US faces Panama on Wednesday, Oct. 12 in a match that *may* mean Go or No Go to the Fatherland (aka Germany) for the US squad. It is the only qualifier for which a home location has not been announced. Does anyone have an idea, or is there a shred of outstanding rumor, where this match might be? In other words, after Salt Lake (long weekend), Hartford (day trip), and Columbus (full week), where will our next soccer-driven vacation be?
I'm more optimistic than you. We should be long since qualified by then, and they may be holding off on making a decision/announcement in order to see if they have a better sense after the 6/4 and 6/8 games of whether that game will matter. I'm biased, but it really would be great to have that game at the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA. I know the reasons for not doing so in terms of trying to ensure the most pro-USA crowd possible, but maybe those go a little by the wayside if we've already clinched a spot. This is a super venue, and we're not going to be able to use it often because of LA's diverse population, so they should seize upon this opportunity. *** HDC, for the international games that don't matter *** That said, my best guess is that we end up somewhere in New England.
Agreed that the Fed is waiting...if we need the match, it'll be in Cbus, the Razor, or RFK (baseball being long done by then for the Nationals)... If qualification's a done deal, HDC is as good a place as any...or possibly Frisco.
I'm glad that they're holding off. If the tickets were offered now, I'd be compeled to buy one - just in case. If we're in and the game is out west, I probably will forgo going (save the money, vacation time, etc.) for other activities (DCU, WC, beer, etc.). If the game was local (1 day drive), I probably would go regardless. I guess they'll announce the location after the June games. Ticket sales to follow in July (these are my guesses based upon no factual information).
All good points, especially regarding the HDC. It is indeed a phenominal facility that is soccer through and through, only it would likely not be very pro-US; I can see USSF having a problem with hosting the final match there if it comes down the wire for our red, white and blue. By the way, Blech, I'm in your court. I too do not think our WC '06 hopes will come down to the final match. I am confident we will qualify good and early. Not only that but I also think in the process we'll hand Mexico a steady defeat in Columbus. We have to. A celebration not to be missed! Think about it: defeating Mexico AND officially qualifying for WC '06 on the same day. Like Guinness in a bottle... BRILLIANT!
The Rapids have dropped hints about an international game in October. I wouldn't be surprised if it ended up at Invesco. But I haven't heard anything lately.
Interesting... So, if the match means something, we have (along with my opinion): the Razor - Gillette Stadium, Foxhole, MA (unlikely since Hartford got a match) RFK - Washington, DC (sure) CCS - Columbus, OH (unlikely to get another match so close to hosting Mexico) Invesco - (sounds good but know little about) If US has already qualified or is clearly headed toward qualifying: HDC - Carson, CA (sounds good) Frisco - TX (my guess!) What about Portland? Or a potential MLS expansion market such as Detriot? Or back in Florida, like Miami (if we already qualified)?
I've been wondering why we haven't gotten an MNT game in so long. The Women's World Cup did quite well here, and I'm quite confident that any game hosted here would have a heavily pro-US crowd (with the exception of US vs. Russia, Ukraine, or Japan). It's nice to see that Seattle is hosting the MNT for Gold Cup games, I'm hoping Portland gets a look, maybe for the next WC qualifiers? As it stands I'm driving to SLC for the Costa Rica match, I hope I don't have to drive so far next time around (not that I mind that much, it's a good excuse for a road trip).
BB - you're right. Frisco - but USSF wants to ensure that it's completed. That's probably why the delay in announcing.
It won't be DC, because it falls in the middle of the baseball playoffs, and they have to keep the stadium available just in case. (Hey, they're only 3 games out of first.)
That would be the bizzomb if we got it in Denver, but I wouldn't count on the USSF giving 2 WCQ's to the Rocky Mtn. region. I would say this game is going to be in Portland or Seattle. I heard a rumor that the "international game" in October is going to be Mexico against a yet to named opponent! (Which unfortunately will probably get a lot better crowd than US-Panama would)
I think there will be a qualifier at the Swamp (or the new Jets Stadium if it's ready) during the 2010 cycle. And it won't be a US game. Italy can draw a bigger crowd playing a WCQ against some minnow like Armenia or Azerbaijan there than they'd be able to in Italy. Mexico has set the precedent by playing one of their home qualifiers in San Antonio, and the Italian Super Cup (league champ vs. cup champ) game was at Giants a few years ago. You heard it here first.
I believe the mexico match played in san antonio was for st veincent and the grenadines, whose ISLAND got wiped off the face of the earth during a hurricane..
Maybe, but the SV&G FA also made a lot more cash out of the game than they would have by playing it at home. Italy is the only major power I could see potentially moving one of their home games to the US (since there've been a lot of Italian club games played here), but I think you'll start to see a lot of small teams playing home games in the US where they can draw huge crowds against teams like Mexico, Italy, Poland, etc. I mean, if you're Liechtenstein you have no chance of beating Portugal anyway, so why not play the game at Gillette, sell 60,000 tickets at $30-75 apiece versus 1,500 tickets at $10 apiece, and make enough money to run your FA for the next 5 years??
No, it was for Dominica, who didn't have a stadium to play in. (plus they could make more money that way)
There will be a new stadium in the swamp for 2009, as the Giants will be building a new stadium. Hopefully they will make it a little wider on the floor. Oh, and perhaps the Metrostars will have a nice little home to call their own in 2009.
What about Blaine, MN for a home qualifier? Any thoughts on that? What are the demographics? Capacity? Would we be guaranteed a "US crowd". I stress US crowd as opposed to a pro-US crowd, which implies there are still some fans for the other side.