The U12 World Cup qualifier in Panama will kick off this Sunday, featuring six matches and twelve nations vying for three spots in the category's World Cup. Panama, who have already secured a place in the World Cup, will be joined by the successful qualifiers.
The Technical Congress took place with the attendance of all participating teams to greet them, establish the tournament's overarching regulations, and address any uncertainties or inquiries that might arise.
The tournament consists of two groups, each comprising six teams. Group A includes the event hosts, Panama, as well as the United States, Mexico, Colombia, Nicaragua, and Ecuador.
On the other hand, Group B features the national teams of Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Puerto Rico, which are considered powerhouses in this sport, along with Brazil and Argentina.
The tournament will start off with Brazil (Raul Jusfredo) and the Dominican Republic (Yoyo Tejeda) as the opening teams. Brazil will play as visitors at 9am at the Andy Alonso Stadium. Following that, at 11:45am, Puerto Rico (Marcos Vasquez) will face off against Cuba (Alexandro Martinez) in the same venue. Lastly, at 2:30pm, Argentina (Juan Rego) will be visiting Venezuela (Anthoan Maldonado) for the final game of the day.
Three additional matches will take place at Rod Carew Stadium, commencing at 9:30 am when Nicaragua's Jose Jimenez faces Mexico's Yadier Chacon. This will be followed by Ecuador's Alejandro Ponce playing against the United States' Carson Schoener at 1 pm, culminating in the opening ceremony involving all participating countries.
The initial day concludes with a match between Colombia (Leiner Moreno) and Panama (Marcos Moreno) at 7pm at Rod Carew Stadium.
With Panama already securing a spot in the World Cup as the host of the World Cup Qualifier, the remaining eleven teams will now vie for one of the three remaining berths at the prestigious event.
If Panama reaches the semifinals, all teams will qualify, with the top two from each group progressing to the semifinals. Otherwise, the teams finishing on the podium will secure their places in the World Cup.
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