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U.S. men Trinidad and Jamaica qualifiers scheduled for Foxboro Stadium.CHICAGO (Thursday, January 18, 2001) -- Foxboro Stadium near Boston has been selected to host two of the United States’ five CONCACAF final-round home qualifying matches: against Trinidad & Tobago on Wednesday, June 20, at 7:30 p.m. (ET) and against Jamaica on Sunday, October 7. The game against Trinidad & Tobago will be broadcast on ESPN2 and Telemundo. The U.S. men have never lost at Foxboro Stadium, posting a 5-0-3 all-time record, previously playing two important final-round qualifiers there on their march to the 1998 World Cup -- a 2-2 draw with Mexico in front of a sold-out crowd of 57,407 on April 20, 1997, and a 4-2 victory over El Salvador 4-2 on November 16, 1997, in a match attended by 53,193. In their most recent match at Foxboro, the Americans recorded a 7-0 rout over Barbados on August 16 in semifinal-round qualifier for the region of North America, Central America and the Caribbean. "Boston has been a great home for U.S. Soccer," U.S. coach Bruce Arena said. "We know that whenever we play at Foxboro we will always have a great crowd behind us, and the atmosphere will be even better for these important World Cup qualifiers." Coming four days after the Americans face Jamaica in Kingston, the June 20 match against Trinidad & Tobago will be the U.S.’s fifth match in the final qualifying round. The match will be followed by the New England Revolution hosting the Colorado Rapids in a Major League Soccer match. The U.S. is 5-0-1 against Trinidad in qualifying games. The Americans defeated T&T twice in qualifiers leading up to the 1998 World Cup, and recorded one of the biggest victories in its history in Trinidad in 1989 when Paul Caligiuri's historic goal sent the U.S. to the 1990 World Cup, the first in 40 years. Trinidad & Tobago finished the semifinal qualifying phase atop its group, and posted an impressive 1-0 win against Mexico. It is led by Manchester United striker Dwight Yorke and former MLS star Stern John. The U.S.-Jamaica match at Foxboro on October 7 will be the final American home game and ninth of 10 overall qualifiers. Against Jamaica, the U.S. also has an undefeated qualifying record -- 5-0-4. However, the U.S. hasn't defeated the "Reggae Boyz" since 1994, battling them draws in the last three meetings, including two during the final round of 1998 World Cup qualifying with both nations eventually advancing to France 1998. The U.S. qualifying schedule (all times Eastern):
Wednesday, February 28
Wednesday, March 28
Wednesday, April 25
Saturday, June 16
Wednesday, June 20
Sunday, October 7
Yet to be scheduled:
June 30-July 4 -- United States vs. Mexico at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
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