The organisers of the Copa América 2007 Venezuela have decided to change the venue for one of their semi-final matches. The first semi-final, which was due to take place in Caracas on July 10, will now be played in the venue of the Copa América final, the Estadio Zulia in Maracaibo, which has a capacity of 40,000 - that is 10,000 more than the Estadio Olimpico in Caracas.

The decision was taken by the South American Football Confederation, which met in the Venezuelan capital Caracas yesterday.

The switch of venue is an embarrassment for the Venezuelan organisers, with the change coming little more than two weeks before the match is due to be staged, and with the ambitious plans of holding the tournament around nine venue cities having fallen foul to delays in the construction and renovation of the host stadiums within time.

The South American Football Confederation (CSF) confirmed the change of venue in a statement.

"The confederation's decision was based on the need to meet security regulations," said the CSF on its Web site.

The Estadio Olimpico in Caracas will still host the third-place play-off on July 14

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