Tuesday, April 8, 2008

The U.S. women's national soccer team, which is on the verge of qualifying for this summer's Olympics, will play a friendly against Canada on May 10 at RFK Stadium, sources familiar with the negotiations said yesterday.

It will be the first U.S. appearance in Washington since the team's 2003 World Cup opener against Sweden. The U.S. Soccer Federation and local organizers declined to comment, but sources said they expect an official announcement this week.

The Americans have a perfect record in 10 area appearances: 6-0 at RFK, 2-0 at George Mason University and one victory apiece at FedEx Field and Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.

Both the United States and Canada are one victory from advancing to the Summer Games in Beijing. Tomorrow night the Americans will play Costa Rica and the Canadians face Mexico in the semifinals of the Olympic qualifying tournament in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. Two teams from this region qualify.

The U.S. team won the Olympic gold medal in 1996 and 2004, and earned the bronze in 2000. It has also won the World Cup twice and finished third three times.

The Americans have a 34-3-3 record against Canada, but only two of the past nine victories have been by more than two goals.

Prior to the RFK appearance, the U.S. team will play friendlies against Australia on April 27 in Cary, N.C., and May 3 in Birmingham, Ala. . . .

The newest Major League Soccer team will be called Seattle Sounders FC. About half the 14,500 fans who voted on the team name wrote in Sounders. That was about 20 percent more than the choices offered by the club: Alliance, Republic or Seattle FC.

Club officials didn't want the traditional Sounders name, but fans had the write-in option. The Sounders name has been identified with soccer in Seattle since 1974.

-- From News Services and Staff Reports