Major League Soccer’s spring training is returning to Tucson next month for a 12th year and expanding preseason soccer action as part of the Desert Showcase.
Real Salt Lake, Sporting Kansas City, the Colorado Rapids, the Houston Dynamo and the Seattle Sounders will come to town late next month for training and a series of exhibition matches. Real Salt Lake will face the Sounders Jan. 26 at 7 p.m., with Sporting KC taking on the Colorado Rapids three days later at 4 p.m.. The Rapids and Dynamo will square off Feb. 5 at 4 p.m.
Tickets for the Desert Showcase go on sale Friday at 1 p.m.
“Anytime that we can get teams to come down to Tucson for preseason, I think it’s a good thing,” FC Tucson president Amanda Powers said. “But it’s always great to have a team like the Seattle Sounders choose to come to Tucson.”
Powers said Sporting Kansas City and Real Salt Lake have been “sort of strongholds” during the more than a decade that Tucson has hosted pro soccer spring training. It helps, she said that SKC coach Peter Vermes is a very good friend of FC Tucson co-founder Rick Schantz, now the head coach of USL’s Phoenix Rising FC.
The ongoing pandemic was not an obstacle when it came to bringing teams back to Tucson, Powers said. A shorter offseason has made for a bit of a time crunch, however.
‘I think the only thing that’s challenging for us right now is that season was so late I think the MLS Cup wrapped up three weekends ago and then you’ve got the World Cup starting in November of next year, so everybody’s season’s just been pushed up,” Powers said.
In addition to the matches, FC Tucson will host watch downtown parties for the U.S. Men’s National Team’s final six World Cup qualifying matches — including a March 24 showdown between the U.S. and Mexico.
The soccer preseason is expanding this year to include USL Championship and USL League One clubs. The teams and additional matches will be announced next month.
Powers says she’s not surprised that Tucson’s reputation has continued to grow when it comes to hosting pro soccer teams in the spring.
“These players and these coaches, they all talk,” Powers said. “Everybody knows how high the grass is or who’s got the best locker rooms or who’s got the best resorts and food. And when you kind of put those things together, Tucson really stands out.”
