MIAMI - CONCACAF announced that the schedule of play for the fourth and final round of the CONCACAF Qualifiers to the FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014™ was determined Wednesday evening through a random drawing performed in Miami by FIFA Head of World Cup and Olympic Qualifying, Mr. Gordon Savic. As a result of the drawing, the first round of matches in the CONCACAF Hexagonal round, which will begin on Wednesday, February 6th, 2013, will feature Mexico hosting Jamaica, Honduras hosting United States, and Panama hosting Costa Rica.
The six countries that have advanced to the CONCACAF Hexagonal -- Costa Rica, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, and the United States -- represent the top two finishers from group play in the third round of FIFA World Cup™ Qualifiers. In the Hexagonal round, each team will play every other twice—once at home, once away—for a total of 10 matches per team, and 30 matches total. The top three teams at the end of the Hexagonal round will automatically advance to the 2014 FIFA World Cup™ in Brazil. The fourth place team will advance to an intercontinental playoff, where it will compete against the first place team from the Oceania Football Confederation in a home-and-home match-up in November of 2013.
"We want to thank FIFA for holding this draw as we are proud for our six Member Associations who will be competing for the honor of representing CONCACAF at the next FIFA World Cup," said CONCACAF President Jeffrey Webb. "This process is a clear example of the integration among all Federations who are committed to safeguarding football standards and encourage authentic rivalry and competition. Guided by principles of sharp vision and a strategy of continuous expansion, this region is developing strength to reach all-time highs.
"After a very exciting third round in the CONCACAF qualifiers we are very much looking forward to the last stage to begin and to successfully continue delivering together with the finalists the remainder of this competition," said FIFA Head of World Cup and Olympic Qualifying Gordon Savic. "The opening matches in February are just around the corner and we shall immediately start coordinating these matches with the respective host Member Associations. We wish all national teams the best of luck under the umbrella of Fair Play and sportsmanship."
Representatives from each of the six countries were on hand for the drawing, including (in alphabetical order by Member Association): Rodolfo Villalobos - Member of the Executive Committee, Costa Rican Football Federation; Álvaro Mesén - General Secretary, Costa Rican Football Federation; Jorge Hidalgo - Vice President, Costa Rican Football Federation; Alfredo Hawit - General Secretary, Honduran Football Federation; Mateo Ybrin - Honduran National Teams Committee Member; Capt. Horace Burrell - President, Jamaican Football Federation; Raymond Grant - General Secretary, Jamaican Football Federation; Justino Compeán - President, Mexican Football Federation; Fernando Cerrilla - General Secretary, Mexican Football Federation; Pedro Chaluja - President, Panamanian Football Federation; Julio Dely Valdes - Head Coach, Panama Men's National Team; Gian Carlo Calvosa - Asst. Treasurer, Panamanian Football Federation; Rolando Gonzalez - General Manager, Panama Men's National Team; Sunil Gulati - President, United States Soccer Federation; Jurgen Klinsmann - Head Coach, U.S. Men's National Team; Dan Flynn - CEO/General Secretary, United States Soccer Federation; Tom King - Managing Director of Administration, United States Soccer Federation.
CONCACAF reached notable milestones in 2012 with Mexico winning the 2012 Olympic men's gold medal, the United States winning the Olympic women's gold medal and the Canadian women winning the bronze medal. Additionally, the 1000th goal was recently scored in CONCACAF Champions League matches.
The schedule of play for the CONCACAF Hexagonal round of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers is as follows (home team is listed first):
Wednesday, February 6
Mexico v. Jamaica
Honduras v. U.S.
Panama v. Costa Rica
Friday, March 22
Jamaica v. Panama
Honduras v. Mexico
U.S. v. Costa Rica
Tuesday, March 26
Mexico v. U.S.
Panama v. Honduras
Costa Rica v. Jamaica
Friday, June 7
Jamaica v. U.S.
Panama v. Mexico
Costa Rica v. Honduras
Tuesday, June 11
Mexico v. Costa Rica
Honduras v. Jamaica
U.S. v. Panama
Tuesday, June 18**
Jamaica v. Mexico
U.S. v. Honduras
Costa Rica v. Panama
Friday, September 6
Mexico v. Honduras
Panama v. Jamaica
Costa Rica v. U.S.
Tuesday, September 10
Jamaica v. Costa Rica
Honduras v. Panama
U.S. v. Mexico
Friday, October 11
Mexico v. Panama
Honduras v. Costa Rica
U.S. v. Jamaica
Tuesday, October 15
Jamaica v. Honduras
Panama v. U.S.
Costa Rica v. Mexico
** The fixture involving Mexico on 18 of June will be moved to June 4th to allow Mexico, the CONCACAF representative, to participate in the FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013.
The FIFA Final Draw determining the schedule of play for the FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014th will take place on 6 December 2013, in Salvador de Bahia, Brazil.
