January 30 – With 12 teams now qualified for the 2021 Gold Cup – the 16th edition of Concacaf’s blue riband national men’s team competition – the draw for the play-offs for the final four spots has been released. The deciders will be via elimination rounds in the March 2020 international window before a final round of play-offs in June 2020.
Qualification began with the 2019-2020 Concacaf Nations League with the top two finishers in each of the League A groups and the top finisher in each of the League B groups securing 2021 qualification.
The 12 nations that already qualified are: Canada, Costa Rica, Curacao, El Salvador, Grenada, Honduras, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Suriname and the United States.
Six teams who played in the 2019 Gold Cup have so far not guaranteed a spot in 2021, including 2019 surprise package Haiti who made it to the semi-finals only to lose to Mexico in extra time by a penalty.
Bermuda, Cuba, Guatemala, Guyana, and Trinidad and Tobago also still have to qualify for the competition that was expanded from 12 to 16 teams in 2019.
The two-round matchups start with the second-place finishers of League B and the first-place finishers of League C. The eight matches will be played as follows (home team listed first and in eastern time):
First Leg Matches
Thursday, March 26, 2020
8:00 pm Guadeloupe vs Saint Vincent and the Grenadines – Stade Rene Serge Nabajoth, Les Abymes, GLP
7:00 pm Barbados vs Guyana – Astro Turf Wildey Stadium, Wildey, BRB
8:00 pm Bahamas vs French Guiana – Thomas Robinson Stadium, Nassau, BAH
10:00 pm Guatemala vs Monserrat – Doroteo Guamuch Flores Stadium, Guatemala City, GUA
Second Leg Matches
Tuesday, March 31, 2020
3:00 pm Saint Vincent and the Grenadines vs Guadeloupe – Arnos Vale Stadium, Arnos Vale, VIN
8:00 pm Guyana vs Barbados – Leonora National Track & Field Center, Georgetown, GUY
8:00 pm French Guiana vs Bahamas – Stade Municipal Dr. Edmard Lama, Cayenne, GUF
7:00 pm Monserrat vs Guatemala – Blake’s Football Complex, St John’s, MSR
The four round one matchup winners will advance to the second round, where they will face the third-place finishers of League A. The four round-two matchups were drawn as follows:
Guadeloupe or Saint Vincent and the Grenadines vs Haiti
Barbados or Guyana vs Trinidad & Tobago
Bahamas or French Guiana vs Bermuda
Guatemala or Monserrat vs Cuba
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