USA soccer sends emotional letter to players about pulling out of U-17 World Cup in Qatar amid Iran war
Soccer expressed its "shared disappointment" in a letter to players explaining its withdrawal from the upcoming U-17 World Cup in Qatar amid safety concerns surrounding the Iran war.
Key points
- The Under-17 World Cup in Qatar will kick off as scheduled next week despite the United States’ decision to withdraw.
- TEAM USA WITHDRAWS FROM FIFA U-17 WORLD CUP AMID STATE DEPARTMENT TRAVEL WARNING IN MIDDLE EAST "Unfortunately, in light of current circumstances including the US State Department’s Level 3 Travel Advisory for Qatar and related directives for Embassy staff and families, we are no longer able to participate in the tournament.
- The letter, obtained by Fox News Digital, praised the players and coaches for their preparation while explaining why the federation was canceling both its pre-tournament camp and participation in the competition.
We are extremely proud of the preparation by our players and coaches to represent the US in the World Cup," the letter said.
For the American players, the withdrawal ends a World Cup opportunity less than a week after head coach Alex Aldaz announced his 21-player roster Nov.
Additional details
- The letter also instructed players to hold off on publicly discussing the decision until FIFA announced it, while telling them their clubs would receive official notification.
- "We are writing to inform you of the difficult decision to cancel our World Cup pre-camp and our planned participation in the World Cup.
- The roster included Philadelphia Union forward Malik Jakupovic, who scored eight goals during qualifying, and players affiliated with European clubs including AC Milan, Ajax and PSV.
- The well-being of our players and staff will always be our top priority." The withdrawal became public Wednesday, eight days before the tournament’s scheduled Nov.
- We ask that you refrain from sharing this information or commenting publicly until such time that it has been communicated publicly by FIFA," the letter said.
How this summary was made: extractive summary — built from the sources' own reporting. It is drawn only from the reporting of the sources listed below — read the originals for full detail. How we summarize →
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