SANDY, Utah (Tuesday, February 16, 2016) - Individual game tickets for Real Salt Lake's entire 2016 slate are now available to the general public via RSL.com/tickets or by visiting the Rio Tinto Stadium box office, open Tues.-Fri., 10a-6p. Starting at just $25 each, one of Utah's most compelling value propositions kicks off on Wednesday, March 2 in CONCACAF Champions League play, as the Claret-and-Cobalt host Mexican champion Tigres UANL at 8:00 p.m. MT.
RSL fans across the Wasatch Front can access each game of RSL's 12th league season (visit www.RSL.com/schedule for more information on dates and times) - and the Claret-and-Cobalt's eighth full year at the iconic Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy - which features the club's annual July fireworks games to celebrate Independence Day (Friday, July 1 v. D.C. United, featuring former RSL FWs Alvaro Saborio and Fabian Espindola) and Pioneer Day (Friday, July 22 against San Jose Earthquakes), the defending MLS Cup champion Portland Timbers (with former RSL DF Nat Borchers) on June 18. The 2016 league season includes a home-heavy back-half stretch, one that sees six of the final nine and 13 of the final 21 regular-season matches at Rio Tinto Stadium in a home-heavy late Summer/Fall.
The most economic option for fans and families continues to be RSL "PRIDE" Season Ticket Memberships, which start at just $13 per seat per game. Despite 15,000+ season ticket members and more than 90% of RSL games the last two seasons achieving capacity crowd status, the sale for 2016 season tickets is ongoing. The Rio Tinto Stadium box office is open Tues.-Fri., 10a-6p; more information can be found online at www.RSL.com/Tickets or via the Fan Relations Hotline at 801-727-2702.
The 2016 schedule has RSL playing six teams in the Western Conference three times each, and the other three in the West twice. As in previous seasons, RSL will face each team in the Eastern Conference once, with five matches at home and five on the road. RSL will play a trio of matches against the Rapids, Houston Dynamo, FC Dallas (twice each at Rio Tinto Stadium), and three games against each of Seattle Sounders FC, Portland Timbers and Sporting Kansas City, hosting each just once. Among Western Conference opponents, Salt Lake will play two matches - one home and one away - against the LA Galaxy, Vancouver Whitecaps FC and San Jose Earthquakes.
Due to Rio Tinto Stadium's field replacement from May 1 to June 15, RSL is forced to venture on its longest-ever road trip, playing five consecutive road matches from May 7 - June 2, returning to its home field on June 18 against the Timbers. Due to this unique circumstance, RSL will play three of its first four games and nine of its first 13 league matches away from home. Real Salt Lake has enjoyed a prominent home-field advantage since building its permanent Rio Tinto Stadium home in Sandy, boasting an 89-20-29 mark in the building since its opening in October, 2008.
The fan-created Rocky Mountain Cup series against the rival Colorado Rapids will feature two matches at Rio Tinto Stadium - on Saturday, April 9 and Friday, August 26 (6:00 p.m. MT kickoff, the club's earliest weeknight start in 12 seasons) - with one on the road at Dick's Sporting Goods Park on Saturday, May 7.
RSL's 2016 campaign kicks off prior the league season, with the club's second-ever knockout round participation in the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League, as Head Coach Jeff Cassar's club opens at Rio Tinto Stadium with the second Quarterfinal leg on Wednesday, March 2 (8:00 p.m. MT kickoff - INCLUDED in 2016 season ticket packages).
RSL's first SCCL leg will take place in Monterrey, Mexico, at Estadio Universitario on Wednesday, February 24, with Rio Tinto Stadium hosting the second leg a week later, as RSL looks to take the next step toward becoming the first Major League Soccer Team to win CONCACAF Champions League under its current format.
Four MLS clubs remain among the eight quarterfinal teams, including Real Salt Lake, Seattle Sounders FC, D.C. United and the LA Galaxy. The four opponents are all from Mexico's Liga MX - Tigres, Club America, Santos Laguna and Queretaro.
Real Salt Lake advanced to the Quarterfinal Round with a 3-0-1 record in the Group Stage, played between August and October last year. That landed the Claret-and-Cobalt the No. 3 seed among the eight quarterfinalists and home-field advantage in the second leg of the aggregate-goal series.
If RSL advances to the semifinal round - to be played March 15-17 and April 5-7 - it will meet the winner of the series between D.C. United and Queretaro. The final will be held in the last two weeks of April. This is Real Salt Lake's second time reaching the Quarterfinal Round. In 2010/11, RSL advanced past the Columbus Crew and Saprissa before falling to Monterrey in the final, becoming the first MLS club to reach the championship series.
