Bermuda coach Michael Findlay has described the upcoming inaugural Fifa Series in Saudi Arabia as a golden opportunity for his players to kick-start their preparations for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

Findlay’s side are one of two Concacaf members, alongside Guyana, invited to take part in the pilot event, which will be run on four continents from March 18 to 26, with Bermuda facing Brunei on March 22 and Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finalists Guinea three days later.

The coach believes the series of matches come at an opportune time for his team to work on combinations before they embark on their World Cup qualification journey in June.

Bermuda will face Honduras, Antigua & Barbuda, Cuba and Cayman Islands in the second stage of Concacaf qualification for the 2026 World Cup, will be held in United States, Canada and Mexico.

“It’s an incredible opportunity for us because we have an open window,’’ Findlay said.

“We’re not in competition so it gives us an opportunity to prepare and work on the things we have to do with the group, and we’re going to do it by playing two strong international sides.

“It also gives us an opportunity to work on some of the details as we move towards June.

“We get another opportunity to get on the pitch with the players and then test ourselves against other international opposition.

“The only way we’re going to get ourselves in a position where we’re constantly competitive in Concacaf is to play in every international window and to play good international competition.

“To be able to do it right before our first World Cup qualifier in June is a perfect plan for us.”

Findlay commended his employer, the Bermuda Football Association, for championing the growth of the sport within the Concacaf region and believes that played a huge part in securing an invitation from Fifa for the upcoming matches.

“We have to congratulate the BFA for being honoured in that way,’’ he said. “They don’t randomly pick these countries, they have to have displayed a commitment to what they want from a development point of view.

“We’re going to be the beneficiary of that by getting our players on the pitch and getting some good international matches.”

Findlay’s comments surrounding the importance of these matches suggests that he will pick the strongest squad possible and that may include members of the Select XI, who fell to two heavy defeats against Rhode Island in the past few days.

“It’s a Fifa window so all of the players will be available,’’ he added. “The BFA will announce the squad in the coming days and then we’ll get the players when the Fifa window opens.

“We've got two groups to deal with,” Findlay told The Royal Gazette after the second of the Rhode Island fixtures.

“This group [League Select] and we also have the under-20 group to deal with in terms of selection. We’ll make decisions with the staff, but we already have an established squad that we've been working with in the Nations League.

“This is the best possible position we can put ourselves in for the staff to have some dilemma on who to choose. Whether it'll be players from this group or the under-20 group, anything is possible. Once we decide what the balance looks like, everybody will know.”