PORTLAND, Ore. (Saturday, February 11, 2017) – Real Salt Lake’s 2017 preseason continues Sunday at 3:30 p.m. MT in the Pacific Northwest, where RSL faces Western Conference foe Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the second of three official preseason games as part of Portland Timbers Preseason Tournament. RSL drew 3-3 on Thursday night with host Portland, and will wrap up its participation in the tourney on Wednesday night at Providence Park against expansion side Minnesota United, with whom Vancouver drew 1-1 in Thursday’s opener.
Sunday’s contest features a live stream available here:
FW Joao Plata, MF Luke Mulholland and MF Omar Holness all netted goals Thursday night for RSL, which fell behind 3-1 in the 52nd minute, only to storm back for the draw. A complete recap – including highlights of the game and multiple angles of each scintillating goal – can be found here: http://www.rsl.com/post/2017/02/09/rsl-draws-portland-3-3-preseason.
GK Nick Rimando made his first appearance of preseason for RSL after spending the first part of training camp away with the U.S. National Team in January camp. While on international duty, he played 90 minutes in a 1-0 victory over Serbia, earning his fifth career shutout in 22 caps with the U.S.
RSL Head Coach Jeff Cassar’s current roster boasts the return of nine of 11 starters and a core of 16 players overall from last year’s side, which qualified for the MLS Cup Playoffs for the eighth time in the last nine seasons. Eleven new players arrive for 2017, including highly-touted offseason signings MF Albert Rusnák, M/F Luis Silva, homegrown signing MF Jose Hernandez and MLS veterans FW Chad Barrett and DF David Horst. RSL’s 2017 roster combines four players – Rimando, Captain Kyle Beckerman, DF Tony Beltran and DF Chris Wingert – who are in their 10th or 11th seasons with the club, along with eight players who have matriculated to the MLS side from the club’s Academy.
Get your tickets to our 2017 MLS home opener here!
Five Real Salt Lake players – DF Justen Glad, D/M Danny Acosta, FW Sebastian Saucedo and FW Brooks Lennon, along with Academy product Aaron Herrera – traveled earlier today with the U.S. Under-20 Men's National Team, led by head coach Tab Ramos, to the 2017 CONCACAF U-20 Championship, the largest representation from one club. The regional tourney later this month doubles as the team's 2017 World Cup qualifying tournament, running Feb. 17-March 5 in Costa Rica.CONCACAF Qualifying Tournament for this Summer’s FIFA World Youth Championships. The U.S. seeks qualification out of a regional group that includes Panama, St. Kitts, and Haiti, with the games played in Costa Rica on Sat., Feb. 18 (U.S. v. Panama, 2:00 p.m. MT), Tues., Feb. 21 (U.S. v. Haiti, 3:30 p.m. MT) and Fri., Feb. 24 (U.S. v. St. Kitts & Nevis, 3:30 p.m. MT).
Sunday afternoon’s 3:30 p.m. MT kickoff against the Whitecaps is the fourth of at least six live streams in this 2017 Real Salt Lake preseason, the club’s 13th in Major League Soccer.
REAL SALT LAKE 2017 PRESEASON SCHEDULE
Preseason Segment #1 – Casa Grande / Tucson, AZ
Tuesday, Jan. 31 – RSL 1 : 0 NY Red Bulls – Allen 83’ (Velazco) – ARCHIVED on RSL.com
Friday, Feb. 3 – RSL 1 : 1 San Jose – OG 18’ (Bernardez) – ARCHIVED
Preseason Segment #2 – Portland Timbers Preseason Tournament @ Portland, OR
Thursday, Feb. 9 – RSL vs. Portland Timbers – Plata 43’; Mulholland 54’; Holness 67’ – ARCHIVED
Sunday, Feb. 12 – RSL vs. Vancouver Whitecaps – 3:30 p.m. MT – LIVE on RSL.com
Wednesday, Feb. 15 – RSL vs. Minnesota United FC – 6:00 p.m. MT – LIVE on RSL.com
Thursday, Feb. 16 – Return to Utah
Preseason Segment #3 – Southern California
Sunday, Feb. 19 – Travel from SLC to Irvine, Calif.
Tuesday, Feb. 21 – RSL v. LA Galaxy at Carson, Calif. – time TBD – LIVE on RSL.com
Friday, Feb. 24 – RSL v. Alashkert (Armenian Premier League Champion) – time/site TBD
Saturday, Feb. 25 – Return to Utah
Sat., March 4 – RSL v. Toronto FC – 2:30 p.m. MT – 2017 MLS Opening Weekend
A group of 10 Real Monarchs players along with several members of the USL club’s technical staff – including new Head Coach Mike Petke and Assistants Mark Briggs and Matt Glaeser – spent the Arizona portion of preseason with RSL, prior to the USL club’s training camp report earlier today in Sandy, UT. Today’s Monarchs preseason kicked off with new assistant coach Jamison Olave, the former MLS Best XI member and Defender of the Year w/ RSL and New York Red Bulls. The Monarchs 2017 USL schedule was released last week; please visit www.RSL.com/Monarchs for dates, times, opponents and ticket information for the club’s third USL campaign, which kicks off at Rio Tinto Stadium on Saturday, April 1.
For up-to-date news, information and compelling video content from RSL’s preseason, please visit www.RSL.com regularly in the run-up to the club’s March 4 season opener at Rio Tinto Stadium against Toronto FC (2:30 p.m. MT kickoff).
Season Tickets for both Real Salt Lake and Real Monarchs' 2017 campaigns are now on sale; please visit www.RSL.com/tickets/royalty or call 844.Real.Tix for more information, including “Crown Club” discounts for those who pledge loyalty to both Claret-and-Cobalt professional sides. The Rio Tinto Stadium box office is open Mon.-Fri., 10a-6p; more information can be found online at www.RSL.com/Tickets. Current or interested RSL Royalty Season Ticket Members can purchase extra tickets at preferred pricing or gain assistance via the Fan Relations Hotline at 801-727-2702.
Coming in late Summer, 2017, the Real Monarchs / RSL training center opens in Herriman, Utah, approximately 20 minutes southwest of Rio Tinto Stadium. The $60 million facility will serve as the daily training home beginning in 2018 for both of the club's professional teams – RSL (MLS) and Real Monarchs (USL) – while centralizing the club's U-18, U-16 and future U-14 development academy youth selections. The Herriman facility will provide adjacencies for an on-site charter school opening this Fall, with STEM disciplines (Science/Technology/Engineering/Math) for nearly 300 boys and girls.
In mid-November in North Logan, Utah, RSL Owner Dell Loy Hansen broke ground on the first of a half-dozen regional training centers across Utah and Arizona to be built in the next 2-3 years. Each $5 million RTC houses a classroom, as well as an indoor and outdoor field, dedicated to fulfilling a curriculum dedicated to the club's vision and mission for youth soccer training and education, and the continued development of both recreational and competitive pre-Academy (ages 7-12) initiatives across Utah and Arizona.
