FOX SOCCER TO BROADCAST NIKE INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLIES

CHICAGO (Nov. 22, 2011) - FOX Soccer will broadcast all three U.S. Under-17 Men's National Team matches during the 2011 Nike International Friendlies in conjunction with the Development Academy Winter Showcase in  December. The U.S. will take on Brazil, France and Turkey during the competition, which will be held at the Premier Sports Campus in Sarasota, Fla.
  
The U.S. U-17 MNT will play each of its games at 5 p.m. ET, facing off against France on Nov. 30, Turkey on Dec. 2 and Brazil on Dec. 4. For a complete list of games and standings,  click here.   

This will mark the ninth Nike International Friendlies since 2003, when it was previously known as the Nike National Team Friendlies. The U.S. has participated all nine years, while Brazil will compete in the series for the seventh time. This will be the second consecutive Nike International        Friendlies competition for Turkey, which was crowned champion last year in the first time the event was played as a tournament.   
       
The competition will be played during the 2011 Winter Showcase, where all 78 Development Academy clubs will play 234 non-conference games from Dec. 2-6.   
       
Since its launch in the fall of 2007, the Academy has provided an increased focus on training and player development by providing a clear connection  between the U.S. national teams and more than 4,000 young players across the country. Top youth coaches and players have direct access to U.S. Soccer  staff on a regular basis through the structured programming overseen by U.S. Soccer Youth Technical Director Claudio Reyna.   

- ussoccer.com -