SIFF aims for 2026 World Cup spot

Solomon Islands National football team .

Solomon Islands Football Federation President Willie Lai says the national team is aiming for a spot at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America.

This comes after he announced earlier this week that the national team would be participating in a series of international friendlies this year.

Lai confirmed the team will be playing their first international friendly against Taiwan on the 24th of March  at the Taipei Municipal stadium.

He said on May the team will also be travelling to the Netherlands to play a series of friendlies.

” The short term plan is win Gold medal at the Pacific Games in Samoa this year, but the long term plan is to qualify for the World Cup in 2026,” he said.

” Before the Netherlands tour, we will hire a expatriate coach for three months only because of the cost.”

Lai also said during that international window, they are hoping to arrange a possible friendly with a European country.

He said SIFF will be putting efforts to ensure the country is the top footballing nation in the Pacific.

SIBC understands Solomon Islands has never played a European country in its footballing history.

The 2026 World Cup  tournament will be jointly hosted by 16 cities in three North American countries; 60 matches, including the quarterfinals, semi-finals, and the final, will be hosted by the United States while neighboring Canada and Mexico will each host 10 matches.

The 23rd Editon of the World Cup in 2026 will feature 48 teams, which was approved in January 10, 2017, after the FIFA Council  voted unanimously to expand number of teams participating in the tournament.

By: Lowen Sei. 

 

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