SB Nation United States Men's National Team
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The U.S. also finalizes friendly schedule, announcing game against Scotland will also be played in Florida.
The United States men's national team will host five-time World Cup champion Brazil on May 30 at Maryland's FedEx Field, U.S. Soccer announced on Thursday. This will be the first time a U.S. Soccer match has been played at the new home of the NFL's Washington Redskins and just the third time the USMNT has visited Maryland. It will be broadcast on ESPN2.
"When you talk about Brazil, you are speaking of one of the most gifted football playing nations in the world," U.S. head coach Jurgen Klinsmann said in the announcement. "It is our goal to be able to match up against teams like Brazil on a consistent basis, so this is an amazing opportunity. FedExField is an awesome facility for soccer as we have seen from the games they have hosted, so we are excited to play our first game in the stadium."
This will be the fourth encounter between the United States and Brazil in as many years. The last time they played was on Aug. 10, 2011 in front of more than 77,000 fans at New Meadowlands Stadium.
This announcement leaves the rumored match against Scotland on May 26 as the only pre-World Cup qualifying friendly without a firm schedule. The United States will play at Italy on Feb. 29 and at Canada on June 3. The United States plays their first World Cup qualifier on June 8 against Antigua and Barbuda.
The United States men's national team will pay a visit to Canada for a friendly at Toronto's BMO Field on June 3, just before the team's start the next round of World Cup qualifying. The game will be broadcast on NBC Sports Network. The game is part of the Canadian Soccer Association's Centenary celebration.
"First of all, we are honored to be chosen to be part of Canada’s Centenary Celebration," U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann said in a U.S. Soccer release. "This is exactly the type of challenge we are looking for as we grow the team and get ready for the start of World Cup qualifying. There is a great history in the rivalry, and Canada is a team we could see in the final round of qualifying. It’s a win-win for everybody."
The U.S. has a 3-6-1 record in Canada, but has not played there since 1997 during 1998 World Cup qualifying. The U.S. won that game 3-0.
Canada will host the United States men's national team in a friendly prior to World Cup Qualifying in June, according to a report by the CBC. The date and location of the match is expected to be announced on Thursday.
The continental rivals last faced each other in June during the most recent CONCACAF Gold Cup. The United States won that game 2-0.
The match would serve as a nice precursor to qualifying as the two teams are in different groups. The United States will open on June 8 against Jamaica. Their group includes Guatemala and Antigua and Barbuda. Canada will open qualifying against Panama on June 8. Their group includes Honduras and Cuba, as well.
Canada is hoping to qualify for the World Cup for just the second time in its history. Their only previous appearance came in 1986. The United States is hoping to qualify for its 10th World Cup and its seventh straight.
Brazil already announced weeks ago that they would play the United States in a friendly on May 30 and now it looks like the U.S. will also play Scotland in a late-May friendly as part of their preparations for World Cup qualifying, which begins in June. The U.S. begins qualifying on June 8 when they host Antigua and Barbuda and continues four days later in Guatemala.
The Brazil friendly has not yet been officially announced by the USSF, but the Brazilian federation announced it earlier in the month. They announced that it would be played in either Massachusetts or Washington D.C., meaning Gillette Stadium or FedEx Field, but Gillette is no longer an option, meaning it will almost certainly be in the D.C. suburbs at FedEx Field.
It's no surprise that the U.S. wants to play another friendly. They will begin training camp as soon as the European season ends in mid-May and just one friendly between then and the start of qualifying isn't enough. Scotland did not qualify for Euro 2012 so a trip to the U.S. would be no problem for them and a May 27 or 29 date fits the schedule for both the U.S. and Scotland.
"We’ve been in discussions with a number of federations about a game in late May, including Scotland," a US Soccer Federation (USSF) spokesman told MLSsoccer.com on Monday. "Nothing is finalized and we'll continue to have those discussions."
Reports out of Scotland cite New York, Chicago and Jacksonville as the cities in consideration to host the match. Considering that no location has been announced for the training camp yet, it is difficult to say which city would make the most sense, although New York's proximity to D.C. makes it attractive. All three do offer 60,000+ seat stadiums that the USSF would love to fill, although there is some uncertainty with Jacksonville considering the U.S. hasn't played at Everbank Field since 1999.
The U.S. and Scotland last played in 2005 with the two sides playing to a 1-1 draw in Glasgow.
United States Will Begin 2014 World Cup Qualifying In Florida
It looks like the United States men's national team will be getting to know Florida well. On Wednesday, it was announced that they will play Scotland on May 26 in a friendly at Jacksonville's EverBank Field and open 2014 World Cup qualifying with their first-ever match against Antigua and Barbuda on June 8 at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium.
These announcements seem to finalize the United States' plans through early June. Here's how it's now shaping up:
Antigua and Barbuda went 5-0-1 with a +21 goal-difference during the previous round of qualifying to advance to this stage. The vast majority of their players have some ties to Antigua Barracuda FC, which played in the USL-Pro last season and went 9-13-2.
Feb 15 12:32p by Jeremiah Oshan - 1 comment