MIAMI (AP) – Just eight months after the 2014 World Cup final in Brazil, the Bahamas will play Bermuda in March in one of seven pairings as qualifying starts for the 2018 tournament in Russia.
The governing body for North and Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF) held the first draw Thursday night. The other first-round pairings are Barbados-United States Virgin Islands; Belize-Cayman Islands; British Virgin Islands-Dominica; Curacao-Montserrat; Turks and Caicos Islands-St. Kitts and Nevis; and Nicaragua-Anguilla.
Seeking their first World Cup berth since 1986, Canada open at home against the British Virgin Islands or Dominica in the second round from June 6-16, when Cuba face Curacao or Montserrat, Guatemala play Bahamas or Bermuda, Puerto Rico meet Grenada and El Salvador play the Turks and Caicos-Islands-St Kitts and Nevis winner.
Jamaica and Haiti have byes until the third round from August 21-September 8, and the United States join for the start of the semi-finals in November along with Mexico, Costa Rica, Honduras, Panama, and Trinidad and Tobago.
Home teams listed first:
First round – March 23-31
Bahamas vs Bermuda
Barbados vs U.S. Virgin Islands
Belize vs Cayman Islands
British Virgin Islands vs Dominica
Curacao vs Montserrat
Turks and Caicos Islands vs St Kitts and Nevis
Nicaragua vs Anguilla
Second round – June 6-16
Antigua and Barbuda vs St Lucia
Aruba vs Barbados-U.S Virgin Islands winner
Canada vs British Virgin Islands-Dominica winner
Curacao-Montserrat winner vs Cuba
Dominica vs Belize-Cayman Islands winner
Guatemala vs Bahamas-Bermuda winner
Nicaragua-Anguilla winner vs Suriname
Puerto Rico vs Grenada
St Vincent and the Grenadines vs Guyana
Turks and Caicos-Islands-St Kitts and Nevis winner vs El Salvador