Why the next USMNT match at TQL Stadium will be different for Cincinnati
The next international soccer matches to be played at TQL Stadium will be spiked with an acute sense of Cincinnati pride.
On Sunday, TQL Stadium will host a doubleheader for the first time ever with two CONCACAF Gold Cup matches featuring Guatemala versus Jamaica (5 p.m.) and the USMNT versus Canada (7:30 p.m.). The games are quarterfinal-round matches as part of the confederation tournament to crown a national-team champion for North and Central America, and the Caribbean.
With the corresponding quarterfinal matches being staged at 80,000-seat AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, Sunday's games will put TQL Stadium and Greater Cincinnati on a prominent, international stage, but that's nothing new for the venue and the region.
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For the first time ever, FC Cincinnati has players − Brandon Vazquez, a 2022 MLS All-Star, and Matt Miazga, a scheduled participant in this season's MLS All-Star Game − rostered on the USMNT as it comes to Cincinnati.
For Vazquez and Miazga, their call-ups to participate in the tournament are considered a high honor as the USMNT looks to equal Mexico by winning its eighth Gold Cup title. And for FC Cincinnati's adoring supporters, its a chance to see their players recognized at the highest level possible.
"You just hope that your guys get an opportunity and make the most of it," FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan said Thursday. "Both Matt and Brandon have, and it would certainly be neat to see them in front of their home fans − a lot of their home fans − and making a positive impact. So, that's the hope.
"We're proud of them."
What this Gold Cup means to FC Cincinnati, the region
Since FC Cincinnati made the jump to Major League Soccer in 2019, the USMNT has visited the city three previous times. The American program played Venezuela in a friendly on the University of Cincinnati campus in 2019, and then returned to utilize TQL Stadium in 2021 and 2022.
The matches varied in significance but each was a kind of acknowledgement of the Greater Cincinnati region's growing soccer prowess − even if FC Cincinnati had no Americans deemed worthy of call-ups to the roster.
But as FC Cincinnati grew into fuller maturity in recent seasons, so has its roster, and therefore what it has to offer America's and other national teams. With Vazquez and Miazga likely to both contribute against Canada, it's an important milestone for the game locally.
"It's awesome to go back to Cincinnati wearing the U.S. crest," Miazga said during a Thursday Zoom call conducted by U.S. Soccer. "I missed out the last few times but we all know the atmosphere and the support that Cincinnati brings for soccer, so it's exciting to be there with the U.S. at a high level."
Miazga is seeing a resurgence in his USMNT career after falling out of the national team setup late in 2021. He ultimately missed out on the 2022 men's FIFA World Cup in Qatar where the team was managed by Gregg Berhalter.
Berhalter's contract lapsed prior to his being rehired for the job and while Miazga hinted at a rift between player and coach in the past, Miazga, who has appeared 26 times for the country, said Thursday he was eager to continue re-establishing himself on the international stage.
For Vazquez, the Gold Cup has cemented his commitment to the USMNT. A dual-national eligible to play for Mexico, Vazquez wasn't formally tied to the USMNT even after appearing in three "friendlies" over two separate call-up stints this year.
Vazquez was firmly in the conversation to earn a call-up leading up to and for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar but wasn't selected by Berhalter. That left an open question about whether Mexico might swoop in late to secure his services.
Even as Mexico never made a move on Vazquez, that part of the conversation lingered into 2023 until Vazquez made his USMNT debut in a competitive, non-friendly Gold Cup group stage match June 24 against Jamaica.
His appearance in that match "cap-tied" Vazquez to the USMNT and ended any Mexico conversation. Vazquez marked the occasion with a dramatic, 88th-minute goal at Soldier Field in Chicago to secure a vital 1-1 draw.
"This Gold Cup has been incredible," Vazquez said. "The whole culture here at U.S. Soccer is unbelievable. Everybody's work ethic. The chemistry between all the players. It feels like I've been playing with this group forever even though this is just my first camp with a lot of these guys. The group feels amazing. I love being here with this group. This coaching staff is also next-level, so, yeah, I would say the results also speak for themselves. The team's been playing great and we will like we can win the championship here.
"It's gonna be an incredible experience (Sunday). Fans of FCC in Cincinnati, at TQL Stadium, are second to none. I'm super, super excited to be able to represent the United States at TQL Stadium, in my home . . . Obviously, I've wanted to represent this country for my whole career, so to be able to do it at home, it takes the emotions to the next level."
About Canada
Canada comes to TQL Stadium after finishing as the runner-up in Group D, and just weeks removed from a knockout match against the Americans in a separate CONCACAF competition.
With both teams dispatching their top-rung players for the Nations League final, the USMNT dispatched Canada, 2-0.
The programs meet again Sunday with heavily rotated rosters but high stakes nonetheless.
Canada stumbled into a 2-2 draw against Guadeloupe in its group stage opener via a late own-goal. It then drew Guatemala, 0-0, on the second match day and used a 4-2 win over Cuba to secure its place in the knockout phase of the competition.
Six players scored one goal apiece for the Canadians in group play.
The Canadian men's national team is overseen by manager Jon Herdman, who guided the team to a first-place finish in CONCACAF's round-robin qualifying tournament to reach the Qatar World Cup last year.
New to the Gold Cup? Read this.
CONCACAF is one of six confederations operating under the umbrella of FIFA, world soccer's governing body. The CONCACAF acronym stands for: "Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football." There are 41 member associations within CONCACAF, and the Gold Cup is the biannual tournament that crowns a men's national team champion for the region.
Sixteen national teams reached the group stage, which is now completed, and Sunday will see single-game elimination knockout matches begin. Quarterfinal matches will be staged at TQL Stadium and AT&T Stadium.
USMNT-Canada will be preceded by Jamaica versus Guatemala. In Texas, Mexico will play Costa Rica and Panama will play Qatar, which is an invited guest to this year's Gold Cup.
The semifinals will be contested July 12 at SnapDragon Stadium and Allegiant Stadium in San Diego and Las Vegas, respectively. The tournament's championship match will take place July 16 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
The Gold Cup was founded in 1991 and Mexico and the USMNT have largely dominated the competition. Mexico has won eight titles while the USMNT have won seven.
The USMNT game
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m., Sunday | TQL Stadium, Cincinnati
TV/stream: FOX, Univision
Cincinnati.com prediction: USMNT 3, Canada 0.
USMNT
FIFA world rank: 11th
Gold Cup group record: 2-0-1 (Group "A" winner)
Head coach: B.J. Callaghan (interim)
Projected starting XI:
Matt Turner, goalkeeper
Bryan Reynolds, right back
Matt Miazga, center back
Jalen Neal, center back
DuJuan Jones, left back
Đorđe Mihailović, midfielder
James Sands, midfielder
Gianluca Busio, midfielder
Cade Cowell, forward
Jesus Ferreira, forward
Alejandro Zendejas, forward
Canada
FIFA world rank: 45th
Gold Cup group record: 1-0-2 (Group "D" runner-up)
Head coach: John Herdman
Projected starting XI:
Dayne St. Clair, goalkeeper
Richie Laryea, right back
Zac McGraw, center back
Kamal Miller, center back
Ali Ahmed, left back
Jonathan Osorio, midfielder
Moïse Bombito, midfielder
Liam Fraser, midfielder
Junior Hoilett, midfielder
Lucas Cavallini, forward
Liam Millar, forward
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Why the next USMNT match at TQL Stadium is different for Cincinnati
