90min
·5 December 2023
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Yahoo sports90min
·5 December 2023
Mercedes-Benz Stadium is set to play host to both the US men's national team and the Argentina national team next summer in the 2024 Copa America tournament.
2022 World Cup champions and 2021 Copa America winners Argentina are set to take the field at the futuristic stadium on June 20 in the opening match of the competition, as their opponent will be determined at the group stage draw on December 7.
Lionel Messi was set to play at Mercedes-Benz Stadium for the first time back in September when Atlanta United squared off with his new club Inter Miami. However, Messi was dealing with a hamstring problem and didn't travel with the team for the contest.
Now, barring any injuries in the first half of the 2024 MLS season, Messi and Argentina will suit up down south to play on turf to kick-off the continental tournament.
Atlanta United star midfielder Thiago Almada, who represents Argentina at the international level, is no stranger to the stadium having played plenty of games for the Five Stripes at the venue. The young midfielder has been linked with moves to European sides after his excellent back-to-back seasons in 2022 and 2023.
The USMNT will kickoff their Copa America campaign on June 27, with their opponent also to be determined later this week at the group stage draw. It will be the first time since 2015 that the Stars and Stripes play in Atlanta, as the last outing in the Peach state was a 2-1 defeat to Jamaica in the 2015 Gold Cup semifinals. The game will also be the first time the USMNT play in Mercedes-Benz Stadium since its opening in 2017.
In mid-September, the US Soccer Federation announced that Atlanta would become the organization's newest headquarters, making the switch from Chicago, Illinois to the 'soccer capital of the South.' The new headquarters will allow all national teams to train and prepare at the same location ahead of tournaments and games.