The Honduran delegation arrived in Porto Alegre at 4:33pm on Friday afternoon, landing at Salgado Filho International Airport. The players got off the airplane elegantly, wearing suits and ties, but without chatting to supporters or the press. The team continued on to Hotel Deville, in the northern district of the capital, on board a bus waiting outside the terminal. Under heavy security, the team was escorted by the Federal Police and Fifa cars. When the vehicle passed the area where about 12 Honduran supporters were waiting, the party really broke out. Supporters faced heavy rain and received hand waves from the delegation on board the bus for their efforts.
The players from Honduras will visit Beira-Rio stadium this Saturday for a training session. Yesterday morning, the team trained in Porto Feliz, in the interior of São Paulo state, the site of the team's camp. The Honduran team is hoping for its first victory in the country's history in the competition, and its first chance will be in the capital of Rio Grande do Sul.
Read other texts produced by ZH in Spanish/English
In the history of the World Cup, Honduras has played six matches: two draws and one loss in 1982 and two losses and one draw in 2010. At the last World Cup, in South Africa, the Hondurans went home without scoring a single goal. After a good performance in the North, Central American and Caribbean qualifiers, the hope is that the result in 2014 be better. Honduras tallied 4 victories, three draws and three loses in the tournament classification table and ended ahead of Mexico, which is usually the strongest side. Honduras even managed a 2-1 win over the Mexicans at Azteca stadium in Mexico City.
France
The delegation from Central America will have Olímpico stadium at its disposal for training sessions in Porto Alegre. France, the opponent at the opening game in Porto Alegre, is expected to arrive in the capital on Saturday morning. The 1998 world champions will use Arena do Grêmio for training purposes.
The highlights of the French team are Olivier Giroud and Laurent Koscielny, the pillars of the Blues, as the team is known. At this year's Fifa World Cup, the team faces the tough task of wiping the slate clean after the poor performance in South Africa in 2010.
- We are at a reconstruction stage, because the team is still associated to Knysna (the city of the team camp in the previous World Cup) and the campaign from four years ago - said Giroud, in an interview with Fifa.
GET READY
FRANCE vs. HONDURAS
Beira-Rio Stadium
Sunday
Time: 4pm
WEEKEND MATCHES
SATURDAY
Colombia vs. Greece
Mineirão Stadium (Belo Horizonte)
1pm
Ivory Coast vs. Japan
Arena Pernambuco (Recife)
10pm
Uruguay vs. Costa Rica
Castelão Stadium (Fortaleza)
4pm
England vs. Italy
Arena Amazônia (Manaus)
7pm
SUNDAY
Switzerland vs. Ecuador
Mané Garrincha Stadium (Brasília)
1pm
Argentina vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina
Maracanã Stadium (Rio de Janeiro)
Translate: traduzca.com
