
Date Result Venue; City
June 13 Canada 4, Belize 0 Richardson Stadium; Kingston, Ontario
June 16 Canada 4, Belize 0 Richardson Stadium; Kingston, Ontario
Canada advances 8-0 on aggregate
Date Result Venue; City
June 12 Surinam 1, Guatemala 1 Andre Kamperveen Stadium; Paramaribo, Surinam
June 20 Guatemala 2, Surinam 1 Estadio Mateo Flores; Guatemala City, Guatemala
Guatemala advances 3-2 on aggregate
Date Result Venue; City
June 12 Honduras 2, Netherlands Ant. 1 Ergilio Hato Stadium; Willemstad, Netherlands Antilles
June 19 Honduras 4, Netherlands Ant. 0 Estadio Olimpico; San Pedro Sula, Honduras
Honduras advances 6-1 on aggregate
Group 3 Pairings -- Results (winners advance to Group 3 in semifinal round)
Date Match-up Venue; City
June 19 Mexico 10, Dominca 0 Alamodome; San Antonia, Texas
June 27 Dominica @ Mexico Estadio Victoria; Aguascaliente, Mexico
Mexico leads 10-0 on aggregate
Date Result Venue; City
June 13 St. Kitts & Nevis 2, Barbados 0 National Stadium; Waterford, Barbados
June 19 St. Kitts & Nevis 3, Barbados 2 Warner Park; Basseterre, St. Kitts & Nevis
St. Kitts & Nevis advances 5-2 on aggregate
Date Result Venue; City
June 13 Nicaragua 2, St. Vincent & The Grenadines 2 Estadio El Cacique Diriangen; Diramba, Nicaragua
June 20 St. Vincent & The Grenadines 4, Nicaragua 1 Arnos Vale Playing Field; Kingstown, St. Vincent & The Grenadines
St. Vincent & The Grenadines advances 6-3 on aggregate
Date Result Venue; City
June 13 T&T 2, Dominican Republic 0 Estadio Olimpico; Santo Domingo, Dominica Republic
June 20 T&T 4, Dominican Republic 0 Marabella, Trinidad
Trinidad & Tobago advances 6-0 on aggregate
