FC Cincinnati will play their first home game of the 2020 Major League Soccer season on Saturday, March 14, when the team hosts D.C. United at Nippert Stadium. Kickoff is set for 5:30 p.m.
MLS announced all 26 clubs’ home openers earlier today. Also included in the announcement were FC Cincinnati’s Week 1 and Week 2 opponents.
On Sunday, March 1, FCC will open the 2020 MLS season – their second in the league – at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J., traveling to face the New York Red Bulls. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.
On Saturday, March 7, the Orange and Blue will travel to face Atlanta United FC at Mercedes Benz Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.
The March 14 game against D.C. United marks the first of the team’s 17 regular-season contests at Nippert Stadium. The 2020 season will be the club’s last at the venerable facility before it moves to the brand-new, $250 million West End Stadium at the start of the 2021 season.
Tickets to the 2020 home opener against D.C. are currently available exclusively through season ticket memberships. To become a Season Ticket Member, visit fccincinnati.com/tickets at any time, or call the FCC Ticket Sales & Service staff at 513-977-5425 (KICK) between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Broadcast information for all 2020 games will be announced in the future.
The 2020 season features two new MLS teams as Inter Miami CF (Eastern Conference) and Nashville SC (Western Conference) are set to enter the league, bringing the total number of teams to 26. With the additions, both the Eastern and Western Conferences will play with 13 teams apiece next year. Teams will play 24 games – home and away – against conference opponents, and then play 10 of the other conference’s 13 teams, with five of those games at home and five on the road, to comprise the full 34-game schedule.
Future league expansion currently includes three more teams on deck: Austin FC are set to enter MLS in 2021, while Sacramento and St. Louis are preparing to come into the league in 2022.
TICKET ON-SALE INFORMATION
After Major League Soccer releases the full 2020 season schedule, FC Cincinnati will roll out additional ticket offerings for the 2020 season. New options for the forthcoming season include four-game Mini Plans and brand-new, nine-game Half-Season Plans. Group tickets and individual tickets will also be available for purchase.
Before single-game and multiple-game options go on sale to the general public, Season Ticket Members will receive exclusive presale access to the entire 2020 FC Cincinnati home schedule in mid-January. Their exclusive access will include individual games and group tickets, plus the new four-game Mini Plans and the Half-Season Plans.
After the STM exclusive presale, the club’s multiple-game ticket options will be opened up for sale to the general public – allowing fans to purchase the same seats for their selection of games.
Individual tickets to all 17 regular-season games will then go on sale to the general public.
2020 SCHEDULE SUMMARY TO-DATE
<strong>Date</strong> |
<strong>Opponent</strong> |
<strong>Location</strong> |
<strong>Kickoff</strong> |
<p>Sunday, March 1</p> |
<p>at New York Red Bulls</p> |
<p>Red Bull Arena (Harrison, N.J.)</p> |
<p align="center">1 p.m.</p> |
<p>Saturday, March 7</p> |
<p>at Atlanta United FC</p> |
<p>Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, Ga.)</p> |
<p align="center">7 p.m.</p> |
<p>Saturday, March 14</p> |
<p>D.C. United</p> |
<p>Nippert Stadium (Cincinnati, Ohio)</p> |
<p align="center">5:30 p.m.</p> |
The 2020 season opener against New York Red Bulls will be the third MLS meeting between the teams, and the fourth all-time. The Red Bulls swept the teams’ 2019 series, winning 1-0 at Red Bull Arena on April 27, before taking a 2-0 win at Nippert Stadium on May 25. Prior to FCC making the jump to MLS in 2019, however, the teams met in the semifinal of the 2017 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup where the Red Bulls earned a 3-2 extra-time victory to advance to the championship game.
The March 7 game at Atlanta United FC will be the third MLS (all-time) meeting between the teams, and marks the second straight year that FCC and Atlanta meet in United’s home opener at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. In that first meeting on March 10, FC Cincinnati earned their first-ever point in MLS, coming back to earn a 1-1 draw on the road behind Roland Lamah’s 86th minute goal. The teams then met again in a midweek tilt at Nippert Stadium on Sept. 18, where Atlanta earned a 2-0 win through a Jozef Martinez brace. Martinez scored all three of Atlanta’s goals against Cincinnati in 2019.
The March 14 matchup between FCC and D.C. United will be the third MLS meeting between the teams. The first-ever meeting between the teams came at Nippert Stadium on July 18, 2019 as D.C. topped Cincy, 4-1. The teams then met at United’s Audi Field in the final game of the 2019 regular season on Oct. 6, with FCC gaining a point in a wild 0-0 draw after the Orange and Blue saw two players sent off at the end of the first half, forcing the team to play with nine men the entire second half.
FC Cincinnati will return to the field in early 2020 for their second MLS season. Season Ticket Memberships for the 2020 season are now on sale to the general public at fccincinnati.com/tickets or by calling 513-977-5425 (KICK). A 2020 Season Ticket Membership also secures fans’ place on the club’s priority list, which will be utilized when sales begin in the new West End Stadium for the 2021 season.
For up-to-the-minute information about FC Cincinnati, visit the team’s official website at fccincinnati.com, or follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @FCCincinnati.
