The highest authorities of the sport on the island reported on the selection of the best players this year.
An extensive calendar of international competitions is in store for Cuban footballers in 2025, according to a press conference attended by the island’s top football authorities.
Oliet Rodríguez, president of the Cuban Football Association (AFC), evaluated the results achieved during the year 2024, among which he highlighted the return to the Futsal World Cup and the milestone of qualifying for the second time in the history of the U-20 category.
On the relegation of the senior national team to CONCACAF Nations League B level, the federation explained that, while this result is not satisfactory, it should be seen in context, as despite the unequal schedule for the other teams in the group, only one match was lost.
Rodríguez also announced the actions being taken to repair the La Polar and Pedro Marrero stadiums.
«We are ambitious with the La Polar project and we aim to have it ready in the next few months. We can say with satisfaction that we already have in Cuba all the elements that make up the socio-administrative structure, such as dressing rooms, stands and lights. We believe that in March it can be delivered for the 2025 Gold Cup qualifier. If that is not possible, we expect it to be ready for the World Cup qualifiers in June,» he said.
He also explained that the project has a cost of around 1.7 million dollars and is being carried out in cooperation with the Government of Havana.
Regarding the Pedro Marrero National Stadium, he said that the dismantling of the old structure has begun. However, he commented that as it is a more ambitious investment, it will require a greater amount of resources, which would be around seven million dollars.
In this sense, he said that a system of three synthetic pitches for training and play is already in place for this project.
In another moment, the executive referred to the agreements reached with the Italian and Mexican federations in the field of technical and refereeing improvement.
The secretary of the AFC and technical head of the commission, Miguel Angel Diaz, reported that the year 2025 presents unprecedented competitive challenges, taking into account the number of competitions that the Cuban national teams will play.
On the technical planning to meet these challenges, he reported that technical director Yunielys Castillo, at the head of the senior national team and the U-20 category, will work with physical trainer José Antonio Vargas during the year 2025 in Costa Rica, where a large group of players are playing.
According to the specialist, this is a strategic measure, taking into account that 13 members of the U-20 team that will participate in the World Cup in Chile in 2025 are still contracted in that country.
During the presentation, the most outstanding footballers of the year were announced. Among those recognised were Zailén Savón (best youth player), Karel Pérez (best youth player) and Jonathan Hernández (best futsal player).
In the elite categories, the distinctions as the best players of each sex went to goalkeeper Alianne Matamoros and the captain of the senior national team, Luis Javier Paradela.
