SPORTING KC TO HOST MONTREAL IMPACT ON SATURDAY AT SPORTING PARK
Following a 1-0 win at first-place Vancouver Whitecaps FC last Sunday, Sporting KC (8-3-6, 6th in West) returns home to host the Montreal Impact (6-7-3, 8th in East) at 7:30 p.m. CT on Saturday at Sporting Park. A limited number of tickets are available for the match via Ticketmaster.com and the first 10,000 fans inside the stadium will receive a commemorative Graham Zusi poster courtesy of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas City.
Saturday's match, the first of three in seven days for the team, comes against a Montreal side that reached the 2014-15 CONCACAF Champions League finals as Sporting KC looks to keep the team's unbeaten home record across all competitions (8-0-3) in 2015 intact. Live broadcasts will be available on KMCI-TV 38 the Spot locally and on SKCTV affiliates across the Midwest with three hours of coverage beginning at 7 p.m. CT. In addition, Sports Radio 810 WHB (English) and La Grande 1340 AM (Spanish) will provide in-game radio commentary.
MLS ALL-STAR FAN XI FEATURES THREE PLAYERS FROM SPORTING KC
Sporting KC’s Matt Besler, Benny Feilhaber and Graham Zusi were named to the MLS All-Star Fan XI on Monday ahead of the 2015 AT&T MLS All-Star Game on July 29. The club’s three selections are the most of any MLS team.
2015 MLS ALL-STAR FAN XI
Goalkeeper: Nick Rimando (RSL)
Defenders: Omar Gonzalez (LA), Matt Besler (SKC), DaMarcus Beasley (HOU)
Midfielders: Kaka (ORL), Michael Bradley (TOR), Benny Feilhaber (SKC), Graham Zusi (SKC)
Forwards: Clint Dempsey (SEA), David Villa (NYC), Obafemi Martins (SEA)
Besler and Zusi each earn MLS All-Star honors for the fourth time. Feilhaber is a first-time MLS All-Star during a career-year in which he ranks second in MLS with nine assists while also contributing five goals.
Besler, 28, has led Sporting KC to a league-high nine shutouts in 2015. The club captain is in his seventh season and has won MLS Best XI (2012, 2013), Defender of the Year (2012) and Breakout Player of the Year (2012) awards in recent years. The World Cup veteran has 25 career appearances for the U.S. Men’s National Team since his debut in 2013 and helped lead the U.S. MNT to the CONCACAF Gold Cup title in 2013.
Zusi, a fellow Designated Player and 2009 MLS SuperDraft pick, is the only MLS player with at least five goals and seven assists in each of the last four regular seasons. He has led the club in assists every year since 2011 and earned team MVP honors each of the last three seasons to go along with MLS Best XI (2012, 2013) and Breakout Player of the Year (2011) recognitions. The 28-year-old has 31 international caps for the United States with three goals and six assists, including two assists at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Feilhaber, 30, was named Etihad Airways MLS Player of the Month for April and has 13 assists across all competition in 2015, five shy of the club’s all-time record. A five-year MLS veteran, Feilhaber began his professional career with Hamburg (Germany), Derby County (England) and AGF Aarhus (Denmark) in Europe before joining the New England Revolution in 2011. Feilhaber has played 41 times for the U.S. Men’s National Team, highlighted by his game-winning goal in the 2007 Gold Cup final and roles in the 2008 Summer Olympics, 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup and 2010 FIFA World Cup.
The MLS All-Stars will face English Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur at 8 p.m. CT on July 29 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado. The annual showcase will air live on FOX Sports 1 and UniMas in the United States.
SPORTING KC CLAIMS 1-0 WIN AT FIRST-PLACE VANCOUVER WHITECAPS FC
Sporting KC recorded the team's fifth shutout in the past six MLS matches with a 1-0 road win over the first place Vancouver Whitecaps FC last Sunday at BC Place. Homegrown defender Kevin Ellis scored the game-winning goal in the 52nd minute on an assist from Krisztian Nemeth and goalkeeper Tim Melia matched his career high with six saves in the clean sheet.
