* Wizards Host Philadelphia Union Thursday at 7 p.m. CT
* Summer of Soccer World Cup Watch Parties Begin Friday
* Follow KCWizards.com for World Cup Content
* Wizards to Kick Off Summer of Soccer Events
* KCW Juniors U16 Team Qualifies for U.S. Soccer Development Academy Playoffs
* Manchester United Tickets On Sale
* This Week on KC Soccer Radio
* Wizards Youth Soccer Camps Update
WIZARDS HOST PHILADELPHIA UNION THURSDAY BEFORE WORLD CUP BREAK:
Kansas City faces the latest MLS expansion club Philadelphia Union at home on Thursday at 7 p.m. CT after two matches on the road. Fans are reminded of the 7 p.m. start time. Most Kansas City Wizards home matches begin at 7:30 p.m. CT. Philadelphia has compiled a 2-6-1 record during the 2010 campaign and currently sit in 7th place in the Eastern Conference. French striker Sebastien Le Toux leads the Union with five goals, which places him in a tie for 5th place on the leading scorers list. Wizards forward Kei Kamara also has five goals on the season and will look to score another Thursday, a goal which would tie his career best for a single season.
Kansas City tied Toronto FC, the 3rd place team in the East, 0-0 Saturday afternoon. Goalkeeper Jimmy Nielsen earned his 4th shutout of the season and is tied for third in the category. Nielsen made three impressive saves to keep TFC scoreless and put together another strong goalkeeping performance. The game also saw former Wizards player and current Toronto FC defender Nick Garcia ejected for a challenge against Kamara.
Midfielder Davy Arnaud will become the 5th player in club history to reach the 200 regular-season games plateau with an appearance in Thursday's game. He will move into a tie for 4th on the team's all-time list with Chris Klein, who played exactly 200 games with the Wizards before departing.
Thursday’s match will again be broadcast live on KCWE 29. Play-by-play man Dave Borchardt will have the call in English, with Sasha Victorine serving as analyst. Secondary audio is available in Spanish, featuring Enrique Morales and Raul Villegas.
SUMMER OF SOCCER WORLD CUP WATCH PARTIES AMONG LARGEST IN NATION:
Friday, the FIFA World Cup™ kicks off with a big contest between host nation South Africa and CONCACAF power Mexico. The Kansas City Wizards, the Kansas City Power & Light District and the Kansas City / USA Host City Bid Committee announced last week that all 64 matches of this summer’s World Cup will be shown live at the 2010 Summer of Soccer in the Living Room at KC Live! The Summer of Soccer is expected to be one of the largest outdoor FIFA World Cup viewing parties in the United States.
Starting with Friday’s Mexico-South Africa game and running through the final match on July 11, the Summer of Soccer will feature every match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ shown live in the KC Live! Living Room at the Power & Light District in downtown Kansas City. The Living Room’s video screen is the largest of its type in the Kansas City metropolitan area, and the location is ideal for fans, with bars, restaurants, shops and many other surrounding amenities.
FOLLOW KCWIZARDS.COM FOR WORLD CUP CONTENT:
Soccer fans are encouraged to frequent www.KCWizards.com during the upcoming World Cup for exclusive first-hand content from South Africa. In addition to the watch parties in Kansas City, the Wizards will publish content from four individuals who will spend all or part of the World Cup in South Africa in various capacities.
-David Ficklin, OnGoal Vice President of Development
-Josh Whisenhunt, KC Soccer Radio Show Host
-TJ Widbin, Kicks 4 Kenya Founder
-Kurt Austin, Soccer Blogger, Enthusiast
WIZARDS, POWER PARTNERS TO HOST DRIBBLING EVENT THURSDAY NIGHT, FRIDAY MORNING:
The Kansas City Wizards and Power Partners, a partnership between the local NECA and IBEW organizations, will host a dribbling event Thursday night and Friday morning to kickoff the 2010 World Cup and the Summer of Soccer watch parties to be held in the Power & Light District downtown. The processional will be similar to the Olympic torch ceremony, signaling the beginning of downtown watch parties for every match of the 64-game World Cup. The event will help Kansas City soccer fans transition from club to country, showing their support for the Kansas City Wizards Thursday night and viewing the World Cup starting Friday morning.
The event will begin Thursday night at the conclusion of the Wizards match versus expansion side Philadelphia Union when goalkeeper Jimmy Nielsen will kick a soccer ball out of CommunityAmerica Ballpark to start the dribbling chain. Nielsen’s kick will be broadcast live on the Wizards post-game show on KCWE 29.
The ceremony will conclude the next morning as soccer enthusiasts dribble from the Liberty Memorial to the Power & Light District before the World Cup opener between Mexico and South Africa at 9 a.m. CT. Power Partners will provide a state-of-the-art van with immense lighting displays to illuminate the path of the dribblers. The van is capable of lighting a five square block area.
