The Guyana Football Federation (GFF) has confirmed it is actively working to secure a series of international friendly matches for the senior men’s national team, the Golden Jaguars, as part of their preparations for the 2026 Concacaf Nations League.
The move is vital to provide new head coach Thomas Dooley with the necessary time to build and assess his squad ahead of their competitive return in September 2026.
GFF President Wayne Forde revealed that the federation wants the team to play at least one and potentially two official international fixtures before the end of 2025.
“We are already making plans for the fixtures ahead of us,” Forde stated. “We are already making plans for at least one official friendly match before the end of 2025. We may have an opportunity to do two matches, but these are details to be ironed out.”
The commitment comes as the current FIFA international window draws to a close on October 14, with the next scheduled for November 10-18.
This highlights the limited availability of international games.
Forde emphasised the plan to “take full advantage of the other FIFA dates to do some friendlies” throughout 2025 and 2026.
The friendly matches will be crucial for American-German coach Thomas Dooley, who was recently appointed to the post.
Dooley, who holds a UEFA Pro License and famously guided the Philippines to an unbeaten qualification campaign for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup, will use the upcoming fixtures to shape his team.
The Golden Jaguars have not played since their June exit from the FIFA 2026 World Cup qualifiers—a campaign that concluded with a convincing 3-0 victory over Montserrat—and the friendlies offer the new coach the first opportunity to implement his system and test players in a match setting.
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