Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) Apr 24: South America's 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers will resume in June ahead of the Copa America, regional football confederation CONMEBOL said on Friday.
The fifth and sixth rounds of the qualifying tournament were suspended in March because of COVID-19 travel restrictions in some countries.
"The changes in the calendar seek to minimize the burden of travel and avoid complications in the busy schedule that South American football has this year," read a statement on CONMEBOL's official website.
It said additional qualifiers could be played in the second half of the year as organizers race against time to complete the tournament before the World Cup.
"Match days five and six will be played in the months of September, October or November, on days to be defined," the entity said. "Triple dates are planned and CONMEBOL asked FIFA for three additional days to ensure the players can properly recover."
This year's Copa America will be held in Argentina and Colombia from June 13 to July 10.
The next edition of the FIFA World Cup will take place from November 21 to December 18 next year.
The top four teams at the end of the CONMEBOL qualifying tournament will earn a direct World Cup berth while the fifth-ranked side will advance to an intercontinental playoff.
Source: Xinhua