New Soca Warriors coach Dwight Yorke will take his team to compete for the first time in March 2025 when they face Cuba on a home-and-away basis in a Gold Cup preliminary matchup. The winner will qualify for the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup.
Concacaf confirmed the seven Gold Cup preliminary matchups on Nov. 20. The matches will feature the four 2024/25 Concacaf Nations League quarter-final losers, the third and fourth-placed teams from the 2024/25 Nations League A cycle, the top two Nations League B runners-up, and the four Nations League play-in winners.
The preliminary results were determined via Concacaf’s rankings of the 14 participating teams after the conclusion of Fifa’s November window. The Soca Warriors are ranked fifth, with Costa Rica, Jamaica, Honduras, and Guatemala ahead of them. Cuba is ranked tenth.
The four 2024/25 Concacaf Nations League semifinalists are Canada, Mexico, Panama, and the US, who will go directly into the 2025 Gold Cup group stage for the June 14 – July 6 tournament.
For the Soca Warriors, their preliminary tie will be a rematch against a Cuba team they met twice in their 2024/25 Concacaf Nations League A campaign. T&T played to a 2-2 draw against Cuba on Oct. 10 before earning a 3-1 win at the Dwight Yorke Stadium, Tobago, on Oct. 14 as they gained their place in Nations League A for another cycle.
“As for the Gold Cup qualifiers, preparation is already underway,” Yorke told T&T Football Association media. “Now the opponent for the Gold Cup qualifier has been identified…my staff and I will be doing everything to ensure that we are fully prepared to face these opponents who will challenge us in both the Gold Cup and World Cup qualifiers.”
“These are critical matches for us, and we’re leaving no stone unturned in making sure we are ready. The work has only just begun, but I’m confident that with the effort and focus we’re putting in, we’ll be ready to meet these challenges head-on.”
The 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup preliminary matchups are Costa Rica vs. Belize, Jamaica vs. St Vincent and the Grenadines, Honduras vs. Bermuda, TT vs. Cuba, Guatemala vs. Guyana, Martinique vs. Suriname, and Nicaragua vs. Guadeloupe.
