Seattle Sounders will look to return to the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Final for the second consecutive year on September 1, when the 2009 defending Champions host Chivas USA in the Semifinals of the 96-year-old tournament.
In fact, there is an opportunity for a repeat final from last season’s tournament as the other bracket holds 2009 runners-up and hosts DC United. The tw0-time Champion (1997-2008) United host the Columbus Crew. Eliminated in the 3rd Round in last year’s tournament by the Rochester Rhino’s, the Crew won the tournament in 2002 and were beaten in the final by the double-winning Chicago Fire of 1998.
Chivas USA have never advanced this deep into the Open Cup and will have their back’s against the wall in the tight confines of Starfire Sports Complex, where Seattle beat the red-hot LA Galaxy 2-0 in the quarterfinals.
2010 SEMIFINAL SCHEDULE
Match 37 Sept 1 – 7:30pm DC United v Columbus Crew – RFK Stadium, Washington DC
Match 38 Sept 1 – 10:30pm Seattle Sounders v Chivas USA – Starfire Sports Complex, Tukwila WA
CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: PRELIMINARY ROUND HOSTS, DATES AND TV TIMES ANNOUNCED
Five Major League Soccer teams, four Mexican teams and one USSF Division 2 team make up 10 of the 24 sides involved in the 2010-11 edition of the tournament.
Major League Soccer & USSF Division 2 Teams
2009 Major League Soccer Champions Real Salt Lake and 2009 Supporters Shield Winners Columbus Crew were both drown right into the Group Stages in Groups A and B respectively.
Seattle Sounders, winners of the 2009 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup will play Salvadoran Clausura Champions Isidro Metapán and MLS Cup runners-up Los Angeles Galaxy were drawn against impressive USL side Puerto Rico Islanders, who advanced to the semifinals of the competition two years ago. Both ties are part of the two-legged Preliminary Round. Advancing teams will be placed in Groups C and D respectively.
Canada will be represented by MLS team Toronto FC, winner of the 2010 Nutrilite Canadian Championship will take on Motagua who were runners up in the 2010 Honduran Clusura.
Mexican Teams
The two Mexican Champions Toluca and Monterrey, like Columbus Crew and Real Salt Lake, advanced directly into the Group Stage.
The two Mexican Champions will be kept apart in the group stages from their Major League Soccer counterparts, but if either Santos Laguna or Cruz Azul advance out of the Preliminary Round, they will be placed in Groups A and B with Real Salt Lake and Columbus Crew. Similarly, if Seattle and LA advance out of the Preliminary Rounds, they will be placed in Groups C and D with Monterrey and Toluca respectively.
The complete list of ties and groups is listed below.
The first leg of the Preliminary Round begins The tournament will begin on July 27-29 with the second leg taking place the following week; August 3-5. The Preliminary round winners will advance to the Group Stage, the first round is set for August 17-19.
UPDATE: TV Times for Mexican team matches on Galavision added
CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
PRELIMINARY ROUND SCHEDULE
ALL TIMES EASTERN
HOME TEAM LISTED FIRST
FIRST LEG
Tuesday, July 27
8pm – Toronto FC (MLS) vs. Montagua (HON) FOX SOCCER CHANNEL
8pm – San Juan Jabloteh (TRI) vs. Santos Laguna (MEX) GALAVISION
10pm – Los Angeles Galaxy (MLS) vs. Puerto Rico Islanders (USSFD2) FOX SOCCER CHANNEL
10pm – San Francisco FC (PAN) vs. Cruz Azul (MEX) GALAVISION
Wednesday, July 28
8pm – Tauro FC (PAN) vs. Marathon (HON)
10pm – Brujas (CRC) vs. Joe Public (TRI)
10pm – Seattle Sounders (MLS) vs. Metapan (SLV) FOX SOCCER CHANNEL/GALAVISION
PDL SIDE VENTURA COUNTY FUSION TO TAKE ON CRUZ AZUL & PORTSMOUTH
Premier Development League side Ventura County Fusion have scheduled two high-profile International Friendlies for July. The amateur side, based between Los Angeles and Santa Barbara California has locked in Mexican giants Cruz Azul and English League Championship club Portsmouth.
Ventura County currently sit in third place with 16 points in the PDL’s Southwest Division and were recently eliminated from their first ever US Open Cup.
Cruz Azul, who will also be in the Los Angeles area to take on Mexico City rival Club America at the Rose Bowl ten days later, will be entertained by the Fusion on July 1st at Ventura College. Tickets are $8.
Recently relegated from the Premier League, Portsmouth FC will battle the Fusion at Oxnard College on July 17. Tickets are $15.
