Uruguay's national team has arrived in Miami after enduring a travel ordeal ahead of their opening World Cup match in the United States.

The squad and support staff landed in Miami on Sunday, less than 24 hours before kickoff in their Group H match against Saudi Arabia.

Uruguay pinned the blame for their troubles flying from Mexico to the US on FIFA. They also reportedly faced the threat of sanction if their head coach and captain could not make it to a mandatory news conference on the eve of the match.

The original flight was reportedly not allowed to depart due to administrative issues, including some missing paperwork, and officials had to scramble to line up a new flight.

FIFA is in charge of all travel related to the 48-team World Cup. Uruguay were training in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, and held a practice there on Sunday.

The Uruguay Football Association (AUF) said that a second plane from South Florida was en route to pick up the squad. FIFA later released a statement, saying the delay was due to an airline permitting error in Mexico.

Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa and team captain Jose Maria Gimenez attended the rescheduled news conference. Gimenez said they took the delay in a positive light.

Uruguay and Saudi Arabia will play their first match of Group H at Miami Gardens on Monday. Uruguay were the latest to face travel issues at the World Cup, following problems for Somali referee Omar Artan, the Iranian team, and Iraqi striker Aymen Hussein.

Source: www.aljazeera.com