Hundreds of dribblers will participate, with stops in both Kansas City, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri parks before the ball travels down Main Street. Kansas City Wizards Manager and former World Cup participant Peter Vermes will be the final dribbler, shooting the ball into a goal set up in the “Living Room” area of the KC Live! block inside Power & Light at approximately 7:30 a.m. CT Friday morning. All 32 countries participating in the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ will be represented during the processional.
Dribbling Timeline
• Thursday, June 10
o Stony Point Park – 9:45 p.m. – 10:30 p.m. Media are encouraged to do live shots and take photographs at Stony Point Park in Kansas City, KS.
o Pierson County Park – 10:30 p.m.
o Ruby Park – 10:45 p.m.
o Swope Park – 11:15 p.m.
o Loose Park – 11:45 p.m.
o JC Nichols Fountain – 11:55 p.m.
o Liberty Memorial – 12:05 a.m.
• Friday, June 11
o Liberty Memorial – 7:00 a.m.
1. The ball will travel from Liberty Memorial to the Power & Light District via the sidewalks along Main Street.
o Kansas City Power & Light District – 7:30 a.m.
1. The ball will arrive at the Power & Light District approximately 7:30 a.m. Media members are encouraged to gather in the KC Live! block for live shots and photo opportunities as Peter Vermes concludes the processional.
NOTE: To schedule a live shot or photo opportunity at any of the locations included in the event, please contact Dave Borchardt in the Kansas City Wizards media relations department at (816) 665-8442 or dborchardt@kcwizards.com.
KCW JUNIORS U16 TEAM QUALIFIES FOR U.S. SOCCER DEVELOPMENT ACADEMY PLAYOFFS:
The KCW Juniors U16 team has qualified for the U.S. Soccer Development Academy playoffs in their first year in the competition. The team competed in Central Conference, Frontier Division and posted an 8-2-8 record in conference play to qualify as a wild card. Real Colorado and the Chicago Fire Juniors also qualified for the playoffs from the division.
The tournament takes place in Browns Summit, North Carolina right outside of Greensboro from June 25-29, 2010. The playoffs feature 32 teams in each age division, and all teams are guaranteed three matches. The top eight teams will qualify for the finals held July 9-17 at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California.
The U16s are led by Jordan Rideout, son of former Wizards player Paul Rideout, who had 12 goals and U.S. Men’s National Team U18 goalkeeper Jon Kempin.
MANCHESTER UNITED TICKETS ON SALE TO THE PUBLIC:
Fans who wish to watch the Kansas City Wizards take on soccer giants Manchester United in an exhibition match Sunday, July 25 can now purchase individual tickets to the match.
Tickets, which range from $30 - $200 can be purchased online through Ticketmaster.com, by calling 1-800-745-3000, or by visiting Kansas City area Ticketmaster outlets or the Arrowhead Stadium box office. Premium tickets, VIP opportunities and group tickets can be purchased by calling the Wizards at 888-4KC-GOAL.
Managed by Sir Alex Ferguson since 1986, Manchester United currently boasts a lineup full of international stars such as Wayne Rooney (England), Patrice Evra (France), Dimitar Berbatov (Bulgaria), Nani (Portugal), Edwin van der Sar (Netherlands), Antonio Valencia (Ecuador), Paul Scholes (England) and legendary midfielder Ryan Giggs (Wales) who has been a part of every United Premier League Championship and holds the record for most appearances in club history with 837. Rooney scored his 100th Premier League goal this season and is currently tied for the English Premier league scoring lead with 26 goals. In addition, last month Manchester United added to its stable Mexican star Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez, who is considered one of the top young players in the world. United are committed to fielding all of its players for the North American tour who are not obligated to World Cup duties.
THIS WEEK ON KC SOCCER RADIO:
Wizards fans can follow the beautiful game on local radio this summer in both Spanish and English, with the Kansas City Soccer Show and Zona Wizards.
This week’s KC Soccer Show on Sports Radio 810 WHB will broadcast live from McFadden’s in the Power & Light District Saturday morning with a special two-hour World Cup edition. The show will air from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. CT, before the huge match between the United States and England at 1:30 p.m. CT.
Zona Wizards, the Wizards weekly Spanish-language radio show, airs weekly during the 2010 MLS season. The show, which features interviews with Wizards players and coaches, airs every Wednesday at 8:00 p.m. CT on La Gran D 1340 AM, which is also the Wizards Spanish-language flagship station.
WIZARDS YOUTH SOCCER CAMPS NOW ON SALE:
Registration to any of the Kansas City Wizards’ youth camps is now open, with nine different camps taking place at various locations around the Kansas City metro area this summer.
All camps will be managed and directed by full time Wizards employees, and include appearances by Wizards coaching staff and/or players along with a game ticket and many other benefits. The Wizards offer a variety of camps, consisting of Elite Camps for boys only, Fantasy Camps for the experienced male and female players at the team’s Swope Park Training Center and a handful of other camps in the Overland Park area.
For more information or to register for a Kansas City Wizards youth camp, visit www.kcwizards.com/camps, or contact Betsy Pollard at (913) 387-3883 or bpollard@kcwizards.com.
