The New York Red Bulls have announced they will be participating in the FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup as part of the club's preseason plans. Kino Veteran Memorial Stadium will play host to the event from February 22nd to March 3rd and will feature three additional Major League Soccer teams: the New England Revolution, Real Salt Lake and the LA Galaxy.
During the two-week span, the event will feature two separate double-header matches on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The champion of the round-robin tournament will be crowned on the final day of the event based on a point accumulation system.
“We are excited to compete in the FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup after enjoying our time in Arizona last season,” Red Bulls General Manager and Sporting Director Erik Soler said. “We will be facing some top MLS teams and expect that this will be good preparation for our 2012 MLS campaign.”
The Red Bulls open the 2012 regular season March 11 on the road in FC Dallas in a match that will mark the first MLS game hosted on the NBC Sports Network since the league-network partnership. The home opener at Red Bull Arena is set for March 25, with opponent and start time pending upon the release of complete 2012 MLS schedule.
Here is the full schedule of Desert Diamond Cup matches. Tickets are available on www.fctucson.com:
Schedule of Matches:
Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012
6:00 PM New England Revolution vs. LA Galaxy
8:00 PM New York Red Bulls vs. Real Salt Lake
Saturday, February 25th, 2012
6:00 PM LA Galaxy vs. Real Salt Lake
8:00 PM New York Red Bulls vs. New England Revolution
Wednesday, February 29th, 2012
6:00 PM Real Salt Lake vs. New England Revolution
8:00 PM LA Galaxy vs. New York Red Bulls
Saturday, March 3rd, 2011
6:00 PM MLS 3rd Place vs. MLS 4th Place
8:00 PM MLS 1st Place vs. MLS 2nd Place
All game dates and times are subject to change
