The U.S. Men’s National Team continues its competition against the world’s top teams when they host five-time World Cup champions Brazil on Wednesday, May 30 in Landover, Md.
Kickoff for the USA’s first ever match at FedExField is set for 8 p.m. ET, and the match will be broadcast live on ESPN2, ESPN3 and Univision.
The match against global powerhouse Brazil will be the second of the year for the United States against teams ranked in the top 10, following the Feb. 29 game against Italy in Genoa. The U.S. will be playing a series of friendlies in advance of the start of their 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign, including a June 3 match against Canada in Toronto.
The venue for a third friendly and the opening match of World Cup qualifying on June 8 against Antigua and Barbuda will be announced next week. This match will be Brazil’s first in the United States since 2010.
Tickets go on sale to the public Friday, Feb. 17, at 10 a.m. ET through ussoccer.com, through Ticketmaster Phone Charge at 800-745-300 and at all Ticketmaster ticket centers throughout the Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia region. Groups of 30 or more can begin placing orders on Tuesday, Feb. 21, at 10 a.m. ET through ussoccer.com or the FedExField Ticket Office at 301-276-6050.
A leading credit card which sponsors U.S. Soccer will offer all cardholders access to an advance ticket sale for this match before the sale to the general public. This advance sale starts Wednesday, Feb. 15, at 10 a.m. ET and runs until Friday, Feb. 17, at 8 a.m. ET at ussoccer.com.
“When you talk about Brazil, you are speaking of one of the most gifted football playing nations in the world,” said U.S. head coach Jurgen Klinsmann in a press release. “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 meeting in as many years between the United States and Brazil, the most recent a 2-0 win for the Seleção on Aug. 10, 2010, in front of more than 77,000 fans at the New Meadowlands Stadium. The teams have played 16 times in their history, with the U.S. going 1-15-0 in a series that dates to 1930. The U.S. and Brazil squared off in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup final, the USA’s first championship match in a major FIFA competition. After defeating No.1-ranked Spain in the semifinal, the U.S. jumped out to a 2-0 lead on goals by Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan before Brazil rallied for a 3-2 victory.
While Brazil is in the midst of preparing to host the 2014 FIFA World Cup, the U.S. has played nine matches under Jurgen Klinsmann since last August, riding a three-match winning streak to a 4-4-1 record.
The U.S. Men will play only their third match in Maryland in team history, and the first since 1997 when they fell 1-0 to Ecuador on Aug. 7 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. FedExField has hosted numerous soccer events, including six matches in the 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup as well as the highest-attended soccer game ever in the D.C. area when 81,807 fans watched Manchester United capture a 2-1 win against Barcelona on July 31, 2011, in the World Football Challenge.
The U.S. Men’s National Team will begin their journey towards the 2014 FIFA World Cup this June when they begin play in Group A of CONCACAF Semifinal Round qualifying. Along with the U.S., Group A is comprised of Antigua and Barbuda, Guatemala and Jamaica. Each opponent will meet twice, once at home and once away, in round robin play. The USA’s opening match in group play will take place June 8 at home against first-time semifinalists Antigua and Barbuda. Four days later, the U.S. will play away against Guatemala.
