THIS WEEK AT RSL
Week of July 1 – July 7
Real Salt Lake
RSL entered the week hosting eight of the next 11 matches at Rio Tinto Stadium and got off to a hot start to that pivotal stretch with a 2-0 victory over rival Sporting Kansas City. FW Sam Johnson scored both goals while GK Nick Rimando made three saves to preserve the victory in his 147th career MLS shutout, extending his league record in clean sheets and wins (214). The win boosts RSL’s record to 7-8-2 (23 points) on the season, good for eighth in the Western Conference and just three points out of fourth place in a tight Western Conference race.
Continuing a stretch of three games in eight days, RSL hosts Columbus Crew SC on Wednesday night at Rio Tinto Stadium with a fireworks show to follow the match. Kickoff scheduled for 8 p.m. MT and will be broadcast live on KMYU and streamed on the KSL TV app and KSL.com, with radio coverage on ESPN700. The week continues with a road match on Saturday against the San Jose Earthquakes from Avaya Stadium with kickoff slated for 8:30 p.m. MT.
On the international stage, FW Jefferson Savarino and Venezuela bowed out of the 2019 Copa America in Brazil with a 2-0 defeat in the quarterfinals against Argentina. Overall, Savarino played 159 minutes in his two starts, with Venezuela going 1-0-1 in those appearances. In the tournament, Venezuela’s lone defeat came in the quarterfinal round against Argentina. Savarino is scheduled to return to RSL later this week.
Utah Royals FC
Utah Royals FC suffered just its second home loss of the season in a 2-0 defeat against Reign FC on Friday night at Rio Tinto Stadium. GK Nicole Barnhart made two saves, but it wasn’t enough to keep the visitors out of the win column as Utah fell to 5-3-2 (17 points) on the season, dropping to fourth in the NWSL standings but still just two points behind league-leading Portland.
This week, Royals FC will take a break from the NWSL schedule, returning to action on Friday, July 12 in a road contest with Sky Blue FC.
At the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, the URFC and U.S. trio of DF Becky Sauerbrunn, DF Kelley O’Hara and FW Christen Press will take on England in the semifinal on Tuesday (1 p.m. MT) with a national television broadcast on FOX. Meanwhile, back in Salt Lake, fans are invited to a free viewing party at Gateway, where in addition to the match there will be a DJ, food trucks, ticket giveaways and appearances by Royals FC players.
Real Monarchs SLC
Real Monarchs SLC got its second consecutive road win on Saturday, topping the Tulsa Roughnecks 3-1 at ONEOK Field in Tulsa. After falling behind 1-0 early in the match, the Monarchs stormed back with goals from MF Masta Kacher, DF Konrad Plewa and FW Douglas Martinez for the comeback win, giving the Monarchs three consecutive victories overall.
The Monarchs now return to Zions Bank Stadium for two straight home matches, starting on Saturday against New Mexico United. Kickoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. MT with tickets available at RSL.com/tickets.
After Martin Vasquez’s departure on Monday, Jamison Olave will take the reins as Interim Head Coach while the club searches for a new head coach.
On the international stage, DF Joseph Stanley Okumu played in all three Group Stage matches for Kenya in the African Cup of Nations. Kenya is 1-2-0 after matches against Algeria, Tanzania and Senegal and now awaits its fate in the Knockout Stage after a third-place finish in Group C. The top four third-place finishers will advance to the Round of 16. Four matches scheduled for Tuesday will determine the final four additions to the Knockout Stage.
RSL Foundation
The RSL Foundation is auctioning off RSL’s signed Adidas X Parley eco-friendly jerseys the team wore on April 19th. These unique jerseys were made from technical yarns comprised of plastic waste collected on the beaches and transformed into high-performance sportswear. Each jersey was made with up to 20 plastic bottles.
To expand our impact on clean energy, the RSL Foundation and Kyle Beckerman have teamed up with Navajo Nation steward Mylo Fowler to bring solar power to 40 homes on the reservation. Fowler is an award-winning photographer who highlights his homeland of the Navajo Reservation with incredible photographs and amazing service projects. https://www.fourthworldimages.com/Giving-Back
An estimated 18,000 homes on Navajo Nation lack access to electricity. The cost to provide clean renewable solar energy to each house is approximately $600.
Visit RSL.com/auctions where 100% of the money raised by you from this auction will go towards lighting homes that currently have no power. With your help, we can impact 40 families in Utah this fall when students return to school.
In The News
The story of Stephanie Lee’s rise to Royals FC GM
https://www.sltrib.com/sports/2019/06/27/how-stephanie-lee-went/
