PORTLAND, Ore.
– The Portland Timbers play host to a pair of premium events this weekend at PGE Park, starting Saturday as they take on the Miami FC Blues on Nike Night at 7 p.m. On Sunday, the Timbers face Mexico’s Club Deportivo Atlas at 6 p.m. in an international exhibition match, presented by Tecate.
The first 2,000 fans on Saturday receive a Nike drawstring bag as the Timbers take on the Blues in a regular-season matchup at PGE Park. Tickets start at $12 in advance and are available through the PGE Park box office, area Ticketmaster locations, online at
www.ticketmaster.com
or by phone at (800) 745-3000.
The Timbers welcome one of Mexico’s oldest clubs in Atlas to the Rose City on Sunday as part of an event-filled day at PGE Park. Tickets for the exhibition start at $15 in advance and are also available for purchase through the PGE Park box office and Ticketmaster.
Unbeaten in its last three league games, Portland (5-5-5, 20pts) sits in a two-way tie for third place in the USSF Division-2 Pro League’s USL Conference. During their recent unbeaten stretch (2-0-1), the Timbers have recorded three consecutive shutouts, including a scoreless draw with the Vancouver Whitecaps in their last match July 3 at PGE Park.
The Timbers kick off the second half of the 2010 campaign as they wrap up a two-game, regular-season series with Miami FC (2-4-8, 14pts). Last month, the Timbers were handed a 1-0 loss by the Blues in Miami on a header by Kyle Veris; it was the team’s first loss to Miami FC since the 2008 season. All-time, the Timbers are 5-4-2 against the Blues, including a 3-2-0 mark at home.
The Timbers and Atlas square off in a special exhibition match Sunday, and a portion of the proceeds from the event benefit the Jardin Portland Foundation and its construction of a sustainable and educational-based project in the city of Guadalajara, Mexico – one of Portland’s sister cities and the home of Atlas.
Founded in 1916, Atlas’ storied history includes several domestic titles and recent appearances in the prestigious Copa Libertadores tournament in 2000 and 2008. Atlas features some of Mexico’s rising young players, including recent Mexico National Team call-up defender
Edgar Pacheco
and Mexico U-17 National Team standout
Cesar
Ibañez
, who made his professional debut at the age of 16. The Mexican side’s roster also includes veteran and former long-time Mexico National Team striker
Daniel Osorno
.
Since 2001, the Timbers have played four other clubs from Mexico, including Club Necaxa (2007), Monarcas Morelia (2008), U.A.N.L. Tigres (2008) and Club America Reserves (2009) at PGE Park. The Timbers are 3-2-0 all-time against Mexico-based clubs.
Prior to the friendly against Atlas, the Timbers’ development team, the Timbers U-23s, will play their Premier Development League regular-season home finale against the Vancouver Whitecaps Residency at 2 p.m. Tickets are $5 and are available at the PGE Park box office.
Both matches will be broadcast live on Sportsradio 95.5 The Game and in Spanish on 910AM+1390 AM ESPN Deportes. Saturday’s match against Miami FC will be streamed live online at
www.portlandtimbers.com/live
.
