Bermuda will not be represented at soccer in this summer's Pan-Am Games in the Dominican Republic.

This was the announcement made by Bermuda Football Association Technical Committee chairman Robert Calderon who yesterday revealed that the Island did not receive an official invitation from Games organisers.

He told The Royal Gazette: "They (organisers) are using the Pan-Am Games to determine qualifiers for the Olympic Games from our region. And we were not able to participate because of the fact that we didn't enter the Olympics.

"Not entering the Olympics meant that we wouldn't receive an invitation to the Pan-Am Games and we had no intention of trying to qualify for that."

Calderon said the association had instead opted to focus their attention further ahead to next year's World Cup preliminary qualifying matches.

"It all goes back to the strategy of figuring out what competitions we can realistically qualify for and at the same where we presently are in terms of planning stages," he added.

"It's just impossible trying to put together a team in preparation for the Olympic qualifiers. We begin World Cup qualifying next year and that will afford us more time and opportunity to plan ahead."

The BFA executive said the association also didn't have the financial muscle to involve the Island's senior national team in every competition.

"We just don't have the money to be in all the competitions. But we do want to continue competing in the World Cup qualifiers as we've done in the past," he noted.

Calderon didn't rule out the possibility of Bermuda playing host to a visiting Canadian Under-23 national squad in either late May or early June or even competing again in the near future at the Central And Caribbean Games (CAC).

Bermuda celebrated a triumphant return to the senior international arena last December on the crest of a morale boosting 2-1 win over Jamaica's under-23 national squad at the National Sports Centre.

"I think that we will start looking at the CAC Games and see if that is something that we want to be a part of again," he added.

"But if we do not get into the competitions that we are looking for then we would still like have the senior national team play in more competitive matches.

"That's the reason why we would like to have Canada come here. I don't know what the Canadian Football Association are looking to do at this moment and we would like to think that it (tour) is still on."

The Canadians were originally scheduled to visit the Island in February but the tour was put on hold.

BFA general secretary David Sabir is currently in Canada as a match commissioner for the Under-17 World Cup qualifiers and is expected to hold talks with Canadian Football Association officials later this week to discuss the proposed tour.