FOUR SPORTING KC PLAYERS SET FOR INTERNATIONAL DUTY DURING CLUB'S BYE WEEK
Four Sporting Kansas City players will be on international duty this week representing their national teams during the current FIFA fixture window: Matt Besler, Marcel de Jong, Krisztian Nemeth and Erik Palmer-Brown. Follow all four players on social media for updates throughout their travels and visit SportingKC.com for recaps from the forthcoming international matches.
MATT BESLER SELECTED TO U.S. MEN'S NATIONAL TEAM FOR TWO FRIENDLIES
Sporting KC captain Matt Besler was named to the United States Men’s National Team’s roster on Sunday for a pair of upcoming international friendlies. The United States will host Peru on Friday in Washington, D.C. (6 p.m. CT; FOX Sports 1, UniMas, UDN) before playing Brazil on Sept. 8 in Foxborough, Mass. (7 p.m. CT; ESPN Networks, UniMas, UDN).
Besler, 28, has played every minute in Sporting KC’s last 27 matches across all competitions and anchors a backline that has conceded the fewest shots in Major League Soccer. Now in his seventh professional season, Besler leads all current players with 209 appearances for the club across all competitions. He is a four-time MLS All-Star to go along with MLS Best XI (2012, 2013) and Defender of the Year (2012) honors.
Internationally, Besler has 25 caps for the U.S. Men’s National Team since debuting in 2013, including four starts at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
MARCEL DE JONG JOINS CANADA MEN'S NATIONAL TEAM FOR WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS
Sporting KC defender Marcel de Jong has joined the Canada Men’s National Team roster for a home-and-away series against Belize in the third round of CONCACAF qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Canada will host Belize at 6:30 p.m. CT on Friday in Toronto and then travel for the return leg next Tuesday in Belmopan, Belize.
De Jong has one goal and one assist in 14 appearances across all competitions for Sporting KC since signing with the club prior to the 2015 campaign. The 28-year-old previously played 10 professional seasons in the Netherlands and Germany.
Internationally, de Jong has 36 career caps for Canada with two goals since his national team debut at age 21 in 2007. He has represented his country at each of the past four CONCACAF Gold Cup tournaments, including starts in all three group stage matches during the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup in July.
KRISZTIAN NEMETH WITH HUNGARY MEN'S NATIONAL TEAM FOR UEFA EURO 2016 QUALIFIERS
Sporting KC forward Krisztian Nemeth has joined the Hungary Men’s National Team roster for two upcoming UEFA Euro 2016 qualifiers. Hungary, in third place in Group F, will host group leaders Romania at 1:45 p.m. CT on Friday before traveling to take on second-place Northern Ireland at 1:45 p.m. CT on Monday.
Nemeth has 17 career international appearances for the Hungary Men’s National Team. The 26-year-old debuted in 2010 and most recently played 45 minutes in Hungary’s 1-0 win over Finland in the team’s previous UEFA Euro 2016 qualifier on June 13.
Acquired in December with 10 years of professional experience in Europe, Nemeth has 12 goals and seven assists in 25 appearances across all competitions during his debut season for Sporting KC. He was named MLS Player of the Month in May and ranks third among MLS newcomers in combined regular season goals and assists (14).
ERIK PALMER-BROWN IN ACTION TOMORROW WITH U.S. U-20 MEN'S NATIONAL TEAM
Sporting KC defender Erik Palmer-Brown is with the United States Under-20 Men’s National Team for the 2015 Stevan Vilotic-Cele Tournament in Serbia.
U.S. Under-20 MNT head coach Tab Ramos selected 23 players for the group’s first international competition since the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup in June, with Palmer-Brown the lone returning member. The U-20’s will open the tournament against reigning U-20 World Cup champions Serbia tomorrow before facing France on Friday to set up a placement match on Monday.
