Major League Soccer and Special Olympics have announced rosters for the ninth annual 2024 Special Olympics Unified Sports All-Star Game, which will be played at 2:30 p.m. CT on Tuesday, July 23 at Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.
Joseph Toland and Joshua Toplikar will represent Sporting Kansas City on the Western Conference All-Stars. Both have participated in the club's annual Special Olympics Unified Teams for multiple years and are actively involved this season.
Sporting Kansas City signed 16 players to this year's Special Olympics Unified Team in April, followed by a training session at Compass Minerals National Performance Center in May and a match against Minnesota United at Allianz Field in June.
The Unified All-Star Game is part of the season-long Special Olympics Unified Soccer Exchange program that provides opportunities for Unified soccer teams to participate in a first-team MLS experience.
MLS and Special Olympics will host 52 Unified team members, representing 26 MLS clubs for an 11 vs. 11 competitive match. The teams, comprised of players with intellectual disabilities (Special Olympics athletes) and without intellectual disabilities (Unified partners), will be outfitted in authentic uniforms provided by adidas. MLS Greats will serve as celebrity coaches for the game.
The East and West Unified All-Star teams will also be recognized on-field before the MLS All-Star Game presented by Target on July 24.
