The third of 14 matchdays in CONCACAF World Cup qualifying took place on Wednesday, Sept. 8 and the games featured teams under real pressure to obtain results.
The USA had the statement win of the round with its first win in the qualifying stage: a 4-1 triumph in Honduras. Ricardo Pepi was the breakout star with a goal, assist and a hand in the other two goals.
After its draw on U.S. soil on Sunday, Canada moved into second place thanks to a big 3-0 home win over El Salvador. Atiba Hutchinson, Jonathan David and Tajon Buchanan got the goals to close out September with five points from a possible nine. It’s a strong start for a Canadian side bidding to make its first World Cup since 1986.
Panama and Mexico tied 1-1 in a battle of the top two teams in the standings entering the matchday. El Tri was the only perfect team in qualifying, but it needed a Jesus ‘Tecatito’ Corona goal to equalize a first-half goal by Panama’s Rolando Blackburn. Mexico wraps up the September qualifiers atop the standings.
MORE: Why the USMNT is off to another slow start in qualifying
The bottom two teams didn’t help their cause as Costa Rica could only tie Jamaica 1-1 at home. The Ticos took the lead through a third-minute Jimmy Marin goal, but the Reggae Boyz equalized in the second half through Shamar Nicholson for their first point in the qualifying campaign.
The top three teams earn a direct berth to the 2022 Qatar World Cup, while the fourth-place team advances to an intercontinental playoff. The first standings tiebreakers are (1) goal difference, (2) goals scored and (3) most points obtained from matches between teams that are tied. The full list of tiebreakers follows below.
CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying Standings & Results
| Team |
PTS |
GP |
W |
L |
D |
GF |
GA |
GD |
| 1. Mexico |
7 |
3 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
4 |
2 |
+2 |
| 2. Canada |
5 |
3 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
5 |
2 |
+3 |
| 3. USA |
5 |
3 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
5 |
2 |
+3 |
| 4. Panama |
5 |
3 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
4 |
1 |
+3 |
| 5. Honduras |
2 |
3 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
5 |
-3 |
| 6. Costa Rica |
2 |
3 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
-1 |
| 7. El Salvador |
2 |
3 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
-3 |
| 8. Jamaica |
1 |
3 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
6 |
-4 |
Matchday 1
| Date |
Match |
|
| Thurs, Sept. 2, 2021 |
Canada 1, Honduras 1 |
Highlights |
| Thurs, Sept. 2, 2021 |
Panama 0, Costa Rica 0 |
Highlights |
| Thurs, Sept. 2, 2021 |
Mexico 2, Jamaica 1 |
Highlights |
| Thurs, Sept. 2, 2021 |
El Salvador 0, USA 0 |
Highlights |
Matchday 2
| Date |
Match |
|
| Sun, Sept. 5, 2021 |
Jamaica 0, Panama 3 |
Highlights |
| Sun, Sept. 5, 2021 |
Costa Rica 0, Mexico 1 |
Highlights |
| Sun, Sept. 5, 2021 |
El Salvador 0, Honduras 0 |
Highlights |
| Sun, Sept. 5, 2021 |
USA 1, Canada 1 |
Highlights |
Matchday 3
| Date |
Match |
|
| Wed, Sept. 8, 2021 |
Canada 3, El Salvador 0 |
Highlights |
| Wed, Sept. 8, 2021 |
Panama 1, Mexico 1 |
Highlights |
| Wed, Sept. 8, 2021 |
Costa Rica 1, Jamaica 1 |
Highlights |
| Wed, Sept. 8, 2021 |
Honduras 1, USA 4 |
Highlights |
Matchday 4
| Date |
Match |
Time (ET) |
TV Channels |
Stream |
| Thurs, Oct. 7, 2021 |
USA vs. Jamaica |
7:30 p.m. |
|
|
| Thurs, Oct. 7, 2021 |
Honduras vs. Costa Rica |
8:05 p.m. |
|
Paramount+ |
| Thurs, Oct. 7, 2021 |
Mexico vs. Canada |
10:15 p.m. |
|
Paramount+ |
| Thurs, Oct. 7, 2021 |
El Salvador vs. Panama |
10:35 p.m. |
|
Paramount+ |
Matchday 5
| Date |
Match |
Time (ET) |
TV Channels |
Stream |
| Sun, Oct. 10, 2021 |
Jamaica vs. Canada |
6:05 p.m. |
|
Paramount+ |
| Sun, Oct. 10, 2021 |
Costa Rica vs. El Salvador |
6:05 p.m. |
|
Paramount+ |
| Sun, Oct. 10, 2021 |
Mexico vs. Honduras |
