HARRISON, N.J. (January 12, 2018) – The New York Red Bulls announced today plans for the 2018 preseason. The club will hold two camps, first in Pinellas County, Florida and then in Tucson, Arizona before opening the season with CONCACAF Champions League matches for the second-straight year.
The Red Bulls open camp on January 22, when players report and travel to Oldsmar, Florida, north of Clearwater Beach. The Red Bulls partnered with Visit St. Pete/Clearwater to establish the travel destination as a site for preseason training. The deal also makes Visit St. Pete/Clearwater an official marketing partner of the New York Red Bulls.
The club will train through Saturday, February 3, before returning to the Red Bulls Training Facility in Hanover, N.J. While in Florida, the team will train at the Oldsmar Sports Complex and play a series of exhibition matches, as follows:
January 27 - University of South Florida – Oldsmar Sports Complex, time TBD
January 31 – New England Revolution – time, place TBD
February 3 – Philadelphia Union – 11:00 a.m., Joe DiMaggio Sports Complex
After a short stint home, the Red Bulls head to Tucson, Arizona for training and the Mobile Sun Mini Cup, previously known as the Desert Diamond Cup. The match schedule is as follows:
February 10 – at Phoenix Rising FC – Phoenix Rising Soccer Complex, 7 p.m. MST
February 14 – Sporting Kansas City – Kino Sports Complex, 5 p.m. MST
February 17 – Houston Dynamo – Kino Sports Complex, 6:15 p.m. MST
February 21 – Portland Timbers – Kino Sports Complex, 2 p.m. MST
February 24 – Opponent TBD based on results – Time TBD, Kino Sports Complex
Matches in the Mobile Sun Mini Cup will be available via livestream. Additional match details, including broadcast information for matches in Florida, will be announced in the coming weeks.
The Red Bulls will remain active in the preseason tournament while focusing on the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League, which begins on Thursday, February 22 against Honduran side CD Olimpia. In 2017, a mixture of reserve and NYRB II players earned valuable preseason experience in the Desert Diamond Cup while the first team met Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the SCCL Quarterfinals.
