ORLANDO – September 11, 2015 – Orlando City SC (7-13-8, 29 points) will face Western Conference side Sporting Kansas City (11-7-8, 41 points) for the first time this season in a primetime match-up at the Orlando Citrus Bowl on Sunday, September 13. Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.
Tickets to the match are still available and can be purchased by visiting www.OrlandoCitySC.com or by calling 855-ORL-CITY. In addition, the game will be nationally televised on FOX Sports 1. Lastly, the contest will be transmitted in English on Real Radio 104.1 FM and in Spanish on La Grande 1030 AM.
"The last few weeks have been tough on us. You can't dress that up. We need to try and get a win at home," said head coach Adrian Heath. "We've had incredible support, and I have no doubt that we'll have incredible support again on the evening. So, it's important that we give our supporters something to cheer and hang on to. I have a lot of faith in this group, and as I said before the game against Chicago, I think this group is capable of winning our remaining games at home."
Sunday's game will mark the third all-time meeting between both teams, dating back to the 2012 season. The first game between the former USL and MLS affiliates took place in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup where Sporting secured a 3-2 victory at home. The following year, however, Orlando claimed revenge, defeating the reigning Open Cup champions 1-0 on the road to advance to the quarterfinals.
In 2013, Orlando received four players on loan from Sporting Kansas City, including striker Dom Dwyer who broke the USL single-season scoring record (19) as a Lion en route to a second USL post-season championship for the Club.
Current Orlando center-back Aurélien Collin joined City during the off-season from Sporting. In four seasons with Kansas City, Collin made 117 appearances and notched 15 goals and three assists, earning honors such as a 2013 MLS Cup Championship, 2013 MLS Cup MVP and three All-Star appearances.
Sporting Kansas City ventures into Sunday's game sitting in fifth place in the Western Conference with two games in hand over the Seattle Sounders, Portland Timbers and FC Dallas. In its previous four matches, Sporting Kansas City has tied once and lost three times, including a 5-0 defeat to the San Jose Earthquakes on August 19.
The team's most recent victory took place in a 4-3 win over the Vancouver Whitecaps at Sporting Park on August 15.
The team's roster includes players such as U.S. Men's National Team players Matt Besler and Graham Zusi, who is a native of Longwood, Florida, along with midfielder Benny Feilhaber and former Lion Amobi Okugo. Dwyer currently leads the team with goals (9), while Feilhaber's 13 assists ranks second in MLS.
