FIFA says Honduras is safe to host US in Cup qualifier

Chaos in Honduras has not created such safety risks as to force the movement of a scheduled World Cup qualifying match against the United States, FIFA officials said here Tuesday.

Hours after Honduran officials protested any notion of moving their October 10 home qualifier against the US squad, FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke said the crisis would not force relocation of the crucial match.

FIFA does reserve the right to revisit the issue should conditions change.

The issue became a concern after Mexican side Toluca announced Monday it would not travel to Honduras for a CONCACAF Champions League match, citing safety concerns in the wake of riots and military crackdowns.

But Toluca made a reversal on Tuesday and said it would travel to San Pedro Sula for the weekend match against Marathon.

With two matches remaining in the hunt for three North American berths at the 2010 South Africa World Cup, the Americans top the table on 16 points, one ahead of Mexico and three better than Honduras with Costa Rica on 12.

The fourth place team will face South America’s fifth-place team in a playoff to determine another trip to South Africa.