NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES (April 14, 2011) - Major League Soccer and CAA Sports announced today that MLS' Vancouver Whitecaps FC and Manchester City FC will face off at Empire Field in Vancouver on Monday, July 18 (10:00 p.m. ET) as part of the 2011 World Football Challenge. This is the fourth announced match of the premier summer club competition.
Vancouver Whitecaps FC made its debut as the 17th team in MLS in this 2011 season and is one of the league's best supported clubs with 15,000 full season ticket holders at Empire Field. Currently the second Canadian team in the League, Whitecaps FC will be playing their first-ever game as an MLS club against a Premiership squad.
"We are thrilled to be playing an English Premier League club in Manchester City FC at Empire Field," said Paul Barber, Whitecaps FC chief executive officer. "Our inaugural season in Major League Soccer has been a tremendous success to this stage, with near capacity crowds at our first three home matches this season. As part of this exciting first season in MLS and as a special thank you for the great support we have received from our fans, we will be inviting all season ticket holders to join us for the Manchester City match as our guests."
Manchester City is currently in fourth place in the Barclays Premier League, and is a serious contender for the League title, due in large part to such key players as 2010 FIFA World Cup champion David Silva (Spain) and Edin Dzeko (Bosnia). Under the management of Italian Roberto Mancini, the club also counts on midfielder Yaya Touré (Ivory Coast) and Patrick Vieira (France). The balance of Manchester City's participation in the challenge will be announced soon.
