ACTUALITE |
13.04.2006
FC Barcelona set August tour of USA
By Jonathan Nierman / MLSnet.com Staff
Soccer United Marketing, the marketing arm of Major League Soccer, announced on Wednesday that storied Spanish club FC Barcelona will visit the United States in August for a three-city tour.
The famed Catalan club -- which features some of the best players in the world in Ronaldinho (Brazil), Lionel Messi (Argentina) and Samuel Eto`o (Cameroon), who will all participate in the tour -- will visit Los Angeles (Aug. 6), Houston (Aug. 9) and New York (Aug. 12). Mexican clubs will provide the opposition in both L.A. and Houston, while the New York Red Bulls will host the UEFA Champions League semifinalists in the finale.
"This summer`s FC Barcelona tour promises to be one of the greatest soccer events ever to be played on U.S. soil," said MLS Commissioner and SUM CEO Don Garber. "Everyone who loves soccer will get to see the magic of Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto`o and Lionel Messi with their own eyes. Major League Soccer and Soccer United Marketing are honored to bring Barcelona`s exhilarating style of play to our fans. For many, this FC Barcelona tour will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience."
Barcelona visited the U.S. last in 2003, when they played three games on the East Coast against European opposition. They tied Juventus (Italy) 2-2 at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., defeated AC Milan (Italy) 2-0 at RFK Stadium and fell to Manchester United (England) 3-1 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
"It is a good moment for FC Barcelona to promote its image in the great country of the U.S.," said FC Barcelona President Joan Laporta. "We are sure that, with the cooperation of MLS, Barca will become more recognizable among the North American public. We also believe that the presence of our team -- and our star players -- will assist the promotion and growth of soccer in the United States."
Those star players, in addition to the trio listed above, include World Cup-bound stars such as Rafael Marquez (Mexico), Carlos Puyol (Spain), Deco (Portugal) and Mark Van Bommel (Holland). Barcelona is coached by Dutch legend Frank Rijkaard.
Barcelona, which currently holds an 11-point advantage at the top of La Liga, is only the most recent in a string of international clubs to come to the United States for high-level matches. Last year Barcelona`s greatest rivals, Real Madrid, visited the U.S. on a similar tour last year, which included a 2-0 win against the Los Angeles Galaxy at The Home Depot Center. AC Milan also defeated the Chicago Fire, while D.C. United hosted English Premier League champions Chelsea FC at FedEx Field in suburban Maryland.
Fans can reserve tickets for this summer`s FC Barcelona tour starting at Noon Wednesday by clicking on this link: http://secure.mlsnet.com/MLS/mls/tickets/2006/fc_barcelona/deposit/.
Tickets for the FC Barcelona Tour will be available to the general public through MLS clubs in each city (Chivas USA, Houston Dynamo, New York Red Bulls), with packages featuring MLS matches. Details of these ticket packages will be announced by each MLS club in the coming weeks on MLSnet.com and the respective club web sites.
Jonathan Nierman is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
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