Kerala is a state that generates a lot of interest from the fans, when it comes to the beautiful game. We have already seen the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, in Kochi, bursting at the seams during domestic matches, something that gives rise to more anticipation ahead of the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup. Hence, lets take a look at the schedule in place for the Kochi venue during the World Cup.
Out of all the venues, the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi, is the one arena, that is assured of seeing some of the biggest tournament favourites in action during the Group Stage.
Most of the group stage matches at the venue are from Group D, which contains Niger, North Korea, Brazil and Spain. While neither Niger, nor North Korea are expected to progress to the knockout stages of the tournament, Spain and Brazil are expected to set the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium alight with their brand of expansive football.
The Kerala football fans are set to witness yet another tournament giant during the World Cup, in a Group C encounter between Guinea and Germany. The prospect of the Germans playing in Kochi makes the prospects for the venue all the more interesting, as they have shown their superiority in the junior levels of international football, winning the UEFA U-21 Euro Championships and the FIFA Confederations Cup, earlier this year with young teams.
Apart from the group stage matches, Kochi is also set to host one Round of 16 game, and one quarter final.
The Kochi venue itself has been under a bit of a scanner, with FIFA representatives not being too happy with the progress of redevelopment of the stadium in the initial stages of the inspection. The main bone of contention seemed to be the difficulty to relocate a number of shops, which had been set up inside the stadium.
However, such issues have been solved by the FIFA Local Organising Committee, ahead of the World Cup.
2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup Schedule for Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi
Group Stage:
October 7:
Brazil vs Spain- 17:00 GROUP D, Kochi
DPR Korea vs Niger- 20:00 GROUP D, Kochi
October 10:
Spain vs Niger - 17:00 GROUP D, Kochi
DPR Korea vs Brazil - 20:00 GROUP D, Kochi
October 13:
Guinea vs Germany - 17:00 GROUP C, Kochi
Spain vs DPR Korea - 20:00 GROUP D, Kochi
Round of 16
October 18:
[1D] v/s [3B/E/F] 20:00, Kochi- Match 44
Quarter Finals
October 22:
[W40] vs [W39] 17:00, Kochi- Match 47