USMNT and USWNT: This is how the U.S. chooses rivals, venues, and prices

The Complex Logistics of Friendlies: How U.S. National Team Matches Are Organized

In 2025, the United States national soccer teams, both men’s and women’s, will play a total of 25 friendly matches at home. The organization of each match requires two essential elements: an opponent and a venue. Tom King, managing director of the United States Soccer Federation (US Soccer), and John Terry, vice president of events, are the main people responsible for this task. Their work is similar to a speed dating marathon, where they must find the perfect combination of rivals and stadiums, often for several matches at once, before the options fade away.

The relationship part is very important. In a way, it can almost be a sales job where you have the opportunity to get a rival, and you chase them like the last bus of the night until you get them.

Tom King, US Soccer

While King focuses on securing opponents, which sometimes involves getting up early to contact colleagues in Europe, Terry is in charge of finding the right stadium. Both aspects are interdependent: without a rival there is no match, and without a venue, the game cannot take place. The main goal is to secure the best possible rivals for the men’s and women’s national teams, as well as for the youth categories, and to distribute the matches throughout the US territory. However, this process is not without its challenges.

As much as possible, we want to take our team to different parts of the country. How can we spread our national selection and get as many people as possible to see it?

John Terry, US Soccer

The fans observe the final result: the rival, the city, and the stadium. Sometimes, the scheduling of the matches may seem contradictory to the objectives of US Soccer. Why are games played in California, Connecticut, or Orlando again, while other regions, such as the Pacific Northwest, haven’t hosted matches in years? Why does the United States face the same rival over and over again? And how much do the tickets cost? US Soccer breaks down the process of selecting opponents and venues, and how this influences ticket prices.

The secret behind the friendlies

The women’s national team coaches, Emma Hayes, and the men’s national team coach, Mauricio Pochettino, regularly present their wish lists of opponents to US Soccer executives. From there, King assesses availability and begins negotiating with other federations, while Terry focuses on finding the right venue. Everything is interconnected. US Soccer considers several factors when selecting venues, from the weather and the historical support of the city’s fans, to the quality of hotels, training facilities, and broadcast restrictions, including those of the rival. The specific challenges of each stadium can be as simple as capacity and availability. For example, scheduling the women’s national team against a top 10 world team like Brazil at SoFi Stadium, which can hold 70,000 spectators, could be a risk worth taking. However, a match against Portugal, which is lower ranked, would make more sense in a stadium with a capacity of 18,000 spectators. Stadium requirements can be as specific as the need for locker rooms for four teams at a SheBelieves Cup event. Terry points out that sometimes he must contact the stadiums and request a quick response to secure a date, as US Soccer runs the risk of losing a possible opponent. At times, stadium operators are only interested in hosting a match if the opponent is attractive enough. King emphasizes that time is crucial, as it increases the likelihood of stadium availability and allows US Soccer to better promote the match. However, crisis management is part of his job, and sometimes US Soccer works for months on plans that never come to fruition.

We had a top-five team with all economic conditions resolved, we had the stadium resolved, we had the president of the federation on board, we had everything done and ready to sign a contract to host this team. And here there is a change of coach, and the coach wants to play against a team from a different confederation between now and the 2026 World Cup on the men’s side. So everything that had been done during the previous 10 months goes down the drain, and we start from scratch again.

