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MLS Real Salt Lake

RSL weekly update

July 14, 2008 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Real Salt Lake News Release


Real Salt Lake Defends First Place Saturday at Chicago Fire RSL Reserves to Face BYU Cougars in First Game at Renovated Stadium at South Field Tuesday RSL Coach's Corner on KALL 700 Sports Airs Tonight at 6:00 p.m. Coldwell Banker Summer Soccer Series Continues Wednesday in Salt Lake City RSL U-17s Win 2008 SUM U-17 Cup, Earn Spot in Next Year's Trofeo Quixote Tournament in Spain RSL Stadium to Host 2009 MLS All-Star Game RSL to Welcome Costa Rica's Deportivo Saprissa for Annual Pioneer Day Event Real Salt Lake Schedule: July 15-20, 2008 RSL Rewind: RSL Snags First Place for First Time via 2-0 Win over Columbus

Real Salt Lake Defends First Place Saturday at Chicago Fire

Real Salt Lake (6-6-5, 23 pts.) will take its first try at defending its first-place status in the Western Conference this Saturday, July 19, when Utah's side will travel to the Midwest to take on the Chicago Fire (7-5-3, 24 pts.). Kick-off at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Ill., is set for 6:30 p.m. MT, and the match can be followed live on KSL-TV NBC-5 (30-minute post-game show to follow), KALL 700 Sports, and Ke Buena 1600-AM.

Real Salt Lake and Chicago will close out their two-game season series in Illinois on Saturday, with both teams looking to take the advantage after sharing a point out of a 1-1 draw to open up their respective campaigns at Rice-Eccles Stadium back on March 29. That draw brought RSL's record against the "Men in Red" to 1-4-2, which includes a 0-2-1 mark in Chicagoland (0-1-1 at Toyota Park). Real Salt Lake's last visit to Bridgeview saw the Utahns take away a point from a 0-0 draw on May 27, 2007.

RSL Reserves to Face BYU Cougars in First Game at Renovated Stadium at South Field Tuesday

While the RSL first-team won't be in action in Utah this week, local fans will be able to check out the Real Salt Lake Reserves this Tuesday, July 15, when the squad will serve as the guest team against the BYU Cougars for the re-opening of their renovated Stadium at South Field facility. Kick-off in Provo is set for 7:00 p.m. MT on Tuesday evening (live on BYU TV, Comcast Ch. 21), with gates opening at 6:00 p.m. Tickets for the match cost $5 for students, $6 for adults, and $10 for Reserved Midfield seats, and the first 2,200 fans in attendance will receive a Grand Opening Night T-Shirt. Fans can visit www.byutickets.com or call 801-422-2981 to reserve seats or purchase general admission tickets.

RSL Coach's Corner on KALL 700 Sports Airs Tonight at 6:00 p.m.

Due to tomorrow night's RSL Reserves match at BYU, this week's edition of the KALL 700 Sports RSL Coach's Corner will take place this evening, Monday, July 14, from 6:00-7:00 p.m., when Jason Kreis will join host Bill Riley for an hour-long discussion of all things RSL. As always, fans far and wide are invited to participate in the show by dialing in to the KALL 700 Sports caller hotlines at 470-0700 (Utah County), 570-0700 (Salt Lake County), 670-0700 (Davis & Weber Counties), and 877-353-0700 (toll-free). If you're not in range of the 50,000-watt powerhouse that is KALL 700 Sports, no worries... RSL fans worldwide can visit www.kall700sports.com and click on the "LISTEN LIVE" link to catch the show.

Coldwell Banker Summer Soccer Series Continues Wednesday at Riley Elementary

As part of Real Salt Lake's continuing outreach to Utah's Hispanic community, the MLS side is continuing its Coldwell Banker Summer Soccer Series with a soccer clinic at Riley Elementary School in Salt Lake City (1410 S. 800 West) this Wednesday, July 16, from 6:30-8:30 p.m. The Riley Elementary clinic - which will be attended by a pair of Real Salt Lake players (to be named) - is the third in a series of five free Coldwell Banker clinics for children ages 6-17 taking place throughout the summer, with clinics in Provo and West Valley City also scheduled to take place in the upcoming months. Registration for the Coldwell Banker Summer Soccer Series is open to the public and available on-site at all clinics, but a limited number of spots are available. For more information or to register for an upcoming clinic, please contact Juan Maldonado (jmaldonado@realsaltlake.com ; 801-924-8592) or Rachel King (rking@realsaltlake.com ; 801-924-8586) in the Real Salt Lake front office.

Real Salt Lake Stadium to Host 2009 MLS All-Star Game

Major League Soccer announced last Wednesday that Real Salt Lake Stadium, the League's newest soccer-specific venue, will host the 2009 MLS All-Star Game in late July, 2009. MLS President Mark Abbott joined Real Salt Lake Owner David W. Checketts, Utah Governor Jon M. Huntsman, Jr., and Sandy Mayor Tom Dolan at a press conference at the new Stadium to officially announce the event. The 2009 MLS All-Star Game will be the sixth time the MLS All-Stars will take on a high-profile international club, continuing the tradition of "MLS Takes on the World." The 2009 All-Star Game opponent will be announced by early next year.

