New England Soccer Today

Revs Slated For 2013 Desert Diamond Cup Tourney

Revolution midfielder Kelyn Rowe dribbles away from Galaxy midfielder Pat Noonan during this year’s FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup tournament. (Photo: Joshua Pearson)

The New England Revolution are amoung four MLS clubs slated to play in the 2013 FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup preseason tournament, according to a news release issued by Premier Development League (USL) club FC Tucson on Thursday.

Joining the Revolution for the tournament, which will run from Feb. 13-23 at Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium in Tucson, Ariz., are the New York Red Bulls, Real Salt Lake and Seattle Sounders.

Earlier this year, the Revolution, Red Bulls, Salt Lake and Los Angeles participated in the 2012 tournament, with Los Angeles beating New England on penalties to win the inaugural FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup championship trophy.

“We’re very pleased to return to Tucson next February,” Revolution head coach Jay Heaps said in a statement. “We had an incredible experience last year and the city of Tucson was a wonderful host for two weeks. The facilities and hospitality are first-rate and the ability to train on good fields and in great weather just before the start of the season is paramount for us. We’re very excited to come back next year.”

The Revolution went 3-0-1 during the 2012 tournament, and earned a 2-1 win over FC Tucson in a separate exhibiton on Jan. 28.

The 2013 tournament will take place over the course of four days: Wednesday, Feb. 13th; Saturday, Feb. 17th; Wednesday, Feb. 20th and Saturday, Feb. 23. Game times for the round-robin stage and third-place game have not yet been announced.

The teams will play a round-robin format through the first three dates. The Revolution will kick off the tournament on Feb. 13 when they face the Sounders, before they play the Red Bulls on Feb. 16 and complete the round-robin stage on Feb. 20 against Salt Lake.

The tournament final and third-place game will be played on Saturday, Feb. 23, with the NBC Sports Network airing the 2013 Desert Diamond Cup final live at 8 p.m. ET.

“FC Tucson is quite pleased to continue building upon the success of last year’s tournament by welcoming back three of the four 2012 participants and introducing the community to the Seattle Sounders,” said FC Tucson managing member Greg Foster in a statement. “After talking extensively with MLS, Tucson has become the ‘Western Hub of MLS Pre-Season’ and we look forward to celebrating the world’s game with our friends and family all around the region, including Northern Mexico. We also expect to see a sizable influx of fans from each team’s city as we turn Tucson into a soccer mecca for the entire month of February.”

2013 Desert Diamond Cup Schedule

Wednesday, February 13th, 2013
New England Revolution vs. Seattle Sounders
New York Red Bulls vs. Real Salt Lake

Saturday, February 16th, 2013
Seattle Sounders vs. Real Salt Lake
New York Red Bulls vs. New England Revolution

Wednesday, February 20th, 2013
Real Salt Lake vs. New England Revolution
Seattle Sounders vs. New York Red Bulls

Saturday, February 23rd, 2013
MLS 3rd Place vs. MLS 4th Place
MLS 1st Place vs. MLS 2nd Place

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