The U.S. men's national soccer team will face Panama in a CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal at Snapdragon Stadium today, its first appearance in San Diego since 2017.
The U.S. advanced to the semifinal of the biennial international championship of the North, Central American and Caribbean region by winning a penalty kick shootout over Canada, 3-2, Sunday in Cincinnati after overtime ended in a 2-2 tie. Panama was a 4-0 winner over guest team Qatar in a quarterfinal Saturday in Arlington, Texas.
Both teams won their groups. The Americans won Group A with a 2-0-1 record, outscoring their opponents 13-1. Los Canaleros ("The Canal Men") won Group C with a 2-0-1 record, outscoring its opponents 6-4.
The U.S. is 11th in the rankings compiled by FIFA, soccer's international governing body. Panama is ranked 57th.
The U.S. is 17-2-6 against Panama, including a 5-1 victory in their most recent meeting, March 27, 2022, in a 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifier in Orlando, Florida.
Panama's roster consists of three players each who play in Major League Soccer, Costa Rica and Venezuela, two each in Chile and Peru and one each in Azerbaijan, Ecuador, Germany, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Portugal, Saudi Arabia and Slovakia.
Panamanian defender Omar Valencia and U.S. left back John Tolkin are teammates with MLS' New York Red Bulls.
The U.S. roster consists of 17 players who play in MLS, two each in England and Italy and one each in Mexico and Netherlands.
The game is set to begin at 4:30 p.m. and be televised by FS1, Univision and TUDN, with pregame programming beginning at 4 p.m. Spanish- language audio will be available on Fútbol de Primera radio platforms.
The U.S. is 1-5-3 in San Diego, including a 0-0 tie with Serbia in a exhibition in 2017, its most recent game in San Diego.
The winner will advance to Sunday's final at SoFi Stadium against the winner of the Mexico-Jamaica semifinal to be played later Wednesday in Las Vegas.
There will be a tailgate party in the Orange Lot on the trolley side. The lot opens at 12:30 p.m. The party is organized by the San Diego Chapter of the American Outlaws, a nationwide support group for the U.S. men's and women's national soccer teams.
The chapter is also organizing a viewing party at O'Brien's Pub in Kearny Mesa.
