Home-and-away “Hexagonal” kicks off in November as region’s best battle for three-and-a-half World Cup berths
Miami (Wednesday, September 7, 2016) – The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) confirmed this morning the schedule and pairings for the six-team home-and-away series comprising the Final Round of CONCACAF Qualifying for the FIFA World Cup Russia 2018, known region-wide as known the “Hexagonal.”
Costa Rica, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Trinidad & Tobago and the United States, in alphabetical order, secured places in the final round of qualifying by finishing among the top two of their respective groups in semifinal round play that concluded Tuesday evening.
The placement and schedule for the Final Round was determined according to the group position in which each team finished the semifinal stage. The seeding and order of matches was determined via a draw conducted in July at CONCACAF Headquarters on Miami Beach.
The Hexagonal, a ten-match schedule for each of the contestants, will be played from November of this year through October 2017. The top three finishers advance directly to the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia. The fourth-place team advances to an intercontinental home-and-away play-off to be disputed in November 2017, against a team from the Asian Football Confederation.
The complete schedule can be found below and at www.concacaf.com. The host city and stadium for each match will be determined and announced in turn, by the host federation.
FIFA World Cup Russia 2018 Qualifiers - CONCACAF HEXAGONAL SCHEDULE
Match day 1 - Friday, November 11, 2016
USA vs. Mexico
Honduras vs. Panama
Trinidad & Tobago vs. Costa Rica
Match day 2 - Tuesday, November 15, 2016
Costa Rica vs. USA
Panama vs. Mexico
Honduras vs. Trinidad & Tobago
Match day 3 - Friday, March 24, 2017
USA vs. Honduras
Trinidad & Tobago vs. Panama
Mexico vs. Costa Rica
Match day 4 - Tuesday, March 28, 2017
Panama vs. USA
Honduras vs. Costa Rica
Trinidad & Tobago vs. Mexico
Match day 5 - Wednesday, June 7 or Thursday, June 8, 2017 TBD*
USA vs. Trinidad and Tobago
Costa Rica vs. Panama
Mexico vs. Honduras
Match day 6 - Sunday, June 11 or Monday, June 12, 2017, TBD*
Mexico vs. USA
Panama vs. Honduras
Costa Rica vs. Trinidad & Tobago
Match day 7 - Friday, September 1, 2017
USA vs. Costa Rica
Mexico vs. Panama
Trinidad & Tobago vs. Honduras
Match day 8 - Tuesday, September 5, 2017
Honduras vs. USA
Panama vs. Trinidad & Tobago
Costa Rica vs. Mexico
Match day 9 - Friday, October 6, 2017
USA vs. Panama
Costa Rica vs. Honduras
Mexico vs. Trinidad & Tobago
Match day 10 (*matches kickoff simultaneously) - Friday, October 10, 2017
Trindad & Tobago vs. USA
Panama vs. Costa Rica
Honduras vs. Mexico