Having earned the club's first conference road win of the year on Sunday, Sporting KC now leads all MLS teams with 1.76 points per game at the halfway juncture of the club's regular season. Peter Vermes' side is in sixth place in the West, two points back of the conference leaders entering Saturday's home match against the Montreal Impact.
LIVEKC TO HOST SECOND ANNUAL FIERY STICK OPEN ON FRIDAY
The Fiery Stick Open returns to north lawn of The National WWI Museum and Memorial (100 W. 26th Street) in Kansas City, Missouri on Friday featuring a million dollar hole-in-one shootout, a live performance by Girl Talk, lawn games, food trucks, bars and more. General admission tickets are available online for $20 for entry to the one-of-a-kind event, hosted by LiveKC and scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. CT.
FAN VOTING FOR 2015 SPORTING LEGENDS INDUCTEE ENDS FRIDAY
Sporting KC has announced the following four nominees for this year's Sporting Legends inductee: Mo Johnston, Chris Klein, Ron Newman and Kerry Zavagnin. Online fan voting is now open and will continue through 11:59 p.m. CT on Friday.
Sporting Legends pays tribute to club icons and provides a platform for those inducted to re-engage with the local soccer community. Since launching in 2013, Sporting Legends has honored six individuals for their integral roles within the organization and the growth of soccer in Kansas City: Preki, Tony Meola, Bob Gansler, Peter Vermes, Jimmy Conrad and Lamar Hunt.
All six members have their names displayed outside The Victory Suite in the northwest corner of Sporting Park and were celebrated during on-field ceremonies. In addition, Sporting Legends are invited to participate in local activities surrounding their induction date as an opportunity to reconnect with supporters, further grow the game and once again leave a philanthropic impact on the community.
This year's inductee will be selected based on the fan vote and will be unveiled as the newest member of Sporting Legends at a Sporting KC home match later this year. Visit SportingKC.com for more information on the 2015 Sporting Legends candidates.
SPORTING KC TRIO EARNS TEAM OF THE WEEK HONORS
Goalkeeper Tim Melia, defender Saad Abdul-Salaam and midfielder Soni Mustivar received Team of the Week recognition on Monday after Sporting KC's 1-0 win at Vancouver Whitecaps FC over the weekend.
Melia took Team of the Week honors from MLSsoccer.com, Bleacher Report and SI.com after matching a career high with six saves at BC Place, including a diving stop to deny Kendall Waston of an equalizer in second-half stoppage time. With the result, the 29-year-old became the first goalkeeper in MLS history to earn shutouts in six of his first nine starts with a new team.
Joining Melia among MLSsoccer.com’s best players in Week 19 was fellow BurgerFi Man of the Match candidate Soni Mustivar. The defensive midfielder bossed the center of the pitch to the tune of 19 interceptions and 17 recoveries. In doing so, he tied the single-game interception record for a single MLS match during the Opta era (2011-present) while ranking second all-time in the single-game recoveries category.
Making his first career MLS start, 23-year-old rookie Saad Abdul-Salaam landed a spot on Bleacher Report’s Team of the Week after recording eight interceptions, six tackles and three clearances against a Whitecaps side that applied heavy offensive pressure all evening.
SPORTING PARK HOSTS CONCACAF GOLD CUP DOUBLEHEADER AS U.S. TIES PANAMA
The United States Men's National Team featured in a 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup doubleheader at sold-out Sporting Park on Monday, maintaining its unbeaten record at the stadium (3-0-1) with a 1-1 draw against Panama. The U.S. finished atop Group A with seven points from three matches and will play a to-be-determined opponent in the quarterfinals on Saturday at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.
Sporting KC winger Graham Zusi was an unused sub in Monday's contest but played the full 90 minutes in a 1-0 win over Haiti last Friday in Foxborough, Massachusetts. It was Zusi's 31st cap since debuting for the U.S. in 2012.
Fans at Sporting Park saw Panama take a first-half lead when FC Dallas striker Blas Perez scored from close range, but the Yanks equalized shortly after halftime when Alejandro Bedoya's cross was directed home by captain Michael Bradley. The doubleheader kicked off with Haiti's 1-0 win over Honduras, a result that sealed Haiti's second-place finish in the group and booked the country's spot in the quarterfinals.