Tom King, US Soccer

The USMNT’s match against Turkey at Pratt & Whitney Stadium in East Hartford, Connecticut, was played before a crowd that did not fill the stadium, with 34,023 spectators. In other cases, it’s the venue that needs to change. The United States women’s national team will end 2025 with two matches against Italy in specific soccer stadiums in Florida, but the original plan for that international window was to face another European rival in a baseball stadium 2,500 miles away. King had agreed to terms with the other rival for the women’s selection in the spring. Terry worked on the fall availability issues with the American football and soccer stadiums (the MLS playoff dates are not set until the fall) and proposed a unique solution: to play the match on Black Friday with the roof closed at T-Mobile Park, home of the Seattle Mariners of the MLB. The baseball season would have ended in late November, and US Soccer would have time to place turf over the baseball field. The roof solved any weather-related problems; but the rival’s schedule changed for an official competition, and they were not available to play a friendly in November and December. The next team on Hayes’s wish list was Italy, a semi-finalist in the 2025 European Championship, but the Italian leaders did not want their players to travel to the west coast of the United States in the middle of the European season. Thus, the great idea of a unique event in Seattle, where the USWNT has not played since 2017, was discarded. Each contract for a friendly match is unique, but they all start with the needs of the opponent, according to King. Successful and popular teams usually demand an appearance fee to play away from home, and some may also require bonuses based on the commercial success of the match. (King declined to specify those costs due to the sensitivity of the negotiations). Other visiting teams may accept an allocation or ask for certain expenses to be covered for a delegation of 30 to 50 people.

We are very agile; we are not bureaucratic. When we have a rival to pursue, we pursue them. We don’t have multiple levels of approval to court a certain team.

Tom King, US Soccer

Who are they playing against? Where?

The Pratt & Whitney Stadium in East Hartford is a perfect example of how a series of factors can lead to an outcome that seems contrary to the federation’s desire to distribute the matches. When the USWNT hosts Portugal there on October 26, it will be the 19th combined men’s and women’s national team match at the stadium since its inauguration in 2003. The USMNT played there in June, in addition to the high-profile match against Germany two years ago. That’s a high frequency of national team matches for a utilitarian college soccer stadium in a mid-sized city, but it’s not without reason. The cost is a factor in all programming, of course. MLS stadiums (which generally hold about 20,000 people) could cost around $200,000 to rent, while larger NFL stadiums could range from $500,000 to about $1 million per game, Terry said. Larger markets are also more expensive because everything costs more, from utilities to turn on the lights to the salaries of security, ticket scanners, and all the other stadium workers. Only about half of NFL stadiums have grass fields, which is the preferred surface for the U.S. national teams and most rivals. Terry said that if US Soccer needs to lay temporary grass, that adds at least $500,000 in expenses. The cost is only one part of the equation for any party, Terry said. “The first test is: Is it available to us?” What explains how the USMNT ended up receiving Germany, four-time world champion, in East Hartford in October 2023. US Soccer officials had no doubt that the match would be in high demand among fans, no matter where they played it. The problem was finding a place to play. Germany was willing to play on the East Coast for a more favorable travel and for a better home start time, Terry said. US Soccer staff searched all over the East Coast for a grass field in a large stadium on a Saturday in October, in the middle of the American football season, and couldn’t find one. UConn football, the main tenant of Pratt & Whitney Stadium, had a bye week preceded by an away game on the date of the eventual match. Terry booked the 36,000-seat stadium, and the match sold out. Orlando has also become a frequent stop for the men’s and women’s national teams due to its combination of warm weather and accessibility to both Europe and South America. Driven by the anomaly of the COVID-19 pandemic, Exploria Stadium (as it was then called) hosted five consecutive USWNT matches in January and February 2021. The USMNT played there between those matches and returned in March of each of the following two years for official matches.

In a perfect world, we don’t go back to the same place in a year. It’s an inexact science; it happens because there are other factors that require it.

John Terry, US Soccer

The Cost of Being a Fan

All the factors mentioned above for rivals and venues affect the cost for the fan. Rising ticket prices have become endemic in the sports and entertainment industries. Soccer, with high-profile events including next year’s Men’s World Cup in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, is not immune.

While last year’s CONMEBOL Copa América and this summer’s FIFA Club World Cup, both held in the United States, sparked controversy and sparse crowds due to high ticket prices, US Soccer has no influence on the pricing for those matches. Still, they certainly listen to complaints, including those directed at their own events.

