U.S., El Salvador Meet Today in Soccer Qualifier

In a game that was controversial long before it was played, the U.S. soccer team will face El Salvador in a World Cup qualifying match today.

The game was switched to Honduras because of a sanction imposed on the Salvadorans after their home game against Costa Rica on June 25. El Salvador wanted to play in Los Angeles because of the large Salvadoran population there, but other members of the North and Central American and Caribbean zone protested.

The game last June, which Costa Rica won, 4-2, was declared over with 10 minutes left to play after fans hurled bottles and other objects onto the field to protest the Salvadoran team’s shoddy play.

If El Salvador wins or ties today, Costa Rica would be assured one of the berths to the 1990 World Cup in Italy.

The United States is trying to earn the second berth and has four games left to do it. Its main challenge is from Trinidad and Tobago.