Soca Warriors need World Cup help – TTFA president

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC):

WITH TRINIDAD and Tobago men’s football team into the final round of qualification for the 2026 World Cup, president of the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA), Kieron Edwards, says they require approximately US$9 million to help them properly prepare.

The Soca Warriors will face Jamaica, Curacao, and Bermuda, in the third and final round of qualifiers for next year’s FIFA World Cup, with the group winner earning an automatic spot in next year’s World Cup to be held in Canada, Mexico, and the United States.

The two best second-place finishers will move on to a FIFA play-off tournament, scheduled for March 2026.

Speaking on Sunday during an interview on Isports on i95.5 FM, Edwards said the association will require substantial financial assistance to get the team in peak condition.

“When you look at Costa Rica and how much they spent last World Cup, they spent US$12 million behind their team to qualify in the last phase.

“This is Costa Rica, I’m not talking about USA or Mexico where they have 23 players and 50-something staff members alone,” Edwards explained.

“When we’re looking at persons in our region, like Costa Rica and Jamaica and what they do and the spend, we need to match that.”

He said while the TTFA was set to receive some money from government, it was well short of the required figure.

“We have a commitment of an additional US$1 million from the previous government with the Cabinet note, but at that time we didn’t know what we were getting ourselves into at this point and relooking on that, we will have to go back to the government for some assistance.

“I truly believe anywhere between US$6 million to US$9 million should get us where we have coaches going. We’re talking about sending coaches to be personal trainers, getting our boys to peak performance…” Edwards said.