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We have some dates for World Cup qualifying. During the open session of today’s U.S. Soccer meeting of its board of directors, USMNT general manager Brian McBride provided the team’s calendar for 2021 and 2022. Within that, he confirmed the dates of the 14 matchdays for the USMNT for World Cup qualifying, which begins for the team this fall.
There are still 3 teams that still need to qualify for the Octagon through the first 2 rounds of qualifying, which begins next month. Once that is completed in June, we will have the final 3 teams that complete the Final Round of qualifying.
Here is the full 2021 and 2022 schedule for the USMNT, as provided by U.S. Soccer during their board meeting today:
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Keep in mind that the teams that are listed as an option are not restricted to those teams. This is the list of teams that could qualify for the Hex out of each group from the first two rounds of qualifying:
First Round (March 2021, June 2021; round robin)
Group A - El Salvador, Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Montserrat, U.S. Virgin Islands
Group B - Canada, Suriname, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Aruba
Group C - Curaçao, Guatemala, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Cuba, British Virgin Islands
Group D - Panama, Dominican Republic, Barbados, Dominica, Anguilla
Group E - Haiti, Nicaragua, Belize, Saint Lucia, Turks and Caicos Islands
Group F - Trinidad and Tobago, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Guyana, Puerto Rico, Bahamas
Second Round (June 2021; 2-legged series)
Group A winner vs. Group F winner
Group B winner vs. Group E winner
Group C winner vs. Group D winner
And now, the dates for the USMNT:
The Octagon
September 2, 2021: @ A/F winner
September 5, 2021: vs. B/E winner
September 8, 2021: @ Honduras
October 7, 2021: vs. Jamaica
October 10, 2021: @ C/D winner
October 13, 2021: vs. Costa Rica
November 12, 2021: vs. Mexico
November 16, 2021: @ Jamaica
January 27, 2022: vs. A/F winner
January 30, 2022: @ B/E winner
February 2, 2022: vs. Honduras
March 24, 2022: @ Mexico
March 27, 2022: vs. C/D winner
March 30, 2022: @ Costa Rica
There’s our road to Qatar. Mark your calendars. Hit the comments to discuss it all.