Palmer-Brown, 18, has appeared in nine matches for Sporting KC across all competitions since signing as a Homegrown Player in August 2013 and making his MLS debut in May 2014, becoming the youngest player to appear in an MLS match in club history. The Lee’s Summit, Missouri, native attended the prestigious U.S. Soccer Residency Program in Bradenton, Florida and has started in the Chipotle MLS Homegrown Game each of the last two years.
SPORTING KC SUFFERS 2-1 DEFEAT IN COLORADO
Sporting KC succumbed to the Colorado Rapids' second-half rally in a 2-1 loss at Dick's Sporting Goods Park on Saturday. Dom Dwyer scored his team-leading ninth goal of the season in the 47th minute but Vicente Sanchez set up Maynor Figueroa and Kevin Doyle to secure Colorado's first win over Sporting KC since 2009, snapping a 13-game winless streak in the series.
After going unbeaten in 11 MLS matches (8-0-3) when scoring first to start the season, Sporting KC dropped their second straight decision despite taking a 1-0 lead away from home. The team's third consecutive loss slips Sporting KC into fourth place in the West (11-7-7, 40 points) with nine games remaining in the regular season, while ninth-place Colorado (8-9-9, 33 points) claimed a third straight victory to move out of the conference cellar.
Missing five players due to injury, along with Chance Myers' early exit on Saturday, Sporting KC will have this weekend off before resuming MLS action in Portland next Wednesday, Sept. 9.
SEPTEMBER EDITION OF ELEVEN MAGAZINE NOW AVAILABLE ON SPORTINGKC.COM
The September edition of Eleven, the club's official digital magazine, is now available on Sporting KC.com. The new issue has 28 pages dedicated to Sporting KC and Major League Soccer, including captain Matt Besler's contribution as a guest editor with comments throughout the publication.
Eleven launched in August with an inaugural issue that introduced the work of David Barr (writer), Walfri Rodas (photographer) and Matthew Kimbrough (designer).
In addition, special contributors Megan Armstrong, Ale Cabero, Crystle Lampitt and Scott Luallin all add to the voices heard among a dozen articles that touch on topics ranging from two Sporting Legends -- Jimmy Conrad and Chris Klein -- to Sporting KC's three first round picks in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft.
Follow @ElevenTheMag on Twitter and Facebook to stay up-to-date with all the latest news, and download the Issuu apps on Android, iOS or Windows to enjoy Eleven on mobile devices.
KC STAYCATION WITH THE MARRIOT SWEEPSTAKES LAUNCHES ON SPORTINGKC.COM
The KC Staycation with the Marriott sweepstakes has launched on SportingKC.com. Fans can enter through 11:59 p.m. CT on Sept. 30 for a chance to win a two-night stay at the Kansas City Marriott Downtown (based on availability), a complimentary dinner for two at the MetropolitanKC, a $25 drink voucher, two tickets to a Sporting KC match with a pre-game tour, two Sporting KC jerseys and two team scarves.
VOTING ENDS FRIDAY FOR WESTLAKE ACE HARDWARE HELPFUL MOMENT OF THE MONTH
Voting will end at 12 p.m. CT on Friday in the Westlake Ace Hardware Helpful Moment of the Month online poll. Three of Sporting KC's top plays in August are nominated and all who cast a vote will receive a $5 off coupon to their local Westlake Ace Hardware store. In addition, one voter will be randomly selected to receive a $300 gift card to Westlake Ace Hardware, an authentic Sporting KC jersey and two tickets to an upcoming match.
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. 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.
TICKETS NOW ON SALE FOR 2015 NCAA MEN'S COLLEGE CUP AT SPORTING PARK
Tickets are now on sale for the 2015 NCAA Men's College Cup at Sporting Park via Ticketmaster.com. Ticket packages start as low as $27 for admission to the semifinal doubleheader on Friday, Dec. 11 and the national championship match on Sunday, Dec. 13 with passes also available for access to the Ameritas Shield Club and Boulevard Members Club.
The college soccer season officially kicked off last Friday, Aug. 28. Last year's College Cup finalists UCLA and Virginia currently sit atop the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) rankings.
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.
