Charleston Battery News Release -- www.charlestonbattery.com
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Major League Soccer’s Houston Dynamo have committed to play in the 2013 Carolina Challenge Cup to be held at Blackbaud Stadium, Charleston, S.C., February 16-23, 2013. Houston will join Major League Soccer’s Chicago Fire, Vancouver Whitecaps and USL PRO’s Charleston Battery for the round-robin tournament.
Houston has played in the Carolina Challenge Cup twice before in 2006 and 2007, winning the tournament on both occasions.
The Houston Dynamo will take on the L.A. Galaxy in MLS Cup 2012 on December 1 after winning MLS’s Eastern Conference Championship and knocking D.C. United out of the playoffs this past weekend.
The Dynamo are led by former US international Dominic Kinnear, whose seven-year tenure as head coach has included two MLS Cup titles (2006, 2007) and four MLS Cup Finals (2006, 2007, 2011 and 2012). He has been nominated for MLS Coach of the Year three times (2006, 2007, 2008).
The Carolina Challenge Cup is the premier preseason tournament in the U.S. Each year for the past decade the Battery has been joined by three teams from Major League Soccer for the round-robin competition. Beginning in 2011 the tournament has also featured a youth element as the MLS teams brought their USSF Academy sides to Charleston for a parallel USSF Academy tournament.
Carolina Challenge Cup tickets will go on sale Monday, December 3 at 10 a.m. For more information please call (843) 971-GOAL (4625) or visit www.charlestonbattery.com.
All-Time Participants (Champions bolded)
2004: Charleston Battery (USL), Columbus Crew (MLS), D.C. United (MLS), Wilmington Hammerheads (USL)
2005: Charleston Battery (USL), Columbus Crew (MLS), D.C. United (MLS), SJ Earthquakes (MLS)
2006: Charleston Battery (USL), NY Red Bulls (MLS), D.C. United (MLS), Houston Dynamo (MLS)
2007: Charleston Battery (USL), NY Red Bulls (MLS), Houston Dynamo (MLS), Toronto FC (MLS)
2008: Charleston Battery (USL), NY Red Bulls (MLS), SJ Earthquakes (MLS), Toronto FC (MLS)
2009: Charleston Battery (USL), D.C. United (MLS), Real Salt Lake (MLS), Toronto FC (MLS)
2010: Charleston Battery (USL), D.C. United (MLS), Real Salt Lake (MLS), Toronto FC (MLS)
2011: Charleston Battery (USL), Chicago Fire (MLS), D.C. United (MLS), Toronto FC (MLS)
2012: Charleston Battery (USL), Chicago Fire (MLS), D.C. United (MLS), Columbus Crew (MLS)
2013: Charleston Battery (USL), Chicago Fire, Houston Dynamo, Vancouver Whitecaps FC (MLS).