EPL club Chelsea will play Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain as part of this year's World Football Challenge on July 22 in what will be the "first soccer game at the new Yankee Stadium,” according to Jack Bell of the N.Y. TIMES. The French club is also scheduled to play the MLS Impact “only two days later in Quebec, if the club wins the French title.” In addition, as winner of the league title, PSG “would then also play in the Trophée des Champions against Lyon (the winner of the French Cup) on July 29" at Red Bull Arena. One additional game “will be announced” today between La Liga club Real Madrid and Serie A club Juventus. That match “will be played Aug. 5 at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas” and it is “also possible that another game in the series will be added on Aug. 8 at Yankee Stadium between the same two teams” (NYTIMES.com, 5/7). On Long Island, Evan Korn noted Yankee Stadium “will be configured for 54,000 spectators in what will be Chelsea's first match in New York since 1954.” The visit to N.Y. “will be the second in a four-city U.S. tour, beginning July 18” against the MLS Sounders at CenturyLink Field” (NEWSDAY.com, 5/7).
NEW ADDITIONS: Also joining the '12 WFC are Serie A club AC Milan and defending MLS champion Galaxy. The MLS Sounders and Toronto FC, as well as EPL clubs Chelsea and Liverpool, had been already announced for the event. Chelsea will also face AC Milan on July 28 at Sun Life Stadium in Miami. Real Madrid will play the Galaxy on Aug. 2 at The Home Depot Center. The WFC is a partnership between MLS and CAA Sports (Christopher Botta, SportsBusiness Journal). In Miami, Michelle Kaufman reports in the first three hours of a pre-sale yesterday for the Chelsea-AC Milan match, “more than 20,000 tickets were scooped up." Dolphins CEO Mike Dee said, “Miami is a soccer hotbed. This announcement continues the tradition of bringing world-class events to our facility.” With the Marlins vacated to their new home, Sun Life Stadium “is expected to host more soccer events in the future” (MIAMI HERALD, 5/8).
