ARG to become home of football

By Algernon Watts The Antigua Recreation Ground is being lined up for a major transformation into the country’s official home of football, with Cabinet abandoning, for now, the prospect of waiting years for an entirely new stadium and instead seeking to redirect promised FIFA support to the historic St John’s venue. The shift comes just days after FIFA President Gianni Infantino visited Antigua and Barbuda and committed support towards a 5,000-seat football stadium, with the government indicating at the time that land would be provided for the new facility. But following Wednesday’s Cabinet meeting, the administration has decided it wants the investment channelled into reconstructing and rehabilitating the ARG instead.

Director General of Communications Maurice Merchant announced the decision at Thursday’s post-Cabinet media briefing, saying the government concluded that building an entirely new stadium could take five years or more. “The Cabinet decided that the Antigua Recreation Grounds will become the home of football officially,” Merchant said. The decision is not yet a done deal. FIFA would have to agree to the proposed change in direction and allow the funding intended to support a football stadium to be used for redevelopment of the ARG. Infantino visited Antigua and Barbuda over the weekend and held discussions with Prime Minister Gaston Browne, Sports Minister Dwayne George and Antigua and Barbuda Football Association President Ickford Roberts on football development and infrastructure. Following those talks, the government announced that FIFA had committed to assisting with a new 5,000-seat football stadium and that land had already been earmarked for the project. Located in the heart of St John’s, bordered in part by Factory Road and Independence Drive, the…