The United States men's national team has pulled out of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, which was scheduled to kick off in Qatar, according to The Guardian's report on the withdrawal.

The Guardian reported that the decision was explained in a letter the U.S. Soccer Federation sent to players. The letter cited safety concerns for players and staff and referred them to the U.S. State Department's level-3 advisory for Qatar.

The Guardian's report, as summarized here, gives two different timeframes for the start of the competition. It says the tournament was set to kick off in eight days in one place and in "just over a week" in another. The summary does not reconcile the two figures.

The available summary of The Guardian's report does not include a response from FIFA or from the State Department, and it does not describe any next steps for the federation.

Sources: The Guardian: US withdraws from U-17 World Cup in Qatar due to safety concerns.