As Guyana’s senior National Men’s Team, the Golden Jaguars, prepare to embark on their FIFA Men’s World Cup Qualifying campaign in June, it has been revealed that Guyana’s home fixture against Belize, slated for June 11, will in fact be played in Barbados.
This information has been confirmed by a source familiar with the inner workings of the Guyana Football Federation (GFF). The last home game Guyana played was against The Bahamas on September 12 at the National Track and Field Centre (NTFC), Edinburgh, West Coast Demerara.
Following that match, they were fined by Concacaf due to the fact that the playing surface at the time was not at the minimum required standard for international matches.
The Golden Jaguars have been hamstrung by the lack of proper facilities at home and have not played a home game since. While remedial works were underway at the NTFC, presently the football pitch is still not up to the international standards.
In the world cup qualifiers, Guyana has been drawn in group D alongside Panama, Nicaragua, Montserrat and Belize.
During the last 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign, the Golden Jaguars had a torrid time with a record of one win and three losses, finishing in fourth place on three points. While they defeated The Bahamas 4-0, they conceded losses against Trinidad and Tobago (0-3), St. Kitts and Nevis (0-3), and Puerto Rico (0-2).
This time around, the Golden Jaguars will kick off their campaign against Panama in Panama City on June 6.
