Minnesota United is gearing up for its inaugural MLS season by taking its preseason on the road to Arizona, Portland and Florida. The six-week tour will feature friendly matches against MLS clubs and other leagues and will be hosted at some of the best training grounds in North America.
“We’re really excited about the preseason schedule, we’ll be visiting three locations to prep the guys for the season ahead with a different focus at each location,” said Minnesota United Sporting Director Manny Lagos. “In Arizona, we’ll focus on fitness and soccer fundamentally; in Portland, teamwork and getting the guys comfortable on the field with each other – it will also be an opportunity to play in front of fans and add that element of intensity; we’ll finish in Florida, where we will focus on prepping the guys for the MLS season kickoff in Portland.”
MNUFC kicks off its preseason tour in Arizona, returning to familiar grounds in Casa Grande. The club has frequented the facility, having opened spring training in Casa Grande ahead of the 2015 season.
Minnesota United’s friendlies begin with a meeting against the New England Revolution Jan. 31, before the club takes things international – matching up against Croatian first division team Nogometni Klub Istra 1961 Feb. 3. The two friendly scrimmages will break up a busy training schedule and fans can look for highlights following each match at MNUFC.COM.
Following its two-week trip in Arizona, the club will fly to the northwest corner of the states to take part in the Timber’s annual spring tournament in Portland. The new MNUFC side will face off against a trio of Western Conference adversaries in the Vancouver Whitecaps (Feb. 9), Portland Timbers (Feb. 12) and Real Salt Lake (Feb. 15). With Minnesota joining the Western Conference in 2017, the tournament will be an opportunity for the club to get a first look at the teams it will be competing with directly in its inaugural season.
All three MNUFC games in Portland are part of doubleheader matchups in the round-robin tournament. Individual tickets, which allow entry to both matches each day, start at $10 and are now on sale to the general public at TIMBERS.COM. Full tournament ticket packages for the preseason tournament, starting at $39, are also available for purchase online.
Minnesota United’s preseason tour comes to an end with a one week trip to Orlando, where the Loons will match up against MLS Cup finalist Toronto FC Feb. 22 and USL side San Antonio FC Feb. 26.
Preseason training is an important part of the season – one that sets the tone for the year. As a team of new faces, skills, and personalities, it will be the first time many of these players have played together as a unit.
Come see the culmination of the preseason trip at Minnesota United’s home opener March 12, against Atlanta United FC. You can purchase a ticket to this first ever MLS match as part of the MNUFC pom hat + ticket deal here. Season tickets and your place in the Itasca Society are available now at MNUFC.COM and single match tickets are available Feb. 9.
