It’s been dubbed one of the most important matches in United States National Team history by some. A win against Panama all but secures a bid for the 2018 World Cup in Russia and keeps the streak of seven straight World Cup appearances for the U.S. alive. The immense qualifying implications make this game incredibly important for U.S. Soccer, but this is also an equally important game for the city of Orlando.
Walking around Orlando City Stadium, the once purple banners that lined the walls of the stadium’s facade are now draped in red, white and blue. Banners line downtown Orlando and Church Street all the way up to the stadium, all reading, “One Nation, One Team.” Billboards are strewn across the city and up and down I-4. The closer to the stadium you get, the importance of this game, in this city, is felt exponentially.
With this being the first U.S. Men’s National Team game played in Orlando since 1998 and the first ever World Cup qualifying game held in the City Beautiful, Orlando continues to stamp its presence in America’s soccer market. The success from Orlando City over the last six years has drawn more and more big tournaments and soccer games to mark Orlando down as a venue of choice. Over the next few months, Orlando City Stadium will have hosted a World Cup Qualifying match, the NWSL Championship match and the NCAA Division I Women’s College Cup, and that’s just the beginning.
Orlando remains on the list of 32 cities in America, Canada and Mexico that could serve as a host city for the 2026 World Cup, which would make it the second time the city hosted World Cup matches. From now until then, the possibilities are endless for potential high-caliber soccer we could see in Orlando, possibly as soon as next year.
As the soccer culture continues to grow and flourish in Orlando, the more it will be considered a destination not just for theme parks and family vacations, but for some of the premier soccer events held in the U.S.
