SANDY, Utah - After bringing the State of Utah its first major league sports title last November, Real Salt Lake is partnering with KUTV 2 (CBS), KALL 700 Sports, Strong Volkswagen, Siegfried & Jensen and the state's KFC Restaurants to tour the prize of its MLS Cup crown - the Philip F. Anschutz Trophy - for Utahns far and wide via a month-long tour of 35 locations throughout the Beehive State.
Before Real Salt Lake's "Championship Cup Tour" hits the road for the entire of the month of February, KUTV 2 will preview the journey and Real Salt Lake's preseason preparations this weekend when Head Coach Jason Kreis will join host David James for Sunday night's edition of Talkin' Sports at 10:35 p.m. MT. Then bright and early on Monday, Feb. 1, the tour will officially get underway, winding out of Salt Lake County en route to the rest of Utah's 28 counties, beginning with a stop in Manila in Daggett County.
"Since we brought the MLS Cup back from Seattle in November, we have wanted to ensure that our fans from all across the State of Utah feel pride and ownership in what the club has achieved," said Real Salt Lake President Bill Manning. "Fostering and nurturing the support of all Utahns is of the utmost important to us, and we hope this tour can provide a small measure of thanks to our followers from Logan, to St. George, to all points in between."
During February's "Championship Cup Tour," members of the Real Salt Lake organization will usher North American soccer's top prize in a tour-theme-wrapped Volkswagen Routan across the Beehive State, a journey fans worldwide will be able to follow on RealSaltLake.com, RSLtotheCore.com, Facebook.com/RealSaltLake, Connect2Utah.com and over the radio airwaves via KALL 700 Sports' top-of-the-hour updates.
Fans at stops along the route will be able to take photos with the MLS Cup trophy and mascot Leo the Lion, bring home giveaway items, and have the chance to win RSL merchandise and 2009 MLS Cup Championship memorabilia. KUTV 2 will also host an "Enter 2 Win" opportunity at each tour stop, with the Grand Prize of a 32" flat-screen television awarded on-air live by an RSL player or coach when the tour wraps up on the February 28 edition of Talkin' Sports.
The "Championship Cup Tour" tour is slated to pass through some of Utah's most iconic locations, with a stop to experience the "Best Snow on Earth" at Brian Head Ski Resort (Iron County), a photo opportunity at the famed Delicate Arch (Moab County), a visit to the original Utah Territory Capital (Millard County), and a ride down the bobsled track at Olympic Park (Summit County) counting as just some of the highlights on a crowded itinerary. While on the tour, Real Salt Lake's representatives will be visiting with youth soccer clubs and speaking at dozens of school assemblies to give the team's youngest fans the chance to see what can be achieved by setting goals and putting in the hard work necessary to achieve them - themes that have been embodied in Kreis' "Fortune Favors the Bold" and "The Team is the Star" mantras since he stepped from the field to the sideline in 2007.
Fans that take part in the tour can also be part of its legacy by uploading their photos with the Cup to Real Salt Lake's "Flickr" photo gallery page online, located at http://flickr.com/photos/realsaltlake/. The photos assembled will be included in a collage chronicling the "Championship Cup Tour" statewide trek, which will be housed at Rio Tinto Stadium during the team's upcoming 2010 season.
Don't forget to stop by participating KFC locations along the tour route (see below) as they are offering a $14 "two-for-one" ticket voucher in the "Colonels Corner" for Real Salt Lake's home opener on April 10th. Supplies are limited so stop by participating locations during the tour stops.
Following is an itinerary for Real Salt Lake's "Championship Cup Tour"
WEEK ONE:
Sunday, Jan. 31: Appearance on KUTV 2's Talkin' Sports (10:35 p.m. MT)
Monday, Feb. 1:Manila (Daggett County) and Vernal (Uintah County)
Tuesday, Feb. 2:Duchesne (Duchesne County) and Price (Carbon County)
Wednesday, Feb. 3: Castle Dale (Emery County) and Moab (Grand County)
Thursday, Feb. 4: Monticello (San Juan County) and Kanab (Kane County)
Fri./Sat., Feb. 5-6: St. George (Washington County)
WEEK TWO:
Monday, Feb. 8: Cedar City and Parowan (Iron County)
Tuesday, Feb. 9: Panguitch (Garfield County) and Junction (Piute County)
Wednesday, Feb. 10: Loa (Wayne County) and Richfield (Sevier County)
Thursday, Feb. 11: Beaver (Beaver County) and Fillmore (Millard County)
Friday, Feb. 12: Nephi (Juab County) and Manti and Ephraim (Sanpete County)
WEEK THREE:
Tuesday, Feb. 16: Provo and Orem (Utah County)
Wednesday, Feb. 17: Park City (Summit) and Heber City (Wasatch Counties)
Thursday, Feb. 18: Tooele (Tooele County)
Friday, Feb. 19: Bountiful (Davis County)
WEEK FOUR:
Monday, Feb. 22: Hill Air Force Base and Layton (Davis County)
Tuesday, Feb. 23: Ogden (Weber County)
Wednesday, Feb. 24: Ogden and Morgan (Morgan County)
Thursday, Feb. 25: Brigham City and Tremonton (Box Elder County)
Friday, Feb. 26: Logan (Cache County)
Saturday, Feb. 27: Randolph (Rich County)
Sunday, Feb. 28: Salt Lake City - KUTV 2 Studios - Talkin' Sports (Salt Lake County)
