Singapore's National Stadium, the centre piece of a $1 billion Sports Hub facility, has been criticised by all corners since it was opened in May with the field routinely filled with as much sand as grass.
The Football Association of Singapore claimed it was far short of international standards for a Brazil v Japan fixture earlier this month, while the government threatened to withhold funds if things didn't improve.
Sports Hub, who run the facility, hired new experts, invested in technology and cancelled fixtures to ensure that the eight team biennial soccer tournament for some of the world's weakest nations could go ahead next month.
"We are grateful to the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) for their approval to host the Suzuki Cup in Singapore, and to the Singapore Sports Hub for doing their best in ensuring optimal playing conditions for our Group Stage matches," FAS President Zainudin Nordin said in a statement on Thursday.
The 55,000 retractable roof National Stadium will host Singapore's matches in their title defence, while the 5,000 seat, artificial turfed Jalan Besar Stadium will host three other matches involving Malaysia, Thailand and Myanmar.
The Nov.22–Dec 20 tournament will be co-hosted by Vietnam. Indonesia, Philippines, Laos complete the lineup.
(Writing by Patrick Johnston, Editing by Ossian Shine)
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