Stadium lights expected to be ready for World Cup qualifier
Published:Thursday | May 30, 2024 | 12:10 AMLivingston Scott/Gleaner Writer
JAMAICA FOOTBALL Federation (JFF) general secretary Dennis Chung said he expects the nation’s opening 2026 Concacaf World Cup qualifier against the Dominican Republic on Thursday, June 6, at the National Stadium at 6:30 p.m. to go ahead as scheduled.
The 6:30 evening start of the match is under threat of being altered because the lights at the stadium do not produce 1,000 lumens of light, the minimum requirement for Concacaf games.
If the lights are not brought up to standard, the JFF would be forced to reschedule the game to an earlier time in the day when lights would not be required.
However, Chung revealed that he has received the assurance of Independence Park Limited (IPL) that the replacement lights will be in the island by weekend.
He noted also that the lights would take two days to install, well ahead of the game on Thursday.
“We are working with IPL, who are on top of the situation,” Chung told The Gleaner.
“They actually will be receiving and clearing the lights as projected by this weekend.
“They have communicated that it will take about two days to install and focus the lights as it is important that the lights are projected evenly.”
He added that the JFF would be giving another update on the situation at the end of the week but that he had no doubts that everything would go through as planned.
“We will, of course, get a further update by the end of the week, but we have no reason to believe that everything will not be in place for the game on the 6th, and we want to encourage everyone to come out and see the Reggae Boyz in action as they have just come out of a very successful run in the Nation’s League and heading towards the Copa America.
“Also, the team is not scheduled to play in Jamaica until 2025, and it is, therefore, an opportunity to see them in action on June 6th.”
Earlier this year, Cavalier were charged US$10,000 for inadequate lighting at that stadium, and coach Rudolph Speid expressed concerns going into the next regional club competition.
“Last year, I got fined US$10,000 because the lights weren’t adequate in the Caribbean Cup. As it is now, it can’t be used for our Caribbean Club Championship because the lights cannot be used at this point in time
“It needs a thousand lumens as the majority of the area is not covered, and that is, basically, because one of the towers is down,” Speid had said.