Sporting Kansas City's quarterfinal series with Mexico's Cruz Azul in the 2013-2014 CONCACAF Champions League will take place at 7 p.m. CT on Wednesday, March 12 at Sporting Park (leg one) and 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday, March 19 at Estadio Azul (leg two) , CONCACAF announced on Monday. Tickets for the opening leg at Sporting Park are included in Sporting Kansas City's 2014 full season ticket member packages and individual tickets for the match-up will go on sale later this month.
Sporting Kansas City advanced to the championship stage of the 2013-14 CONCACAF Champions League as Group 2 winners and the seventh overall seed in the competition. The club is paired with Cruz Azul from Liga MX, the tournament's second seed after a perfect 4-0-0 record in Group 3.
2013-14 CCL: Tournament Guide
Cruz Azul is the most successful team in CCL history, winning the tournament five times (tied for most among all clubs) and finishing runners-up in both the 2008-09 and 2009-10 editions. The team's 29 wins are most in CCL history to go along with six draws and nine losses all-time in the tournament.
Founded in 1927, Cruz Azul are eight-time league champions and three-time Copa MX champions, including the Copa MX Clausura 2013 title. The team features midfielder Gerardo Torrado, whose 143 caps for Mexico include appearances at each of the last three FIFA World Cups, and goalkeeper Jose Corona, who captained Mexico to the gold medal at the 2012 Olympic Games.
CCL Crash Course: Cruz Azul
The home-and-away series will be decided by aggregate goal with the winner advancing to the semifinal round to face the winner between No. 3 Tijuana (MEX) and No. 6 LA Galaxy (USA). Should Sporting KC advance, Sporting Park would host the second leg in the semifinal round.
Semifinals
April 1-3: First Leg
April 8-10: Second Leg
Finals
April 15-17: First Leg
April 22-24: Second Leg
Sporting KC is one of three MLS teams to advance to the CCL quarterfinals, along with the LA Galaxy and San Jose Earthquakes. Manager Peter Vermes' squad went unbeaten in the group stage (2-0-2), allowing just one goal in four games to finish atop Group 2 with eight points.
Sporting Kansas City last traveled to Mexico in 2009 for pre-season friendlies against Atlas, CD Guadalajara and Selamanca. The club is 1-5-2 all-time in international competitive matches against Mexican clubs and is one of two MLS teams all-time to win a two-legged series with a Mexican team in CONCACAF competition.
