Pacific

Sport: Oceania Football postpones more tournaments

15:01 pm on 14 May 2020

Oceania Football has confirmed three more tournaments have been postponed as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The men's OFC Under 19 Championship, that was scheduled to be played in Samoa in July, will not be held before October but no later than January 2021.

New Zealand won the OFC U19 Championship in Tahiti in 2018. Photo: www.phototek.nz

The top two teams from this tournament will represent Oceania at the 2021 FIFA Under 20 World Cup in Indonesia.

The OFC Champions League quarter-finals, which were originally set for April, have now been postponed until September at the earliest.

The Champions League winner will represent OFC at the FIFA Club World Cup scheduled to be played in Qatar in December.

Meanwhile a further decision on the fate of the OFC Under 17 Women's Championship will be made on 2 June. The age grade championship was due to be staged in Tahiti in April, having already been delayed from December due to the measles epidemic in the Pacific.

New Zealand won the previous edition of the OFC U-16 Women's Championship. in 2017. Photo: OFC Media

The winner of the Under 17 Women's Championship is scheduled to attend the FIFA Under 17 Women's World Cup in India, which has been postponed until next year.

OFC General Secretary Franck Castillo said the coronavirus pandemic had created some unique challenges for football.

OFC General Secretary Franck Castillo. Photo: Supplied

"While our top priority for the football community is safety, we need to continue to evaluate our options for this year and assess what our competitions may look like," he said.

"We are looking forward to football returning and will only do so when it is safe for all of the participants. We will continue to do our part in stopping the spread of coronavirus."

Oceania Football says potential new dates for the OFC Under 19 Championship and the OFC Champions League will be reviewed on 31 July when governments in the Pacific have provided more information on border restrictions and sports activities.

In March, the OFC Executive Committee suspended all football activities in the Pacific until at least 6 May while it was confirmed last month that the OFC Nations Cup had been cancelled.

A decision on all other OFC competitions for 2020 will be made on the same date, while OFC continues to work with FIFA regarding the qualifiers for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.