Juventus F.C. to face FC Barcelona on July 22 at MetLife Stadium.
Tottenham Hotspur F.C. to face AS Roma on July 25 at Red Bull Arena.
Both Matches will air on ESPN
NEW YORK (March 21, 2017) – Relevent Sports, a division of RSE Ventures, today announced that two matches will be held in the New York area as part of the 2017 International Champions Cup presented by Heineken. First, five-time reigning Italian Serie A champions Juventus F.C. and reigning Spanish La Liga champions FC Barcelona will square off at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey on Saturday, July 22 at 6:00PM ET. English Premier League powerhouse Tottenham Hotspur F.C. and Italian Serie A giant AS Roma will then meet at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey on Tuesday, July 25 at 8:00PM ET. Both matches will air on ESPN.
Juventus F.C. and FC Barcelona previously met in the 2015 UEFA Champions League final in Berlin with FC Barcelona taking home a 3-1 victory. Both clubs recently advanced to the quarterfinals of this year’s Champions League bracket where they will face each other next month. Juventus F.C. held F.C. Porto scoreless in both of their matches in the Round of 16 while FC Barcelona staged a thrilling comeback against Paris Saint-Germain F.C., scoring a sixth goal in stoppage time of their second match to advance to the quarterfinals on aggregate.
MetLife Stadium, home to the New York Football Giants and New York Jets, is the only stadium shared by two NFL teams and annually hosts the world’s biggest events. Last August, MetLife Stadium hosted the International Champions Cup match between Real Madrid C.F. and FC Bayern Munich. The July 22nd match marks Juventus F.C. and FC Barcelona’s first appearance at MetLife Stadium.
“Hosting world-class international soccer has become an annual tradition and an integral part of MetLife Stadium’s event line-up,” said Ron VanDeVeen, President and CEO of MetLife Stadium. “We’d like to thank Relevent Sports for the great partnership in bringing the ICC back to East Rutherford for the third time and we look forward to providing a great gameday experience for Barca and Juve fans.”
Tickets for the July 22 Juventus F.C. v. FC Barcelona match at MetLife Stadium will go on sale to the general public beginning Tuesday, April 4 at 11:00AM ET and will be available online at ticketmaster.com or by calling (800) 745-3000. If tickets remain, fans can purchase at the MetLife Stadium Box Office beginning Wednesday, April 5 at 11:00AM ET (Box Office hours: M – F, 11am – 5pm).
Both Tottenham Hotspur F.C. and AS Roma have found continued success on the domestic and international level. Each achieved a top five finish in their domestic table the past two years and are currently in position to do the same in 2017. Tottenham Hotspur F.C. is led by English striker and current leading goal scorer for the Premier League, Harry Kane. AS Roma features an attack led by Edin Džeko and the club’s all time leading goal-scorer, Francesco Totti.
Red Bull Arena is the benchmark in the North American soccer stadium landscape and sets the standard for other venues of its kind across the continent. The 25,000-seat state-of-the-art facility located in Harrison, New Jersey is the home of the New York Red Bulls of Major League Soccer. Since then, Red Bull Arena has hosted a number of top club and international squads including the U.S. Men’s and Women’s National Teams, Ecuador, Colombia, Czech Republic, Turkey, Manchester City (England) and Juventus (Italy).
"We are thrilled to partner with Relevent Sports and host the International Champions Cup again this Summer," said Marc de Grandpre, General Manager of the New York Red Bulls. "We are excited about providing soccer fans in the Metro area with an excellent international matchup and showcasing our unmatched soccer experience at Red Bull Arena."
Tickets for the July 25 Tottenham Hotspur F.C. v. AS Roma match at Red Bull Arena will go on sale to the general public beginning Tuesday, April 4 at 10:00AM ET and will be available online at ticketmaster.com or by calling (800) 745-3000. Fans can find venue-specific and other ticket information for matches of the 2017 International Champions Cup presented by Heineken at www.internationalchampionscup.com.
