Speid: WCQ schedule can be completed in time - Concacaf first round games could be pushed back to March 2021
Published:Saturday | September 5, 2020 | 12:13 AMDaniel Wheeler/Staff Reporter
Amid reports that the first round of the Concacaf World Cup Qualifiers (WCQ) could be pushed back as far as March 2021, Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) technical committee chairman Rudolph Speid is confident that the current schedule for the final round can be completed.
In an interview with Canada’s onesoccer.com on Thursday, Concacaf president Victor Montagliani said that the first round of the qualifiers could be pushed back to the latest March because they would not be able to meet the targeted October start because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“No, it’s likely not to go ahead in October. I have a meeting at the end of this week with FIFA on this issue, and for me to say that it likely will go ahead would be a lie,” Montagliani said. “We’re actually looking at what even November would look like.”
The first and second rounds will decide the final three participants to the revised eight-team final-round tournament, which begins in June. The reported delay could affect the final-round schedule should the preliminary rounds start late.
But Speid says that because the 2022 World Cup will be held in the winter, that would give them enough leeway to complete all fixtures and not have to resort to a worst-case scenario of figuring out qualification places by other means.
“One of the good things about this particular World Cup is that it will not be in the summer of 2022. It will be in the winter,” Speed told The Gleaner. “So there are some more opportunities to play games, so I don’t think, based on all expectations, it will affect us.”
Jamaica has already qualified for the final round alongside Mexico, the United States, Costa Rica, and Honduras.
Montagliani stated that while he was comfortable with the schedule allowing for flexibility in the fixtures, he cautioned that should matches be lost next year, a revamp for all federations would have to be considered.
“I even said when we announced this, even if we lost October and November from an official competition standpoint, I was comfortable the calendar would allow enough flexibility to continue,” Montagliani said. “Obviously, if in 2021 we start losing dates - it’s not just Concacaf, I think every federation, including FIFA itself - would have to go back to the drawing board.”
While Speid said that Concacaf is looking at the situation, he believes that contingency plans can be made, but for now, they are preparing for the scheduled June start of the final round.
“I think maybe they will have to create additional windows if something happens,” he said. The final round is set to conclude in March 2022