NEW YORK, CMC-A FIFA draw is to be conducted to determine which teams will play each other in the final round of the CONCACAF qualifier for the 2014 world cup in Brazil. Consensus for a draw was reached during a meeting of the six member associations of countries participating in the final round next year, a CONCACAF statement has said.
The teams have been unable to agree on a schedule for the final hexagonal round of world cup qualifying hence the request to ask FIFA to conduct a draw.
The Final CONCACAF round, featuring qualifiers Costa Rica, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama and the United States, is due to start February 6, 2013, and must conclude by October 15.
“Following a meeting Friday of the Member Associations participating in the Final Round of FIFA World Cup Qualifying, CONCACAF announced they have reached an agreement on the establishment of a final schedule for the hexagonal round of the qualifying games” said the statement.
“After long discussions among representatives …Member Associations came to a consensual agreement that the best option for establishing a final match list was going to a FIFA draw to conclude the process as originally planned”.
The draw is expected to be conducted within the next 30 days, subject to final decision from FIFA.Each of the six teams will play the other in the group twice, home and away, for a total of 10 matches apiece.
Upon completion of the round, the top three finishers will qualify for the 2014 World Cup finals in Brazil. The fourth-place team will advance to a two-leg intercontinental play-off against the first-place team from the Oceania Football Confederation on November 2013.
The winner of that series will also advance to Brazil.
Honduras, Mexico and the United States were the CONCACAF qualifiers for the 2010 world cup in South Africa.