Terry said the federation intends to ensure that the “entry price” for a match, the cheapest ticket, is affordable. He said the starting price for a US national team match is usually cheaper than that of an MLS match or a soccer match organized by other promoters in the same city. Those numbers vary greatly depending on the city, the event, and the ticket level, but a US Soccer ticket is usually 25-30% cheaper than tickets for the home team in that same venue, said a federation spokesperson.

Two factors complicate that position. To begin with, the resale market, which neither US Soccer nor event organizers control, is where prices skyrocket. A front-row seat for the USMNT’s friendly against Ecuador in Austin last week cost as little as $84 before fees (which can add up quickly) about a week before the match. At the same time, a front-row resale ticket just a few sections away cost $297.50. Dynamic pricing, meaning costs fluctuate based on demand, is also a factor. The initial price of a ticket for the USWNT match against New Zealand at CPKC Stadium this month was $45, Terry said. But the 11,500-seat stadium has sold out every Kansas City Current NWSL match to date, and high demand for the choice of such a small venue means current prices tend to be higher. Terry said US Soccer’s pricing model rewards fans who buy in advance, and argues that US Soccer matches are “more accessible than many other sports entities in this country.” US Soccer recently announced that it would limit tickets sold to the American Outlaws, the largest support group for the U.S. national teams, to $45 plus fees for all matches organized by the federation through October 2026.

We’ve always believed that soccer should be for everyone. This partnership with US Soccer helps eliminate one of the biggest barriers, cost, and makes it possible for more passionate fans to stand, sing, and support each other together.

Justin Brunken, co-founder of American Outlaws

Even so, that association is limited to members of the American Outlaws and not the general public. US Soccer is experimenting with free parking for everyone at this month’s USWNT match in Hartford. The federation worked with sponsor Coca-Cola to offer discounted concessions earlier this year at a men’s national team match in Nashville.

US Soccer doesn’t have a stadium where the federation can control food and beverage or parking costs, leaving those prices up to the venue. At the USWNT match in St. Paul, Minnesota, earlier this year, US Soccer spent nearly $38,000 to offset concession costs and create a $2 menu for hot dogs, popcorn, nachos, and water. The idea came about based on direct feedback from the US Soccer Supporters Council, which was established in 2018 as a communication bridge between fans and the federation. The five members of the Supporters’ Council attend as many national team matches as possible and gather feedback from fans on-site informally and formally, in addition to the information they obtain from fans online. They identify common themes that they then bring to US Soccer in quarterly in-person meetings and monthly virtual meetings.

Much of the feedback focuses on ticket prices, the atmosphere of the match, and the overall matchday experience. I can say that over the last year, we’ve seen some really exciting and tangible changes that reflect fan feedback.

Lauralynn Stephen, Vice President of the Board

Stephen said that the fans communicated their desire for better concession prices after experiencing them at a match at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which is known for its affordable food and beverages for as little as $2. She personally raised the issue with US Soccer in one of their meetings with the Supporters’ Council. Stephen said that the federation’s matchday communication has improved in simple ways, such as a “Know Before You Go” webpage detailing parking and other logistics.

Culture is improving; communication, collaboration are absolutely there; it’s in place. The future looks very bright for future board members and fans in general, because US Soccer is very actively involved and very interested in what the fans feel about the match day experience.

Lauralynn Stephen, Vice President of the Board

What’s coming

Programming strong and diverse rivals, especially from Europe, is increasingly a challenge for US Soccer. FIFA has established international calendars for the men’s and women’s game until 2029 and 2030 for women and men, respectively. Men’s European rivals are available for friendlies in March and June of next year before the World Cup, but those windows are not replicated in the following three years. The same is now true in women’s football.

The biggest challenge is really the arrival of the Women’s Nations League. Twelve of the world’s top 20 women’s teams are from Europe. Of the 10 international windows between now and the 2027 Women’s World Cup, six of them are being used by UEFA for World Cup qualifying and playoffs, in addition to more Nations League programming.