Portsmouth also has pre-season matches scheduled against Club America in San Diego and Canadian side FC Edmonton before moving to the East Coast to take on DC United.
CLUB AMERICA TO PLAY JUVENTUS & CRUZ AZUL IN ADDITION TO MAN CITY AND PORTSMOUTH
Mexican super club Club America continues to schedule pre-season fixtures in North America, recently adding Juventus and Cruz Azul to their busy calendar.
Juventus will play America in the 90,000 seat Dallas Cowboys Stadium on July 18. The legendary Serie A side was in North America last month to wind down their 2009-10 campaign and will return to this side of the Atlantic to prepare for their 2010-11 season,
The ‘Clasico Joven’ is coming to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena California this summer as the Mexico City derby between Club America and Cruz Azul, will take place there on July 10, the day before the 2010 World Cup Final.
The ‘Young Classic’ will be transplanted to the Los Angeles area to be contested in front on 90,000+ ex-patriot Mexicans and air on Fox Soccer Channel and Fox Sports en Espanol.
America has already scheduled a July 14 match against English side Portsmouth in San Diego and a July 28 match against Manchester City in Atlanta.
US OPEN CUP UPDATE : ROUND THREE DETAILS ANNOUNCED
US Soccer announced details regarding Round Three of the 2010 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup just days after Round One concluded.
Eight Major League Soccer teams will enter the tournament in the Third Round, joining the winners of the Round Two matches which all take place next Tuesday, June 22.
The winner of the Carolina battle between the NASL Carolina RailHawks and Charleston Battery of USL-2 will be rewarded with a trip to Toyota Park to take on four-time US Open Cup Champions Chicago Fire.
The Columbus Crew will host either NASL team Rochester Rhinos, a team that in 1999 became the (more…)
Portland Timbers unveiled their new logo on Saturday and it didn’t go quite they way the team wanted it to go.
The Timbers, who have been playing in various leagues since the early 1970’s, will begin play in Major League Soccer next season as an expansion franchise.
The team set up a public watch party in Portland’s Director Park to see the match and planned to use the captive audience of thousands to show the team’s new look. Timbers had a marketing campaign designed to slowly build interest in the re-branding by releasing a number of ‘video clues’ to show the connection between their classic look, a look established in 1975 when the team debuted in the old North American Soccer League.
Confusion in the front office, however, led to merchandisers in the city selling products featuring the new crest a day before it’s public unveiling at halftime of the US-England World Cup match.
The first round of the 2010 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup begins tonight with 32 teams in 16 games across 4 time zones..
The 32 teams, made up of teams fro the North American Soccer League, the United Soccer Leagues, the Premier Development League and the USASA and the were divided geographically and the match-ups were determined by a blind draw.
The Second Round of the 95-year-old Tournament will take place next Tuesday, June 22 and pit the winners from the 16 First Round matches with the result that the 8 Second Round winners will meet the 8 Major League Soccer teams in the Third Round.
New Logo, New Gear, New Sponsor for 2011 Major League Soccer debut.
The Vancouver Whitecaps completed their look for theit imaugural season in Major League Soccer next year by unvieling the clubs new kit, 2nd kit and founding sponsor.
This news comes less than a week after the Canadian team unveiled it’s season ticket plans and a new logo/crest that the club referred to as ‘the new brand that will lead the 36-year-old club into a new chapter as an MLS outfit.”
The new kits reflect the same color scheme as the new logo and are designed by Adidas who has an exclusive contract for all Major League Soccer clubs.
VANCOUVER WHITECAPS UNVEIL NEW CREST, TICKET DETAILS
The Vancouver Whitecaps held a press conference at the Vancouver Convention Centre on Tuesday morning to unveil what they called ‘the new brand that will lead the 36-year-old club into a new chapter as an MLS outfit.”
The team released the logo (above) which will be the brand that will carry them forward into their first Major League Soccer season in 2011.
The club will be unveiling the designs for their 2011 Season kits, complete with jersey sponsor at a later date and merchandise with the new logo is already available.
Vancouver also announced that they will push for one last round of MLS season ticket deposits beginning on Saturday. The ‘Caps will accept $50 deposits for 2011 MLS seasons tickets, which start at $319 for 17 matches.
The Whitecaps, who will play at a refurbished Empire Stadium for the 2011 season, have capped season ticket sales at 16,500 and have already taken 10,000 deposits, meaning this last push will be for fans to grab the remaining 6,500 seats.
LIVE VIDEO – VANCOUVER TO UNVEIL NEW LOOK AT 11:30am ET
The Vancouver Whitecaps plan to unveil the clubs new look as the prepare for their first season in Major League Soccer in 2011.
