CAIRO – Egypt became the fifth country to be selected as host of a new series of friendly games introduced by FIFA to allow teams from different confederations to play each other, the world soccer governing body said.
The pilot phase was expanded to feature 24 national teams from three continents, FIFA said in a statement.
The Egypt International Series edition—which will take place from March 22-26 — will also include Croatia, Tunisia and New Zealand.
The FIFA Series are friendly matches contested by national teams from different confederations.
Egypt will host New Zealand in the opening game on Friday, which will also mark the inauguration of a new 92,000-capacity stadium that the country has built in a new administrative capital, 45 kilometres east of Cairo.
Named Egypt Stadium, the venue is the second biggest in Africa, behind South Africa’s 94,000-seater Soccer City, Reuters reported.
“Egypt has been announced as a FIFA Series host with this year’s pilot phase expanded to an additional four teams,” FIFA said on its official website.
Tunisia will face Croatia in the other game, with the winners playing each other in the second match.
Although there are no trophies or prize money, the series is designed to benefit national teams that do not have the opportunity to play teams from other confederations, with FIFA set to cover travel costs.
Algeria, Azerbaijan, Saudi Arabia and Sri Lanka will simultaneously host other editions this month, although formats will differ.
Following a decision taken by the FIFA Council in December 2022, the FIFA Series are friendly matches that will be contested by national teams from different confederations, who do not normally have the opportunity to play each other.
The ultimate objective of the FIFA Series is to allow more international football interaction outside the traditional local footprint, making a concrete contribution to global football development.
2024’s edition is the pilot phase of the initiative, with future instalments planned to take place in the March international match window of even years.
In this initial stage, organisers will be testing different formats. For example, the FIFA Series Egypt will see the winners of the first match facing each other in their second respective matches.
With the introduction of the FIFA Series: Egypt, the pilot edition will feature 24 FIFA Member Associations playing in five locations across three continents. Nations from all six confederations will participate.
FIFA Series in Egypt includes Croatia (UEFA), Egypt (CAF), Tunisia (CAF) and New Zealand (OFC).