6:30 p.m. |
|
Paramount+ |
| Sun, Oct. 10, 2021 |
Panama vs. USA |
9:05 p.m. |
|
Paramount+ |
Matchday 6
| Date |
Match |
Time (ET) |
TV Channels |
Stream |
| Wed, Oct. 13, 2021 |
USA vs. Costa Rica |
7 p.m. |
|
|
| Wed, Oct. 13, 2021 |
Canada vs. Panama |
7:30 p.m. |
|
Paramount+ |
| Wed, Oct. 13, 2021 |
Honduras vs. Jamaica |
8:05 p.m. |
|
Paramount+ |
| Wed, Oct. 13, 2021 |
El Salvador vs. Mexico |
10:35 p.m. |
CBSSN |
fuboTV , Paramount+ |
Matchday 7
| Date |
Match |
Time (TV channels) |
Stream |
| Nov. 2021 |
Canada vs. Costa Rica |
TBD |
TBD |
| Nov. 2021 |
Honduras vs. Panama |
TBD |
TBD |
| Nov. 2021 |
El Salvador vs. Jamaica |
TBD |
TBD |
| Nov. 2021 |
USA vs. Mexico |
TBD |
TBD |
Matchday 8
| Date |
Match |
Time (TV channels) |
Stream |
| Nov. 2021 |
Canada vs. Mexico |
TBD |
TBD |
| Nov. 2021 |
Costa Rica vs. Honduras |
TBD |
TBD |
| Nov. 2021 |
Panama vs. El Salvador |
TBD |
TBD |
| Nov. 2021 |
Jamaica vs. USA |
TBD |
TBD |
Matchday 9
| Date |
Match |
Time (TV channels) |
Stream |
| Thurs, Jan. 27, 2022 |
Honduras vs. Canada |
TBD |
TBD |
| Thurs, Jan. 27, 2022 |
USA vs. El Salvador |
TBD |
TBD |
| Thurs, Jan. 27, 2022 |
Costa Rica vs. Panama |
TBD |
TBD |
| Thurs, Jan. 27, 2022 |
Jamaica vs. Mexico |
TBD |
TBD |
Matchday 10
| Date |
Match |
Time (TV channels) |
Stream |
| Sun, Jan. 30, 2022 |
Canada vs. USA |
TBD |
TBD |
| Sun, Jan. 30, 2022 |
Honduras vs. El Salvador |
TBD |
TBD |
| Sun, Jan. 30, 2022 |
Mexico vs. Costa Rica |
TBD |
TBD |
| Sun, Jan. 30, 2022 |
Panama vs. Jamaica |
TBD |
TBD |
Matchday 11
| Date |
Match |
Time (TV channels) |
Stream |
| Wed, Feb. 2, 2022 |
El Salvador vs. Canada |
TBD |
TBD |
| Wed, Feb. 2, 2022 |
USA vs. Honduras |
TBD |
TBD |
| Wed, Feb. 2, 2022 |
Mexico vs. Panama |
TBD |
TBD |
| Wed, Feb. 2, 2022 |
Jamaica vs. Costa Rica |
TBD |
TBD |
Matchday 12
| Date |
Match |
Time (TV channels) |
Stream |
| Thurs, March 24, 2022 |
Costa Rica vs. Canada |
TBD |
TBD |
| Thurs, March 24, 2022 |
Panama vs. Honduras |
TBD |
TBD |
| Thurs, March 24, 2022 |
Jamaica vs. El Salvador |
TBD |
TBD |
| Thurs, March 24, 2022 |
Mexico vs. USA |
TBD |
TBD |
Matchday 13
| Date |
Match |
Time (TV channels) |
Stream |
| Sun, March 27, 2022 |
Canada vs. Jamaica |
TBD |
TBD |
| Sun, March 27, 2022 |
Honduras vs. Mexico |
TBD |
TBD |
| Sun, March 27, 2022 |
El Salvador vs. Costa Rica |
TBD |
TBD |
| Sun, March 27, 2022 |
USA vs. Panama |
TBD |
TBD |
Matchday 14
| Date |
Match |
Time (TV channels) |
Stream |
| Wed, March 30, 2022 |
Panama vs. Canada |
TBD |
TBD |
| Wed, March 30, 2022 |
Jamaica vs. Honduras |
TBD |
TBD |
| Wed, March 30, 2022 |
Mexico vs. El Salvador |
TBD |
TBD |
| Wed, March 30, 2022 |
Costa Rica vs. USA |
TBD |
TBD |
How CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying works
Eight nations from the CONCACAF region (North America, Central America and the Caribbean) are competing for three automatic berths to the 2022 Qatar World Cup in the final “octagonal” qualifying round.
The eight countries are facing off in a round-robin format with each team playing the other seven opponents once at home and once on the road. The 14 total matches for each national team began in September 2021 and will wrap up in March 2022.
The top three finishers will earn automatic berths to Qatar, while the fourth-place team will head to an intercontinental playoff with a final ticket to Qatar on the line. Here are the standings tiebreakers for teams even on points:
- Goal difference in all group matches
- Most goals scored in all group matches
- Most points obtained from group matches between teams concerned
- Goal difference from group matches between teams concerned
- Most goals scored in group matches between teams concerned
- Goals scored away from home (if two teams tied)
- Discipline points (based on yellow/red cards)
- Drawing of lots by FIFA
The Qatar World Cup will be played from Nov. 21 to Dec. 18, 2022.
Source
