The Canadian Press@<
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Canada will face modest Belize in its opening round of qualifying
for the 2006 World Cup of soccer.<
But things will get more difficult from there. Should Canada beat
Belize, it appears headed for the toughest of the three semifinal
qualifying groups in CONCACAF, which covers North and Central
America and the Caribbean.<
Canada, ranked 87th in the world, could end up in a semifinal
group with No. 19 Costa Rica, No. 45 Honduras and No. 73 Guatemala.
Only two will survive.<
But first up is No. 174 Belize in a home-and-away playoff in
June. The two countries have never played each other.<
Both teams were given a first-round bye in Friday's qualifying
draw in Frankfurt, Germany.<
Belize is ranked 22nd in the region. At No. 174 in the world, it
is rubbing shoulders with Cambodia and Kyrgyzstan.
<
Canada will face modest Belize in its opening round of qualifying
for the 2006 World Cup of soccer.<
But things will get more difficult from there. Should Canada beat
Belize, it appears headed for the toughest of the three semifinal
qualifying groups in CONCACAF, which covers North and Central
America and the Caribbean.<
Canada, ranked 87th in the world, could end up in a semifinal
group with No. 19 Costa Rica, No. 45 Honduras and No. 73 Guatemala.
Only two will survive.<
But first up is No. 174 Belize in a home-and-away playoff in
June. The two countries have never played each other.<
Both teams were given a first-round bye in Friday's qualifying
draw in Frankfurt, Germany.<
Belize is ranked 22nd in the region. At No. 174 in the world, it
is rubbing shoulders with Cambodia and Kyrgyzstan.