The US and Mexico closed in on World Cup berths on Wednesday, while Trinidad and Tobago were eliminated and Costa Rica suffered a costly defeat in North and Central America and Caribbean zone games.
In Port of Spain, Ricardo Clark’s 62nd-minute goal lifted the US to a 1-0 victory over Trinidad and Tobago, putting the vistors atop the six-nation final-round group on 16 points with two matches remaining.
The defeat spelled the end of Trinidad and Tobago’s hopes, as they remained mired at the bottom of the table with five points.
The Americans gained three valuable points thanks to a powerful blast from Clark, which eluded the outstretched hands of Trinidad and Tobago goalkeeper Clayton Ince.
“For us it was a very important three points,” US coach Bob Bradley said after his team’s first away victory of the round. “We felt that it was well earned because tonight was a difficult game.”
“A lot of credit goes to Trinidad and Tobago. I felt they put a great effort out tonight and made it very hard,” Bradley said.
The day started with the top four teams — Honduras, the US, Mexico and Costa Rica — separated by just one point.
Mexico, who had made a stuttering start to the final round, continued their late surge with a 1-0 victory over Honduras at Azteca Stadium.
Cuauhtemoc Blanco’s penalty in the 75th minute gave Mexico their fourth straight victory and 15 points, while Honduras remained on 13 points — now in third place, one point ahead of Costa Rica.
Blanco took the penalty after Giovanni Dos Santos, racing into the area behind the ball, was brought down by Maynor Figueroa.
Mexico had dominated the possession in the first half, holding the ball for long periods, dictating the pace and peppering Honduras goalkeeper Noal Valladeras with long-range shots.
Mexico had a scoring chance late in the first half, when Carlos Salcido’s cross found Miguel Sabah in front of the goal, but Sabah’s header went wide.
El Salvador, fighting to avoid elimination, defeated Costa Rica 1-0 in San Salvador, a victory that kept El Salvador alive with eight points.
Three countries from the region advance directly to the World Cup finals in South Africa, while the fourth-placed team plays off for a berth against the fifth-placed team from South America.
Taiwan kept their hopes of advancing to next year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Saturday, backed by solid pitching. Taiwan last night played against Nicaragua. As of press time, Nicaragua was leading 6-0. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan on Saturday kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen struck out one and allowed no hits, except for a hit-by-pitch over
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tonight for the final berth at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Sunday. The home team’s loss on Sunday means Nicaragua finish first in the qualifier round in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to next year’s finals. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier on Sunday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan finished third while South Africa placed at the bottom with
Team Taiwan avoided missing the World Baseball Classic (WBC) for the first time by defeating Spain 6-3 in a do-or-die game in Taipei last night. After narrowly escaping a mercy-rule loss to Spain in the WBC Qualifiers opener on Friday last week, the home team — winner of last year's WBSC Premier12 title three months ago — got their revenge against the 2023 European champions at Taipei Dome. "It felt quite different from when we won the Premier12," Taiwan captain Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) said after the game, recalling the ups and downs the team has experienced over the past few days. Unlike in