“The International Champions Cup is proud to be hosting matches in New York for the fifth consecutive year,” said Charlie Stillitano, Chairman at Relevent Sports. “Our decision to host matches at both MetLife Stadium and Red Bull Arena is a testament to the growth in popularity and passion for soccer in this great city. This tournament was created to bring world class clubs to the most renowned venues across the United States and we are thrilled to be doing just that in both of these matches.”
The 2017 International Champions Cup presented by Heineken will run from July 19 – 30 and feature 12 matches played across 11 cities throughout the United States. In total, eight teams from around the globe, including England (Manchester United F.C., Manchester City F.C., Tottenham Hotspur F.C.), Italy (Juventus F.C., AS Roma), France (Paris Saint-Germain F.C.) and Spain (FC Barcelona, Real Madrid C.F.) will compete in this year’s tournament. Each team will play three contests and the club with the most points at the end of the tournament will be crowned champion. Each win in regulation will result in three points and a tie will go straight to a shootout; the winning team in a shootout will receive two points and the losing team will receive one.
Juventus F.C., more commonly known as Juve, is an Italian football club based in Turin, Italy. Founded in 1897, Juventus F.C. has dominated Italy’s Serie A with a record 34 league championships. The awards continue with a record 11 Coppa Italia Cups, seven Supercoppa Italia Cups and two European cup/UEFA Champions League championships. Famous for their black-and-white striped uniforms, the 2016-17 Juventus F.C. squad continues to carry on the club’s legacy in pursuit of a sixth consecutive Serie A title. The current roster features a strong defensive unit, led by Italian nationals Gianluigi Buffon who has 612 total appearances for the club, Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci. Brazilian Dani Alves rounds out the back while German midfielder Sami Khedira mans the midfield. Argentine goalscorer Gonzalo Higuain leads the attack along with Croatian star Mario Mandžukić. The club plays its home matches in Juventus Stadium where is unbeaten since August 2015. For more information on Juventus F.C., please visit www.juventus.com.
Founded in 1899, FC Barcelona is one of the most iconic soccer clubs in the world. With some of the greatest players in soccer history, FC Barcelona has won 24 league titles, 28 Copa Del Rey titles and five UEFA Champions League titles. In 2009, FC Barcelona performed the extraordinary feat of winning all six major trophies they were competing for, winning La Liga, Copa Del Rey, UEFA Champions League, Spanish Super Cup, UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup. Between 2008 and 2012, FC Barcelona won two Champions League trophies, three league titles and a World Club Cup title. The Spanish club added to their already illustrious trophy cabinet by winning the ever-elusive treble during the 2014-2015 season; winning La Liga, Copa del Rey, and the crown jewel of European football - The Champions League. The current FC Barcelona squad includes global soccer superstars Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez, Andrés Iniesta, Ivan Rakitić and Neymar. For more information on FC Barcelona, please visit www.fcbarcelona.com.
Founded in 1882, Tottenham Hotspur Football Club has a tradition of playing an entertaining and attacking style of football. The team finished in the Premier League’s top three in the 2015/2016 season, achieving qualification for the UEFA Champions League, and has a multi-national squad of players. Tottenham Hotspur also has:
- A global following in excess of 400 million, with strong supporter bases across the UK, the USA, China, Asia and Southern Africa, including over 150 Official Supporters Clubs worldwide
- Commercial partnerships with globally-recognised brands including AIA Group Limited (AIA) - one of the world's leading providers of insurance services
- A state-of-the-art training centre with the ongoing construction of a new world class stadium development that will sit at the heart of a major regeneration for North London
- An award winning Foundation that has created 2.75 million opportunities to help enhance the lives of people in its local community through education, employment, health and social inclusion programmes.
For more information on Tottenham Hotspur F.C., please visit www.tottenhamhotspur.com.