The club has scheduled an 8:30am PT press conference at the Vancouver Convention Centre on June 8, where they plan to display ‘The first is the unveiling of the new brand that will lead the 36-year-old club into a new chapter as an MLS outfit.” according to the team website.
The ‘Caps will also be making important announcement regarding season ticket availability for the teams 2011 Major League Soccer Inaugural Season.
There are also reports that the club will be unveiling the designs for their 2011 Season kits, complete with jersey sponsor, later in the week.
The press conference and logo unveiling will be broadcast online via
The long rumored Celtic match at Fenway Park is now official.
The Fenway Football Challenge will see Scottish powerhouse Glasgow Celtic take on Sporting CP of Portugal on July 21 at 8pm ET. The match, which will be the 19th soccer match to be played at the ballpark, will be televised locally by sports network NESN.
Tickets will range from $20-$120 and go on sale at noon on June 22.
CLUB AMERICA TO PLAY CRUZ AZUL IN ADDITION TO MAN CITY AND PORTSMOUTH
The ‘Clasico Joven’ is coming to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena California this summer as two Mexico City super clubs will renew their rivalry on July 10, the day before the 2010 World Cup Final.
The ‘Young Classic’ is the Mexico City derby between Club America and Cruz Azul, but that derby will be transplanted to the Los Angeles area to be contested in front on 90,000+ ex-patriot Mexicans.
America has already scheduled a July 14 match against English side Portsmouth in San Diego and a July 28 match against Manchester City in Atlanta.
CLUB AMERICA TO PLAY CRUZ AZUL IN ADDITION TO MAN CITY AND PORTSMOUTH
The ‘Clasico Joven’ is coming to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena California this summer as two Mexico City super clubs will renew their rivalry on July 10, the day before the 2010 World Cup Final.
The ‘Young Classic’ is the Mexico City derby between Club America and Cruz Azul, but that derby will be transplanted to the Los Angeles area to be contested in front on 90,000+ ex-patriot Mexicans.
FC EDMONTON SCHEDULES TWO MORE INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLIES
Having already secured English League side Portsmouth for a match at Commonwealth Stadium on July 21, Canada’s newest professional team has added 2010 Chilean League Champion Colo Colo on June 20 at Commonwealth Stadium and Vitoria, Brazil’s oldest sporting club, on June 27 at Foote Field. Click here for more information.
PORTLAND v ATLAS
The Portland Timbers have added Mexican side Club Atlas to a summer friendly lineup that already included Manchester City and Boca Juniors.
Tonight there will be 40 soccer clubs left standing in the 2010 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. DC United host Real Salt Lake in the final Major League Soccer play-in match at 7:30pm ET.
The victor will round out the field of 40 teams participating in the tournament.
No date has been set for the draw, determining the pairings and the home teams, though the First Round of the tournament proper is scheduled to begin June 15.
The 39 teams that have already qualified are listed below as is the format and schedule.
To follow the DC United v Real Salt Lake match online via a live blog, check thecup.us.
VANCOUVER WHITECAPS TO UNVEIL NEW CREST AND NEW KIT JUNE 8
The Vancouver Whitecaps plan to unveil the clubs new look as the prepare for their first season in Major League Soccer in 2011.
The club has scheduled an 8:30am PT press conference at the Vancouver Convention Centre on June 8, where they plan to display ‘The first is the unveiling of the new brand that will lead the 36-year-old club into a new chapter as an MLS outfit.” according to the team website.
FC EDMONTON TO PLAY PORTSMOUTH, COLO COLO AND VITORIA
It’s has been a busy few days for FC Edmonton, Naming their roster, putting a schedule together and now announcing three international friendlies to complement their schedule.
Having already secured English League side Portsmouth for a match at Commonwealth Stadium on July 21, Canada’s newest professional team has added Chilean club Colo Colo on June 20 at Commonwealth Stadium and Brazilian side Vitoria on June 27 at Foote Field.
The Portland Timbers have added Mexican side Club Atlas to a summer friendly lineup that already includes Manchester City and Boca Juniors.
The Mexico City based Atlas, who finished 10th in the 2010 Bicentario, will at take on the Timbers at PGE Park on Sunday, July 11, at 6 p.m local time.
PORTSMOUTH FC
Recently relegated Portsmouth, who will be coming to the Americas for the first time since going to South America in 1951, will be playing against Mexican perennial power Club America on July 14 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, then head north of the border to plat the an Edmonton FC Select XI on July 21 before shifting to the East Coast to meet DC United at RFK Stadium on July 24.
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