The British Virgin Islands (BVI) men’s senior football team endured a tough match on Tuesday, suffering a 4-0 defeat against the Dominican Republic in their FIFA World Cup CONCACAF Qualifying Group E fixture.
This marks the BVI team’s second loss in the group stage. The game at the Estadio Panamericano in San Cristobal started on a challenging note for the BVI squad. In just the 2nd minute, Rafael Nunez unleashed a powerful strike from outside the left of the box, sending the ball past BVI goalkeeper Frankie Beckles and giving the Dominican Republic an early lead.
The situation worsened for the BVI team in the 14th minute when the Dominican Republic was awarded a penalty. Dorny Romero stepped up and confidently converted the spot-kick, doubling the home side’s advantage. The relentless pressure continued, and in the 31st minute, Nunez found the net again, securing his second goal and putting the Dominican Republic firmly in control with a 3-0 lead at halftime.
In the second half, the BVI team managed to hold off the Dominican Republic for the majority of the period. Despite their defensive efforts, the home team dominated the offensive play, amassing 26 shots compared to BVI’s 6, with 8 of those on target. The Dominican Republic’s persistence paid off in the 3rd minute of stoppage time, as they added a fourth goal to seal a comprehensive 4-0 victory.
This defeat has relegated the BVI to the bottom of the Group E standings, while the Dominican Republic climbed to third place with their first win of the second round.
The BVI team will aim to regroup and improve their performance in their next match of the qualifiers against Dominica in June 2025.