“I am thrilled to bring the International Champions Cup back to the city of Miami,” said Stephen Ross, Miami Dolphins owner and RSE Ventures chairman and co-founder.
Real Madrid C.F. and FC Barcelona will actually be playing against each other for the first time in North America. These clubs possess some of the most popular soccer players in the entire world like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The game will take place at 7:30 pm ET on July 29, 2017 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida with ESPN and ESPN Deportes both offering broadcasts of the match. The International Champions Cup is a tournament that displays the most successful European clubs to countries like the United States and Canada. The tournament has also been held in other countries like China, Australia, and Mexico. This clash will be the first soccer game played at the Hard Rock Stadium since the stadium’s newest alterations.
The El Clásico Miami management team, along with the International Champions Cup (ICC) will have an agenda that will include concerts, brand activations, team pep rallies, art activations, and other events. The city of Miami will also have a chance to show their culture to tourists and soccer fans that will be in the area for the game. Miami is a city that has a strong presence of soccer fans and it’s starting to be known because of high attendances in recent soccer games. It shouldn’t be a surprise that the city of Miami is the city hosting this phenomenal event.
Ross also mentioned how the Hard Rock Stadium is starting to gain a reputation for hosting world-class soccer events.
“The opportunity to showcase two of the most storied clubs in the history of the sport is why we created this tournament. That it will take place at Hard Rock Stadium is a testament to the recent transformation of this venue into a global entertainment destination”.
Relevent Sports announced the news about the event on March 10th and revealed that the 2017 ICC will presented by Heineken.
“As one of the premier supporters of soccer both globally, and in the U.S., our partnership with the International Champions Cup continues our goal to bring U.S. fans closer to the beautiful game,” said Ralph Rijks, senior vice president at HEINEKEN USA.
Heineken will be sponsoring other matches besides El Clásico Miami and this will be their fifth consecutive year doing so.
Both clubs will be expected to bring their biggest stars not named Ronaldo or Messi. The likes of Sergio Ramos, Luka Modric, and Gareth Bale will definitely make the decision to buy a ticket an easy one for Real Madrid fans. Barcelona fans will be interested in a chance to see star players like Neymar da Silva Santos Junior, Andres Iniesta and Luis Suarez. FC Barcelona have never won the ICC tournament, but Real Madrid CF have won it a record three times.
El Clásico is arguably the biggest game in the sport of soccer. It is a rivalry that even non-La Liga fans watch because it is a rivalry that’s known to be both fierce and passionate. These clubs share a conflict that is beyond the sport and is due to historical events and heritage.
Real Madrid FC and FC Barcelona is a can’t miss and the City of Miami will have their hands full when these two clubs come into town. The Madridistas and Barcelonistas are definitely not best friends and it’s going to be a sight to see all of their ultras take over specific sections of the stadium. This is a game that can separate friends or even family members. My father is a Madridista and I am a Barcelonista and I can honestly say things can get sour when this game comes on.
Roberto Cano, Secretary of the Real Madrid peña in Southern California, commented to me about his peña collaborating with Relevent Sports along with other peñas in the United States to attend El Clásico Miami. Around 1,000 members from nine different peñas will be in attendance in a reserved section of the stadium. The peña’s president Javier Robledo will lead the delegation and they will be there from July 27-30.
Real Madrid fans and Barcelona fans in the South Florida have been tingling for this game to come to Miami because it’s one that has yet to happen in the U.S.
“It’s the biggest rivalry in all sports, I think,” said Jose Rojas, Real Madrid supporter. Rojas believes this game is unmatched and the atmosphere is something that even people who don’t watch sports should watch it.
“People need to see it what this game does to their fans. It’s going to be epic and emotions are going to be at an all-time high,” said Matthew Paxton, FC Barcelona supporter.
These fans have been waiting for this game to come to Miami for years and are surprised it has taken this long to come to the U.S. It is expected to be full of nail-biting and sweat because one fan base will have bragging rights by the end of the night. One fan base will be able to go home and sleep soundly while the other one will have to try to tolerate their rivals until the next Clásico. Good luck with that!
