More details are emerging every day about the US national team's plans before departing for Brazil this summer. Now we may know almost the entire plan if a new report is accurate.
On Saturday, ESPNFC.com's Doug McIntyre reported that the USMNT will kick off its three-match send-off series before the World Cup with a friendly at Stanford Stadium on May 27. That would be followed by a second friendly at Red Bull Arena (as was reported earlier this week by SI.com), then wrapped up with a third, final game in Florida on June 7 before the trip to São Paulo, Brazil.
According to the report, the USMNT would also base its pre-World Cup camp in Northern California before the Stanford game. The opponent wasn't immediately clear, but McIntyre says U.S. Soccer has been in discussions with Sweden, Serbia and Turkey for that game and the second match in Harrison, N.J.
As for the third and final send-off game, the report also names fellow World Cup participants Nigeria as a probable opponent, and that Jacksonville's Everbank Field is a leading contender for the site. (The USMNT faced Scotland in a friendly there in spring of 2012.)
When asked about the report by MLSsoccer.com, U.S. Soccer spokesman Neil Buethe said, "All venues, dates and opponents are only still options as nothing has been finalized."
The USMNT kicked off its 2014 schedule with a 2-0 win over South Korea on Saturday in Carson, Calif. They'll next gather for a March 5 friendly at Ukraine in Kharkiv, and U.S. Soccer confirmed earlier this week that the federation is in discussions for another friendly in April, reportedly vs. Mexico in Phoenix.