Tom King, US Soccer

The USWNT will not be able to schedule a European rival in 2026 until October of next year, and even then, it will not be able to play against teams participating in the World Cup qualifying playoffs. King said he already has “contacts” with six possible European teams for that window. The need for the USWNT, four-time world champion, to play against strong teams, along with the tight official European schedule, has led the American women to play more frequently against Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, and South Korea as rivals in recent years. Among US Soccer’s solutions to scheduling challenges is collaboration with the Mexican federation, the FMF, which offers those visiting teams two high-quality opponents in relatively close locations. (Mexico frequently “hosts” matches in the U.S., which creates its own challenges in finding four venues in a week). Four days after Ecuador plays the USMNT in Austin this month, Ecuador will play Mexico in Guadalajara. The New Zealand women’s team will play Mexico twice before traveling to Kansas City for a match against the USWNT this month. There are also challenges related to venues that go beyond cost and location. Particularly on the men’s side, the United States often faces a partial crowd for visitors despite playing at home. An openly pro-Korean crowd for a recent USMNT friendly at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey, was the latest reminder of that. Last year, the United States lost 5-1 to Colombia in front of a pro-Colombian crowd of 55,494 people in Maryland. Terry sees the challenge as an opportunity.

The good thing about the United States is that we have people from all over the world living here, and regardless of the jersey they wear when they come to one of our matches, they are in our ecosystem, and they could be a future coach. Their children could be future players. They could be players. And they could be referees. And, therefore, I think it’s up to us to figure out: How can we serve them? Not just in the stadium, but on the other 364 days of the year. It’s an opportunity to connect with a lot of people and bring them under our umbrella. Our ultimate goal here is to grow the sport of soccer in the country.

John Terry, US Soccer

There’s an important addition: that comprehensive approach to match distribution applies to friendly matches. “The other side of the coin is that, for an official match, a Nations League qualifier or a World Cup qualifier, we’re doing exactly the opposite,” King said. For those official matches, winning, and qualifying, is everything, which helps explain why Columbus, Ohio, has hosted multiple World Cup qualifying matches between the USMNT and Mexico in February, in the middle of winter. There was a climatic advantage for the USMNT, but Columbus was also a place where US Soccer felt it could guarantee a pro-U.S. crowd, which is not the case in many areas of the U.S. for a match between the U.S. and Mexico. King said that the federation worked with former USMNT coach Gregg Berhalter in the 2022 World Cup qualifying cycle “to make sure the guiding principle was to put our team in the best possible way to win by having a boisterous home crowd.” Three of the USMNT’s qualifying matches in that cycle were played in cold months in Ohio (including a 2-0 victory over Mexico in Cincinnati) and another in Minnesota. Those venues were selected both to ensure pro-U.S. crowds and for a climate supposedly more suitable for American players. The USMNT has dealt with sweltering heat and flooded fields for away qualifying matches throughout Concacaf.

It wasn’t a surprise for us to play a Saturday at noon at the Azteca Stadium in June [against Mexico for World Cup qualification]. And we are not looking for reciprocity or to be resentful either. But, at the same time, how can we put our players in the best possible environment to win, when most of them play in northern climates, whether MLS teams or in Europe? We are used to the cold. It is also not uncommon for us to go to [Honduras] and play at 3 in the afternoon during the week. These are things that the home team can choose to do.

Tom King, US Soccer

US Soccer’s meticulous planning isn’t the norm everywhere. There are confederations that are comfortable scheduling matches with less than two months’ notice. “That’s unsustainable for us,” King said.

The more we can have these matches in the books is a great source of satisfaction with respect to knowing what we are doing, knowing where we are going from a commercial point of view. You have a much longer runway to be able to promote the matches.

Tom King, US Soccer

King said US Soccer intentionally hasn’t scheduled the men’s June matches yet so they can book an opponent in reaction to December’s World Cup draw. Beyond that variable, however, US Soccer is already planning through June 2027. The fewer overnight buses to chase in the process, the better.