FLUSHING, N.Y., April 9, 2013 - The New York Mets today announced the Israeli national soccer team will play the Honduran national team at Citi Field Sunday, June 2 at 5:30 p.m. This match will mark Israel’s first New York appearance in over 35 years. Tickets start at $20 and will go on sale Monday, April 15 at 10:00 a.m. at Mets.com/Soccer and (718) 507-TIXX. There will be a special presale for Mets Season Ticket Holders and Citi Private Pass starting this Thursday, April 11 at 10:00 a.m. at http://www.citiprivatepass.com/SoccerPresale. The game will take place rain or shine. Gates will open 4:00 p.m. The match will take place on the same day as the Celebrate Israel Parade, the annual celebration up Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. The New York region is home to the largest Jewish and Honduran populations outside of Israel and Honduras. More than 1.5 million Jews reside in New York City, Long Island and Westchester, while almost 100,000 Hondurans live in the New York, New Jersey and Long Island region. The Israeli national team is ranked No. 66 in the world and led by manager Eli Guttman. On March 26, Israel defeated Northern Ireland 2-0 in a World Cup Qualifier in Belfast. The national team currently features several players from the English Premiere League: Tal Ben Haim (Queens Park Rangers), Itay Shechter (Swansea City) and Yossi Benayoun (Chelsea). Honduras, which qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, is ranked 55 in the world. Led by coach Luis Fernando Suárez, Honduras lost to Panama 2-0 in a World Cup Qualifier March 26 in Panama City. The national team currently features several players from the English Premiere League: Maynor Figueroa (Wigan), Roger Espinoza (Wigan) and Wilson Palacios (Stoke City). The Israel-Honduras match marks the third straight year that Citi Field has hosted an international soccer competition. Ecuador and Greece battled to a 1-1 tie before a near sell-out crowd of 39,656 on June 7, 2011 in the first soccer game at Citi Field, and Ecuador defeated Chile 3-0 on August 15, 2012 in front of 31,901 fans. Share this:
New York isn't home to the most Hondurans outside of Honduras... New Orleans owns that statistic. Should be a great game.. Honduras will have their Qualifier against Jamaica just a couple of days after this friendly. Can't wait!
Look for a Domestic based squad. All the players minus Boniek Garcia has been asked to not be called-up due to club duty and to enjoy the beginning of their off-season to recover from injury in-time for WCQs the next week.
The Hondurian squad for Israel – Honduras PORTEROS 1. Noel Valladares (Olimpia) 2. Donis Escober (Olimpia) 3. Kevin Hernandez (Real España) 4. José Mendoza (Sin equipo) DEFENSAS 5. Arnold Peralta (Sin contrato) 6. Brayan Beckeles (Olimpia) 7. Víctor Bernárdez (San José, MLS) 8. Osman Chávez (Wisla, Polonia) 9. Juan Pablo Montes (Motagua) 10. José Velásquez Colón (Victoria) 11. Juan Carlos Garcia (Olimpia) 12. Emilio Izaguirre (Celtic, Escocia) 13. Orlin Peralta (Vida) VOLANTES 14. Roger Espinoza (Wigan, Inglaterra) 15. Luis Garrido (Estrella Roja, Serbia) 16. Jorge Claros (Hibernian, Escocia) 17. Mario Martínez (Seattle, MLS) 18. Wilson Palacios (Stoke City, Inglaterra) 19. Boniek García (Dynamo, MLS) 20. Marvin Chávez (San José, MLS) 21. Andy Najar (Anderlecht, Bélgica) DELANTEROS DELANTEROS 22. Jerry Bengtson (New England, MLS) 23. Carlo Costly (Veria, Grecia) 24. Jerry Palacios (Alajuela, Costa Rica) 25. Rony Martínez (Real Sociedad) 26. Roger Rojas (Olimpia) 27. Diego Reyes (Real Sociedad, Honduras)
ISRAEL-HONDURAS LIVE ON PAY-PER VIEW Hoboken, NJ. ---Integrated Sports Media, the leader in international pay-per-view events, will be delivering the action when the Israeli national soccer team plays the Honduran national team at Citi Field Sunday, June 2 at 5:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. PT Live on both cable and satellite pay-per-view, the June 2 match between Israel and Honduras is available on DIRECTV, iN Demand, TVN and DISH for a suggested retail price of only $24.95. http://integratedsportsnet.com/article.php?article_id=250
I heard Hemid and Aouate won't come in the hopes of saving their team from relegation (lol), and others are injured while one of them has a wedding coming up... lol thats a lot of inconveniences, Honduras only lacking one player.. undisputed starter, Maynor Figueroa, whose out for 8 weeks. Should see an experimental XI on the field none the less.
wow what an amazing game and atmosphere... israeli fans were far outnumbered, BUT were much louder... beautiful goals, great saves by harush... so glad I was able to go! el el israel!!
Thank you. I was in an Israeli supporters' section and didn't interact with Honduran fans. FIFA is projecting Israel will go up 4 FIFA Ranking points to 540.