AS Roma, founded in 1927, has won the Serie A three times, with the last coming in the 2000-01 season. The Rome-based club also lays claim to nine Coppa Italia titles and two Supercoppa Italiana titles. I Giallorossi features captain, all-time leading goalscorer and the most capped player in the club’s long history, Francesco Totti. This year’s roster also features vice-captain and Italian national Daniele De Rossi as well as the clubs current leading goal-scorer, Bosnian striker Edin Džeko. The club recently reached the Round of 16 in the 2016 Europa League while chasing fellow International Champions Cup participant and domestic rival Juventus F.C. in Serie A. The club plays its home matches in Stadio Olimpico, which also acts as the host stadium for fellow Serie A club Lazio and the Coppa Italia final. For more information on AS Roma, please visit www.asroma.com.
For the second consecutive year, Heineken is the presenting sponsor of the 2017 International Champions Cup. In addition to Heineken, the 2017 tournament features a leading line-up of sponsors, including Ally, Nike, Orlando, Chevrolet, AON, Groupon, VividSeats, Gatorade and Xyience. Additional partners will be announced in the coming months. All matches for the International Champions Cup will be carried on ESPN networks including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Deportes and streaming network ESPN3, accessible through WatchESPN and the ESPN App.
Fans can follow the ICC on social media at @intchampionscup for exclusive content and announcements, and join the conversation using #2017ICC. Fans can sign up for up news, updates and ticket information at www.internationalchampionscup.com.
About Relevent Sports
Relevent Sports provides an innovative approach to building a soccer presence in the United States and around the globe. Relevent Sports showcases the best match-ups and tournaments in soccer featuring the top clubs, international teams and players. Since 2013, Relevent Sports has organized the International Champions Cup; the premier preseason tournament featuring the top European clubs with matches in North America, Europe and Asia. Utilizing brand development, grassroots planning, corporate sponsors, international touring and philanthropic initiatives, Relevent Sports promotes and grows the love of soccer worldwide.
About the International Champions Cup
The International Champions Cup is the world’s premier summer soccer tournament organized by Relevent Sports, featuring the best clubs from around the world. A staple property of Relevent Sports and RSE Ventures, the International Champions Cup works with leading sponsors such as Heineken, Nike, Orlando, and Ally, among others, to bring the best in soccer to iconic sports venues across North America, Europe and China.
The International Champions Cup has hosted some of the most iconic matchups in the world, including the two most attended soccer matches in U.S. history. First came when Real Madrid C.F. and Manchester United F.C. drew 109,318 fans to Michigan Stadium at the University of Michigan. Real Madrid C.F. returned to the “Big House” to take on Chelsea F.C. in front of 105,826 fans, second all-time, as part of the 2016 tournament. The International Champions Cup also has hosted the most attended soccer matches in Minnesota (64,101 at U.S. Bank Stadium) and Ohio (86,641 at Ohio Stadium) state history. In its four-year history, Real Madrid C.F., Manchester United F.C., Juventus F.C. and Paris Saint-Germain F.C. have all won installments of the tournament.
About RSE Ventures
Founded in 2012 by Stephen M. Ross and Matt Higgins, RSE Ventures is a multi-national sports and entertainment venture firm with a focus on new technologies. RSE builds, owns and operates companies in sports, media, entertainment and technology, including Catalyst Media Group, VaynerMedia, Vayner/RSE, Relevent Sports, Ascendent Sports Group and the International Champions Cup.
About HEINEKEN USA
HEINEKEN USA Inc., the nation's leading upscale beer importer, is a subsidiary of HEINEKEN International NV, the world's most international brewer. European brands imported into the U.S. include Heineken®, the world's most international beer brand, Strongbow Hard Apple Ciders, Amstel Light, and Newcastle Brown Ale. HEINEKEN USA also imports the Dos Equis Franchise, Tecate Franchise, Sol, Indio, Carta Blanca and Bohemia brands from Mexico. For the latest information on our company and brands, follow us on Twitter @HeinekenUSACorp, or visit HEINEKENUSA.com.
