The United States national team Will head to the altitude of Colorado for its next 2018 World Cup qualifier, a contest against Trinidad & Tobago on June 8.
On Monday, US Soccer confirmed reports from the Washington Post and the Denver Post that the USMNT's crucial Hex match against T&T will be played at Dick's Sporting Goods Park, the home of MLS' Colorado Rapids.
The USMNT's game to the Mile High City will immediately precede one of the most anticipated – and the toughest – game on the Hexagonal calendar: the trip to face Mexico at the Estadio Azteca, which sits even higher than Denver at an altitude of 7,350 feet. According to the Washington Post report, the USMNT will also play a friendly prior to the qualifiers at Real Salt Lake's Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah, which sits at an elevation of 4,449 feet.
This is not the first time the US, currently coached by Bruce Arena, have headed to the high elevation in Colorado ahead of a trip to face Mexico at the Estadio Azteca. The team, then coached by Jurgen Klinsmann, beat Costa Rica 1-0 in the famous 'Snow Game' before battling for a 0-0 draw in Mexico City, only their second-ever point there.
The US boast a 4-1-0 record in the Denver area, their lone loss coming in a 1992 friendly against Scotland. They are otherwise perfect in the state of Colorado, having posted shutout wins in their other four contests, including a pair of World Cup qualifiers at DSG Park in 2008 and the 'Snow Game' in 2013.
The Yanks currently sit fourth in the six-team Hex, with four points from four games following a big win over Honduras and tie at Panama in late March. The top three teams in the round-robin tournament will automatically qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, while the fourth-placed team will play off against the fifth-placed team from Asia for one remaining place.
