KOCHI: The Kerala Football Association has bid for a 2026 FIFA World Cup’s Asian qualifying match and, if allotted, it’s prone to be performed at Manjeri, in Malappuram District, with Kochi being the second possibility.
India is in Group ‘A’ of the preliminary spherical 2 with Qatar, Kuwait and Afghanistan or Mongolia being the fourth facet. The matches are prone to be held between November 16 this 12 months and June 11, 2024.
“We have bid for it. We are trying for the India-Kuwait match and hopefully, we may get a confirmation within this week,” mentioned P. Anilkumar, the final secretary of the KFA, informed The Hindu on Thursday.
“There are three matches and the first game is likely to happen in November but time is very short for us to host it.”
The KFA had deliberate to host the FIFA qualifier at Kochi’s Nehru Stadium however there are just a few points with it since additionally it is a venue for the Kerala Blasters’ residence matches within the Indian Super League.
“We were planning to have it in Kochi but the problem is, it is only one match and we have to completely change the entire side of the branding from Blasters and a lot of modifications have to be done,” mentioned Anilkumar who can be the chairman of the All India Football Federation’s competitors committee.
“To avoid that, we will try to host it at some other venue. If the Government is supporting us, then Manjeri (Payyanad stadium) is also a good venue. That is the best second option because the Kozhikode stadium is not good enough.”
But good resorts, match for a FIFA qualifier, is a long way away from Manjeri and that might be a difficulty.
“I don’t know whether the federation officials will it accept it or not. They will confirm only after the inspection. If they don’t accept Manjeri, then we will have to shift the match to Kochi. We need Government support for everything,” he mentioned.