A flock of top talent is expected to strut its stuff for the likes of Liverpool, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Arsenal in the USA

Major clubs all over Europe are finalising their plans for their pre-season campaigns. Increasingly in recent years, this has meant touring the world in order to promote their brand, as well as a useful team-bonding exercise for squads that have often been changed significantly over the summer.

The United States has increasingly been a popular destination for the continent’s best teams, with clubs showing a desire to tap into what is considered to be a huge potential market across the Atlantic.

Various pre-season tournaments have been held in the USA over the years have showcased some of the finest stars in the world game, and over the course of summer 2019 that will once again be the case.

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Date Match Time (UK / US ET) Venue
Jul 16 Roma vs Chivas 2am/9pm SeatGeek Stadium, Chicago, MI
Jul 17 Arsenal vs Bayern Munich 3am/10pm Dignity Health Sports Park, Los Angeles, CA
Jul 20 Arsenal vs Roma 9pm/4pm Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC
Jul 20 Benfica vs Chivas 11pm/6pm Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, CA
Jul 20 Bayern Munich vs Real Madrid 1am/8pm NRG Stadium, Houston, TX
Jul 23 Arsenal vs Real Madrid 12am/7pm FedEx Field, Maryland, MD
Jul 23 Bayern Munich vs AC Milan 2am/9pm Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, KA
Jul 23 Chivas vs Atletico Madrid 2am/9pm Globe Life Park, Arlington, TX
Jul 24 Roma vs Benfica 12am/7pm Red Bull Arena, Harrison, NJ
Jul 26 Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid 12:30am/7:30pm MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, NJ
Jul 28 AC Milan vs Benfica 8pm/3pm Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, MA

The International Challenge Cup, which will take place in six countries and span the entire globe, will have 11 venues across the USA.

Heading across the Pond for that competition is perhaps the greatest club of them all, Real Madrid, who have a blockbuster fixture against Bayern Munich in Houston on July 21 as well as a cracker in store against Premier League giants Arsenal in Landover three days later.

The headline-friendly that Madrid will play, however, will be against local rivals Atletico in East Rutherford.

Arguably, this quartet of clubs are the greatest heading west.

There will be Serie A representation in the ICC this summer, too. AC Milan will twice feature in the States, while that is also the case with Roma, who have fixtures against Mexican outfit Guadalajara and Benfica.

It is not just the ICC that is taking place in the summer, though.

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Date Match Time (UK / US ET) Venue
Jul 18 Montpellier vs Saint-Etienne 11pm/6pm Audi Field, Washington DC
Jul 18 Marseille vs Bordeaux 1:30am/8:30pm Audi Field, Washington DC
Jul 21 TBC 11pm/6pm Audi Field, Washington DC
Jul 21 TBC 1:30am/8:30pm Audi Field, Washington DC

In Washington DC, the inaugural EA Ligue 1 games will take place, featuring US-owned sides Marseille and Bordeaux, as well as Saint-Etienne and Montpellier, who both enjoyed fine campaigns in 2018-19.

The tournament will take place between July 18-21 and will come just as the clubs are reaching the climax of their preparations for the new campaign, which begins in France on August 9.

Of course, teams are not simply drawn to the USA for pre-season competition, some set up their own standalone friendlies, too.

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Date Match Time (UK / US ET) Venue
Jul 15 Colorado Rapids vs Arsenal 2am/9pm Dicks Sporting Goods Stadium, Commerce City, CO
Jul 17 FC Dallas vs Sevilla 1am/8pm Toyota Stadium, Frisco, TX
Jul 17 Minnesota United vs Aston Villa 1am/8pm Allianz Field, Minneapolis, MN
Jul 17 Seattle Sounders vs Dortmund 3:30am/10:30pm CenturyLink Field, Seattle, WA
Jul 19 Liverpool vs Dortmund 1am/8pm Notre Dame Stadium, South Bend, IN
Jul 21 Liverpool vs Sevilla 11pm/6pm Fenway Park, Boston, MA 
Jul 24 Liverpool vs Sporting CP 1am/8pm Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY
Jul 24 DC United vs Marseille TBC Audi Field, Washington DC
Jul 31 MLS All-Star Team vs Atletico Madrid TBC Orlando City Stadium, Orlando, FL

Arsenal have done just this prior to the ICC, teeing up a match with the Colorado Rapids at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, while the likes of Atletico Madrid, Marseille and Roma will all play similar matches around their respective competitive commitments.

Champions League finalists Liverpool, who have traditionally travelled to Asia to prepare for the season, have set up a succession of exhibition matches all over the country that will see them pit themselves against Borussia Dortmund, Sevilla and Sporting CP.

Aston Villa, meanwhile, are set to play Minnesota United in what is currently a one-off match in Minneapolis.