FIFA U-17 WC: Delhi to host India's group matches

Group A, featuring India, which is automatically seeded as A1, will be based in New Delhi and teams of Group B will be based in Navi Mumbai.

FIFA, after a discussion between the Local Organising Committee (LOC) and the local government, has agreed to New Delhi host India's group matches.

New Delhi will host India's group matches in the FIFA U-17 World Cup, which begins on October 6.

Following a request from the All India Football Federation (AIFF), FIFA, after a discussion between the Local Organising Committee (LOC) and the local government, has agreed to New Delhi host India's group matches.

Group A, featuring the home team, which is automatically seeded as A1, will be based in New Delhi and teams of Group B will be based in Navi Mumbai.

Acknowledging the increased efforts of the local authorities and the LOC in connection with the requested amendment, FIFA’s head of tournaments Jaime Yarza said: “Attendance, especially in the venue where the home team plays its matches, is one of the priorities of the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017, crucial to achieving the purpose of better positioning football in the country, so the government’s commitment in this regard is highly appreciated."

"The presence of the secretary of sports at the meetings concerning the state of the works in the stadium and training sites sends a positive message and reflects the strong involvement of the authorities. We expect this involvement to extend into the area of pollution prevention, which has been an important topic discussed in relation to the tournament, in particular in Delhi. We are now expecting an action response plan to prevent pollution levels from affecting the tournament, which ideally should continue beyond the tournament.”

The draw for the tournament is scheduled for July 7 in Mumbai.