The Gold Cup is the region’s marquee national team tournament and the headline competition for the United States Men’s National Team in 2015. This year’s competition carries additional significance as it will determine CONCACAF's representatives at the Centennial Cup America in 2016 and the FIFA Confederations Cup in 2017.
MARCEL DE JONG STARTS IN THREE CONCACAF GOLD CUP MATCHES FOR CANADA
Sporting KC defender Marcel de Jong played the full 90 minutes for Canada on Tuesday in a 0-0 draw against Costa Rica in the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup. The 28-year-old outside back earned his 36th career international appearance with his third 90-minute outing of the tournament. The result at BMO Field in Toronto left Canada with two points from three games in Group B and eliminated the Reds from the competition.
ROGER ESPINOZA AND MIKEY LOPEZ TO ATTEND "TURN THE PAGE KC" EVENT TODAY
Sporting KC midfielders Roger Espinoza and Mikey Lopez will join Kansas City Mayor Sly James today at the Sprint Center from 12:30-1:45 p.m. CT for a special Turn the Page KC event. "Every Hero Has A Story: A Summer Reading Celebration" is free and open to the public with tickets available online for an afternoon of activities that includes crafts, a superhero obstacle course and free literature.
IKE OPARA TO APPEAR AT JACK IN THE BOX ON THURSDAY IN OVERLAND PARK
On Thursday, Sporting KC defender Ike Opara will make a special appearance at the Jack in the Box location at 10317 Metcalf Avenue in Overland Park, Kansas from 5:30-7 p.m. CT to meet customers, sign autographs and take photos with fans. All season long, Sporting KC fans can receive a free breakfast biscuit sandwich with any purchase at area Jack in the Box locations on the day after Sporting KC attempts four shots on goal.
SPORTING KC OFFERS MOBILE CONCESSIONS ORDERING IN BOULEVARD MEMBERS CLUB
Sporting KC has announced a new service designed to enhance the fan experience at Sporting Park. Fans with tickets in the Boulevard Members Club now have the ability to order and pay for concessions on their smartphones and then pick up their orders via a fast lane.
The new service, created in partnership with Kansas City-based Lantern Software, is simple. Fans download the Gameday™ app from the App Store or Google Play, choose the items they want and pay with a credit card or PayPal. The app provides an alert when the concessions staff has begun working on the order as well as another once the order is ready. Users will then pick up their order from a separate fast lane to expedite the concession process.
AMERICAN FAMILY INSURANCE OFFERING FREE ROAD TRIP TO SPORTING KC ROAD GAME
A partnership between Sporting KC and American Family Insurance now allows fans to register for a free road trip to see Sporting KC face the San Jose Earthquakes on Oct. 16. The match will be played at Avaya Stadium, San Jose’s new state-of-the-art venue that opened in March.
The contest is open to all Sporting KC fans 21 years of age and older who live in Kansas or Missouri and will run through Sept. 13. Supporters can register by visiting https://contests.amfam.com/sportingkc and filling out the entry form or by visiting the American Family Insurance booth at the following Sporting KC home matches: July 18, Aug. 1, Aug. 15 and Aug. 19.
One contest will reward one grand prize winner who will receive free airfare, four game tickets, a $1,000 bank card and more. Visit SportingKC.com for additional information.
SINGLE-GAME TICKETS ON SALE FOR SECOND HALF OF SPORTING KC'S SEASON
Single-game tickets for Sporting KC home matches from July through October are now on sale via Ticketmaster.com. Tickets will be available for the first time for the following matches:
- Saturday, July 18: Sporting KC vs. Montreal
- Saturday, Aug. 1: Sporting KC vs. Houston
- Saturday, Aug. 15: Sporting KC vs. Vancouver
- Wednesday, Aug. 19: Sporting KC vs. San Jose
- Friday, Sept. 18: Sporting KC vs. FC Dallas
- Sunday, Sept. 27: Sporting KC vs. Seattle
- Sunday, Oct. 25: Sporting KC vs. LA Galaxy
FOLLOW SPORTING KC ONLINE
Sporting KC fans looking to keep up with the club online have a place to go. The Social Media page on SportingKC.com features Twitter account information for the team, its players and several staff members. Supporters may also take advantage of the Media Recap page for all the latest independent news coverage.
