The Kansas City Wizards will participate in the 3rd edition of SuperLiga™, the competition that brings the USA-Mexico soccer rivalry to the club level. SuperLiga pits four MLS clubs and four clubs from the Federación Mexicana de Fútbol Primera Division against one another. Kansas City has history with both of its opening-round opponents from Mexico's top flight, Club Santos Laguna and FC Atlas. The Wizards will play one home SuperLiga game at CommunityAmerica Ballpark and one in St. Louis, Mo.
The United States National Team is 9-0-2 versus their southern neighbors at home since 1999 with a 19-3 goals-scored advantage. This newfound success by the U.S. has pushed the USA-Mexico soccer rivalry to its highest level in series history. The SuperLiga field of teams is divided into two groups, each with two representatives from MLS and two from Mexico's top flight. For more information on the event, visit www.SuperLiga2009.com.
"USA-Mexico is the biggest soccer rivalry in this region," Wizards Technical Director Peter Vermes said. "As a player for the U.S. National Team, winning always meant a little bit more against Mexico. SuperLiga gives us the opportunity to extend that intense rivalry to the club level. We look forward to playing Santos Laguna and partner club Atlas AC. Hopefully, we will be as successful against these Mexican clubs as the USA has been against the Mexico National Team over the last decade."
Kansas City's first match of the tournament will be played against Atlas AC Sunday, June 21 at 3:30 p.m. CT in St. Louis, Mo. CommunityAmerica Ballpark is unavailable due to a Kansas City T-Bones baseball game, and no other venues in the Kansas City metropolitan area meet tournament criteria. The match will be held at Robert R. Hermann Stadium at St. Louis University.
Tickets for the game against Atlas in St. Louis start at $20 and are available by calling the Kansas City Wizards ticket office toll free at 1-877-828-7222. Packages are also available that include one (1) ticket to the SuperLiga match in St. Louis and a voucher for one (1) ticket to a later Wizards match at CommunityAmerica Ballpark starting at $30. The voucher can be redeemed for a ticket Sunday, June 28 against Santos Laguna in the final SuperLiga group match or for the following Saturday-night MLS games at CommunityAmerica Ballpark: Jul. 4 vs. Houston Dynamo, Aug. 29 vs. Real Salt Lake, Sep. 19 vs. FC Dallas, Sep. 26 vs. Colorado Rapids, Oct. 17 vs. Seattle Sounders FC or Oct. 24 vs. D.C. United. Wizards season ticket holders have the option to use Special Game B for the match in St. Louis. Fans using Special Game B from their ticket packages must redeem the ticket via mail or in person at the Wizards offices by Thursday, June 18. Tickets for the match in St. Louis are on sale now by calling the Kansas City Wizards ticket office toll free at 1-877-828-7222. Parking will cost $10 and is available adjacent to the stadium. Call the Wizards toll free at 1-877-828-7222 for information on group discounts.
After facing Atlas, the Wizards will travel to Foxborough, Massachusetts to take on the New England Revolution Wednesday, June 24 at 6 p.m. CT at Gillette Stadium. New England is the defending tournament champion and will be competing in the competition for the 3rd time.
The Wizards will then host 2008 FMF Clausura Champions Santos Laguna at CommunityAmerica Ballpark Sunday, June 28 at 5:30 p.m. CT to wrap-up group play. Santos features Mexico National Team goalkeeper Oswaldo Sanchez, Mexico National Team defender Fernando Arce, Mexico National Team forward Matias Vuoso and Ecuadorian National Team forward Christian Benitez. The match will represent Special Game A in Kansas City season ticket packages. Single-game tickets are priced the same as a home MLS match. Call the Wizards at 913-387-3400 for information on group discounts.
Kansas City will offer a special ticket package that includes one (1) ticket to the SuperLiga match June 28 against Santos Laguna, one (1) ticket to the MLS match August 16 against the Chicago Fire and a commemorative T-shirt, all starting at just $30. To purchase this special ticket package or for more information on the match against Santos Laguna, call the Wizards at (913) 387-3400. The package is also available for online purchase through Ticketmaster.