Since its first season as an MLS expansion team in 2005, Real Salt Lake has seen tremendous support from the local community as soccer continues to grow in Utah. The MLS All-Star Game continues the list of high-profile soccer matches in Utah during the past few years, joining a 2006 World Cup Qualifier between the United States and Costa Rica and exhibition matches featuring high-profile clubs such as Real Madrid, Boca Juniors, and Everton. Fans from throughout North America and across the globe are expected to travel to Utah to take in the game and surrounding All-Star festivities, such as the MLS Soccer Jam that will take place during All-Star Week. Ticket information will be available in the coming months through www.RealSaltLake.com, the official Web site of Real Salt Lake.

RSL U-17s Win 2008 SUM U-17 Cup, Earn Spot in Next Year's Trofeo Quixote Tournament in Spain

The Real Salt Lake family would like to congratulate the Real Salt Lake Under-17 Team, which defeated the D.C. United U-17s in penalty kicks last Thursday to win the 2008 SUM U-17 Cup at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo. Real Salt Lake FW James Rogers bagged his seventh goal of the tournament in the first half and was named the SUM U-17 Cup MVP after leading the week-long competition in scoring. After ending the match all square at ones, Real Salt Lake knocked off the defending champs from United in penalties, as Real Salt Lake GK Mike D'Arrigo made two saves to lead the team to a 4-3 victory in the shootout phase.

Through its SUM U-17 Cup victory, the RSL U-17 Team earned berths in a pair of world-class youth tournaments next year - the 30th anniversary edition of the Dallas Cup in April at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas, and the 2009 Trofeo Quixote U-17 tournament in Madrid, Spain, also scheduled to take place in the spring. RSL becomes the third different team to represent MLS at the unofficial U-17 World Championship tournament in Spain, joining D.C. United (2006 & 2008) and Red Bull New York (2007) on the short list.

RSL to Welcome Costa Rica's Deportivo Saprissa for Annual Pioneer Day Event

Real Salt Lake has announced that the Utah side will continue its 2008 slate of international exhibitions on Wednesday, July 23, when RSL will play host to Central America's most successful side, Costa Rican powerhouse Deportivo Saprissa. Kick-off at Rice-Eccles Stadium for the annual Pioneer Day event, which will be followed by the traditional post-game fireworks extravaganza, is set for 8:00 p.m. MT. Tickets for the match are now on sale to the public and can be purchased at all UTIX outlets, by phone at (801) 581-UTIX, and online at www.utahtickets.com. Tickets for the contest reflect 2008 RSL regular-season pricing of $17 (North Goal), $19 (Corner Flag), $28 (Premium) and $40 (VIP). 2008 Royal Club members should use Bonus Ticket C in their season ticket packages for the match.

Saprissa is one of the most successful clubs in North America, having won the CONCACAF Champions' Cup three times - in 1993, 1995, and 2005 - while also owning the most final appearances in the CONCACAF Champions Cup thanks to four additional runners-up finishes. They have also won five Central American crowns in 1972, 1973, 1978, 1998, and 2003, as well as 27 Primera División de Costa Rica championships, by far the most of any team. Arguably their most notable moment came in 2005, as they became the first, and so far only, non-Mexican club in CONCACAF to take part in the FIFA Club World Cup, finishing in third place. The club's success has led to the Costa Rican press nicknaming the team El Monstruo Morado ("The Purple Monster"), a reference to their purple-colored playing kit.

Real Salt Lake Schedule: July 15-20, 2008

Real Salt Lake's practice and match schedule for the remainder of the week is listed below. All RSL practices are open to members of the media and the general public unless otherwise noted, with media availability for all players and coaches to immediately follow each session. Those planning on attending any session can confirm the time and location of that day's training by contacting the RSL Communications Department at 801-924-8584.

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

RSL Reserves at BYU Cougars - Stadium at South Field in Provo 7:00 p.m.

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Off Day

Thursday, July 17, 2008

Training at XanGo Field in Lehi 10:00 a.m.

Friday, July 18, 2008

Training at XanGo Field 9:15 a.m.

Depart for Chicago

Saturday, July 19, 2008

Real Salt Lake at Chicago Fire - Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Ill. 6:30 p.m.

Live on KSL-TV NBC-5, KALL 700 Sports, and Ke Buena 1600-AM

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Return to Salt Lake City; Off Day

RSL Rewind: RSL Snags First Place for First Time via 2-0 Win over Columbus

An early goal by MF Javier Morales and a late insurance tally from FW Robbie Findley would help Real Salt Lake (6-6-5, 23 pts.) post a 2-0 victory over the Columbus Crew (8-5-3, 27 pts.) last Saturday night in front of 12,378 fans at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Defense again played a large role in RSL's success on the evening, as GK Nick Rimando was forced to make only two saves en route to his MLS-best tying sixth clean sheet of the campaign, and his fifth shutout performance in RSL's last seven League contests. With the win, Real Salt Lake jumped past the Los Angeles Galaxy and Chivas USA to move into sole possession of first-place in the Western Conference standings, marking the first time the Utah side has held the conference's top spot in its now four seasons of play.

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