The FIFA World Cup Qualifier Round 2 match will not take place in Islamabad, as the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) stated on Monday. Instead, it will take place in a neutral location.
In order to stage the match during Ramadan, the Pakistan Football Federation required enough lighting; according to reports, the lighting needed to be at least 1800 lumens in order to comply with FIFA’s regulation.
On what was then known as Twitter, the PFF said on X, “Dear Football Community of Pakistan, We would like to bring you a crucial update on our forthcoming encounter against Jordan in the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Round 2.
“Since our last home game against Tajikistan in November, the Pakistan Football Federation, in collaboration with the Pakistan Sports Board, has been diligently working on preparing the Jinnah Stadium for the upcoming match against Jordan scheduled for March,” the Pakistan Football Federation added in an official statement.
“Unfortunately, we regret to notify you that, in spite of our best efforts, the Jinnah Stadium’s current standard does not meet FIFA standards.” The PFF continued to add.
Since we are dedicated to maintaining the integrity of the game, we have chosen to look into other possibilities. The deadline for venue applications was January 21. We’ll be getting in touch with the Jordan Football Association to talk about setting up a neutral location for the home leg.
The PFF highlighted the difficulties they have in providing appropriate illumination, saying, “One major challenge we are facing is related to the lighting conditions.” We have had trouble getting the present setup to match FIFA’s lighting regulations because the March game is supposed to be played under lights and it falls during Ramadan.
Prior to the match against Jordan on March 21, it was said that 4,000 seats would be erected and that the lighting would be placed by the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) by the end of February.
In addition to being Pakistan’s third match in the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Round 2 Group stage, this would have been their third encounter in Islamabad since they overcame Cambodia in October to advance past the World Cup Qualifiers Round 1 for the first time ever.