Kansas City is 2-4-2 all-time against teams from Mexico, including a 1-4-1 record in competitive games. The Wizards are 1-3 all-time against Santos Laguna after meeting the team in the 2001 Copa Merconorte and the 2002 CONCACAF Champions Cup. Santos eliminated the Wizards from Copa Merconorte with two wins, but Kansas City advanced the following year in the CONCACAF Champions Cup on the strength of a 2-0 home victory. The Wizards defeated partner club Atlas AC in a home friendly 2-1 last July and trained at the Atlas facilities in Guadalajara during the 2009 preseason.
For the 2009 edition of SuperLiga, competitive criteria determined which four teams would represent their respective leagues. The top four MLS teams based on their 2008 regular season record, who are not competing in CONCACAF Champions League in 2009, qualified for SuperLiga 2009: Chicago Fire, New England Revolution, Chivas USA and the Kansas City Wizards.
The invited FMF clubs, representing Mexico's Primera División, was based on their record (highest number of points) in the 2008 Clausura and 2008 Apertura season, except those teams that qualified for the CONCACAF Champions League. For the FMF clubs who declined on the invitation, the next club in line based on points was invited. Therefore, the four participating Mexican clubs are: 2008 playoff contender San Luis, Santos Laguna led by national team star Oswaldo Sanchez, Tigres UNAL led by Lucas Lobos, and Atlas, the young and exciting club led by former Mexican national team coach Ricardo Lavolpe.
SuperLiga started in 2007, with CF Pachuca winning the inaugural tournament in penalty kicks over the Los Angeles Galaxy. In 2008, the all-MLS final saw the New England Revolution defeat the Houston Dynamo in another memorable set of penalty kicks.
The entire 2009 tournament will be broadcast live primetime by TeleFutura Network in the United States. English-language broadcasts will be available live on SuperLiga2009.com. The semifinal and final information will be announced once teams are decided. Tournament groups are broken down as follows:
Group A |
Group B |
|---|---|
Chicago Fire |
New England Revolution |
Chivas USA |
Kansas City Wizards |
San Luis |
Santos Laguna |
Tigres UANL |
Atlas |
SUPERLIGA™ 2009 SCHEDULE
(All Times Eastern) / Subject to change
Saturday, June 20
Chicago Fire vs. San Luis (Toyota Park - Bridgeview, Ill) 20:00
Chivas USA vs. Tigres UANL (The Home Depot Center - Carson, Calif.) 22:00
Sunday, June 21
Kansas City Wizards vs. Atlas (Venue TBD - St. Louis, Mo.) 16:30 [For tickets to this game in St.Louis, please call toll-free 877-828-7222]
NE Revolution vs. Santos Laguna (Gillette Stadium - Foxborough, Mass.) 18:30
Tuesday, June 23
Chicago Fire vs. Chivas USA (Toyota Park - Bridgeview, Ill.) 20:00
San Luis vs. Tigres UANL (Toyota Park - Bridgeview, Ill.) 22:00
Wednesday, June 24
NE Revolution vs. Kansas City Wizards (Gillette Stadium - Foxborough, Mass.) 19:00
Santos Laguna vs. Atlas (Gillette Stadium - Foxborough, Mass.) 21:00
Saturday, June 27
Chicago Fire vs. Tigres UANL (Toyota Park - Bridgeview, Ill.) 20:00
Chivas USA vs. San Luis (The Home Depot Center - Carson, Calif.) 22:00
Sunday, June 28
NE Revolution vs. Atlas (Gillette Stadium - Foxborough, Mass.) 16:30
KC Wizards vs. Santos Laguna (CommunityAmerica Ballpark - Kansas City, Mo.) 18:30
Wednesday, July 15
Semifinal 1 (TBD)
Semifinal 2 (TBD)
Wednesday, August 5
Final (TBD)
