U.S. Women’s National team returns to Kansas City

The United States Women’s National Team returns to Children’s Mercy Park as part of a doubleheader in the 2018 Tournament of Nations in July. The reigning World Cup champions will face Japan in Kansas City at 6 p.m. CT after the Brazil vs Australia match at 3:15 p.m. on the 26^th.

”We are thrilled to be hosting four of the best women’s teams in the world at Children’s Mercy Park,” Sporting KC President and CEO Jake Reid said via press release. “The U.S. Women’s National Team has played a tremendous role in growing and advancing the sport in this country, and Kansas City is proud to welcome them again in a premier international tournament alongside Australia, Brazil and Japan.”

This will be the first opportunity for a team other than Sporting Kansas City to train at Pinnacle, a shared training facility between Sporting KC and U.S. Soccer.

The 2018 Tournament of Nations will feature four of the top 11 women’s teams in the latest FIFA rankings, with No. 1 USA followed by No. 6 Australia, No. 8 Brazil and No. 11 Japan. The tournament winner will be based on total points - three for a win, one for a tie. FS1 will televise all three U.S. WNT matches during the competition, which will take teams to Pratt & Whitney Stadium in East Hartford Connecticut (July 29) and Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Illinois (Aug. 2) following the first round of games in Kansas City.

The U.S. WNT and Japan have a history in big games over the last few tears. The two teams were the final matches in both the 2011 and 2015 FIFA World Cup and the gold medal match at the 2012 Olympics.

Japan took the win in a penalty shootout to at the 2011 World Cup but the U.S. has won the last two big meetings with a 2-1 win to at the Olympics and an amazing 5-2 victory in the 2015 World Cup final.

2018 TOURNAMENT OF NATIONS

U.S. WOMEN’S NATIONAL TEAM IN KANSAS CITY

This will be the eighth time the U.S. WNT has played in Kansas City, with the first four at Arrowhead and the rest at Children’s Mercy Park.

· Oct. 7, 1999 vs. Finland: W 6-0 at Arrowhead Stadium

· Aug. 20, 2000 vs. Canada: T 1-1 at Arrowhead Stadium

· Oct. 22, 2003 vs. Italy: T 2-2 at Arrowhead Stadium

· Oct. 16, 2004 vs. Mexico: W 1-0 at Arrowhead Stadium

· Sept. 17, 2011 vs. Canada: T 1-1 at Children’s Mercy Park

· Oct. 15, 2014 vs. Trinidad and Tobago: W 1-0 at Children’s Mercy Park

· July 22, 2016 vs. Costa Rica: W 4-0 at Children’s Mercy Park

Thad Bell