Hartford to Host Gold Cup
- Updated: January 24, 2013
Hartford will play host to CONCACAF Gold Cup action for the first time after the venues for the 2013 tournament were released on Wednesday.
Rentschler Field, located in nearby East Hartford, is among 13 stadiums that won bids following the selection process, which was conducted by Soccer United Marketing (SUM). Thirty venues submitted bids for the 2013 edition of the 22-year-old tournament.
The competition is scheduled to begin on Jul. 7 and the final will take place on Jul. 28. Dates for each of the 13 venues have not yet been announced.
Hartford has a history of hosting international soccer. The city hosted matches in the U.S. Men’s National Team World Cup Send Off Series in 2006 and 2010. It has also hosted a number of U.S. Women’s National Team matches as well.
The city briefly served as home to top flight soccer in 1975 when the Hartford Bicentennials (NASL) played at Dillon Stadium. The following year, the team moved to New Haven before the franchise exited the Nutmeg State in 1978 to become the Oakland Stompers.
The last time the Gold Cup came to New England was back in 2009, when Gillette Stadium served as a host. The U.S. came back from a late deficit thanks to a Stu Holden stoppage time goal to earn a 2-2 draw with Haiti on Jul. 11. Current Revolution head coach Jay Heaps started at center back for the U.S. during the dramatic draw.
The full list of host cities and venues is as follows:
•Dallas – Cowboys Stadium (Arlington, Texas)
•Atlanta – Georgia Dome (Atlanta)
•Baltimore – M&T Bank Stadium (Baltimore)
•Chicago – Soldier Field (Chicago)
•Denver – Sports Authority Field at Mile High (Denver)
•Hartford – Rentschler Field (East Hartford, Conn.)
•Houston – BBVA Compass Stadium (Houston)
•Los Angeles – Rose Bowl (Pasadena, Calif.)
•Miami – Sun Life Stadium (Miami Gardens, Fla.)
•New York– Red Bull Arena (Harrison, N.J.)
•Portland – JELD-WEN Field (Portland, Ore.)
•Salt Lake City – Rio Tinto Stadium (Sandy, Utah)
•Seattle – CenturyLink Field (Seattle)
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