Costa Rica to face Qatar in November soccer friendly

The Costa Rica men’s national team will face Qatar in an international soccer friendly next month.

La Sele will play the hosts of the 2022 World Cup on Friday, November 13 at Hartberg Stadium in Austria. Kickoff is scheduled for 11 a.m. CST (6 p.m. local).

“Qatar is the current Asian champion and a team that is taking its preparation to host the next World Cup very seriously, so we are convinced that it will be a high-level rival,” said Diego Brenes, Managing Director of National Teams of the Costa Rican Football Federation (Fedefutbol).

Fedefutbol said the match will be played in Austria because it “meets all the required conditions, both at the health and immigration level.”

La Sele will schedule a second match in Europe during the November FIFA International Match Calendar dates, with an opponent and location that remain unannounced.

“Our goal was to find the best combination of matches for this FIFA date, balancing our sporting objectives with what is logistically possible under current conditions, which has been achieved with this game,” Brenes said.

The Costa Rican men have played in three matches this year, albeit without some of their strongest players:

• In February, they lost to the United States, 1-0.
• On October 10, they lost to Panama, 1-0.
• On October 13, they lost to Panama, 1-0.

The coronavirus pandemic has forced the postponement of Costa Rica’s planned competitive matches in 2020, which included the CONCACAF Nations League and World Cup qualifiers.