Haiti Move USA Nations League Clash to Miami as Gang Violence Keeps Grenadiers Out of Port-au-Prince

Concacaf approves 'exceptional hosting arrangement' for 14 November first leg

Haiti's Nations League quarter-final first leg against the United States has been moved to Miami after Concacaf approved an "exceptional hosting arrangement" for the Caribbean nation, which remains unable to play nominal home matches within its own borders.

On Thursday, Concacaf announced that it had granted Haiti's request to relocate the fixture on 14 November from Kingston, Jamaica, to Nu Stadium in South Florida. Haiti have not been able to stage a true home game since July 2021, and the United Nations estimates that 90% of Port-au-Prince — including the national stadium — is controlled by violent gangs.

From Sabina Park to South Florida

The first leg of the home-and-away series had initially been booked at Sabina Park in Kingston — a venue that, while named the home of the Jamaica national team until the current national stadium opened in 1962, is now a cricket ground. It hosted two of Haiti's Nations League qualifiers, but the format had slated Curaçao and Jamaica to host their own matches on the same night as Haiti's, forcing the Grenadiers to share the scheduling elsewhere.

The move sends Haiti inside the borders of their opponents — but few places in the world could offer a warmer reception. Miami boasts by far the largest population of Haitians and their descendants, with nearly half a million people concentrated predominantly in South Florida.

Haiti have already tasted that support at Nu Stadium, where they played the venue's first international friendly — a pre-World Cup clash with Peru — in front of a sold-out crowd of 26,700. That turnout dwarfed the crowds drawn at Sabina Park, where their two matches attracted an average of just 297 fans.

A gruelling recent itinerary

Haiti's displacement is nothing new. The Grenadiers have previously played their World Cup qualifiers in Curaçao, Aruba and Barbados as they searched for viable neutral venues.

This will be Haiti's first trip back to the United States since the 2026 World Cup, a hero-making turn for the Caribbean nation in their first tournament appearance since 1974. The Grenadiers were handed a difficult group and lost all three of their games, against Morocco, Scotland and Brazil, but still enjoyed fantastic support from Haitian fans at their matches in Massachusetts, Philadelphia and Atlanta.

Historic series and a living rivalry

Haiti once dominated their series with the United States, ending the US's World Cup qualifying run in 1969. The US have since won four of their six clashes this century, with the other two matches ending in draws.

Concacaf added that "this flexibility will remain in place for as long as the security situation in Haiti persists." Haiti, as well as clubs based in Haiti, will need to seek approval from Concacaf for each match they look to play in "the territory of its opponents" — a separate arrangement from the neutral sites they have previously booked. The confederation closed by stipulating that the measure "may be amended or withdrawn by the Concacaf Council at any time."