Bermuda’s attempt to replicate their 2019 heroics in the Concacaf Gold Cup will be determined at the “house that Beckham built”.

Concacaf confirmed yesterday that the preliminary fixtures will be held on July 2, 3 and 6 at the Inter CF Stadium, the home of Inter Miami, the Major League Soccer club owned by former Manchester United and England star David Beckham.

Bermuda face Barbados with the winner due to take on Haiti or St Vincent & the Grenadines for the right to progress to the Gold Cup proper, where the United States, Canada and Martinique await in group B.

The preliminary-round matches will signal the official start to the Gold Cup during what is expected to be a vibrant summer of football in South Florida, which will include the delayed Nations League finals in June and then the Gold Cup in July and August.

“We look forward with great anticipation to this summer’s Gold Cup, which will undoubtedly be enhanced by this new preliminary round,” said Victor Montagliani, the Concacaf president and Fifa vice-president.

“The past year has been very challenging in our region and our thoughts are with all the communities that have suffered. We hope the opportunity to watch the best men’s national teams in Concacaf compete in our flagship tournament can provide fans with some hope and enjoyment.”

Montagliani added: “All 12 of the competing nations in the prelims will get a full Gold Cup experience at the excellent Inter Miami facilities and we look forward to a great set of games.”

Inter Miami, who recently appointed Phil Neville as head coach, made their belated MLS debut in the 2020 season. Their Inter CF stadium sits a capacity 18,000 and is situation amid a 50,000 sq ft training centre and seven playing fields.

Jorge Mas, the Inter Miami managing owner, said: “We look forward to hosting the Gold Cup prelims tournament in our stadium.

“Our facilities in Fort Lauderdale were built with the intent of giving our fans opportunities to enjoy the world’s game knowing that our vibrant culture and sports-centric region would be attractive for global teams and competitions. This is just the beginning of the great things that lie ahead.”

The buzz around the Bermuda team reached unprecedented levels during 2019 when Kyle Lightbourne’s side reached the Gold Cup group stage for an historic first time, then competed manfully in a group that includes Costa Rica, Haiti and Nicaragua.

There were 2-1 defeats by Costa Rica and Haiti before a sensational 2-0 win over Nicaragua capped an outstanding campaign.

To have a chance of repeating that, Haiti may very well have to be negotiated again.

First preliminary round (July 2 and 3)

Match 1: Haiti v St Vincent & the Grenadines

Match 2: Guatemala v Guyana

Match 3: Trinidad & Tobago v Montserrat

Match 4: Cuba v French Guiana

Match 5: Guadeloupe vs Bahamas

Match 6: Bermuda vs Barbados

Second preliminary round (July 6)

Match 7: Winner of Match 1 v winner of Match 6

Match 8: Winner of Match 2 v winner of match 5

Match 9: Winner of Match 3 v winner of Match 4

Concacaf Gold Cup group stage (July 10 to August 1)

Group A: Mexico, El Salvador, Curacao, Match 9 winner

Group B: United States, Canada, Martinique, Match 7 winner

Group C: Costa Rica, Jamaica, Suriname, Match 8 winner

Group D: Honduras, Panama, Grenada, Qatar (guest).