Funding pulled after football match vs. NZ cancelled over pitch condition

Taipei, April 9 (CNA) The government will withhold a NT$3 million payment to Chinese Taipei Football Association (CTFA) after the New Zealand women's national football team called off two games against Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) due to concerns over the condition of the pitch, a sports official said Wednesday.

A behind-closed-doors training game set to be played last Saturday and a full international friendly match scheduled for Tuesday at Kaohsiung Nanzih Football Stadium were called off.

Following the cancellation, Sports Administration (SA) Director-General Cheng Shih-chung (鄭世忠) said during a legislative session Wednesday that the administration will cancel a NT$3 million (US$90,956) payment to the CTFA.

The SA has made strong representations to the CTFA instructing them to improve the pitch, he added.

In response to questions from Kuomintang lawmaker Ko Chih-en (柯志恩), Cheng said he was made aware of the problem on April 1 and instructed the CTFA last year to strengthen turf maintenance in the three to four weeks preceding the games.

The incident indicates there was miscommunication between the CTFA's competition and technical departments, he said.

Meanwhile, Minister of Education Cheng Ying-yao (鄭英耀) said during the legislative session, "This is a disgrace, I have nothing to say," adding that the Sports Administration will conduct a thorough review to ensure in future all necessary preparations are made in advance.

According to Ko, she learned in September last year that Kaohsiung Nanzih Football Stadium had been leased out for March, which made it impossible to undertake turf maintenance before the games.

Kaohsiung Nanzih Football Stadium, completed in 2022 at a cost of NT$350 million, immediately drew criticism from the public because it failed to meet FIFA (Federation International Football Association) certification criteria.

The stadium has two pitches, one grass and one with an artificial surface, and a capacity of 1,200 seats.