The schedule for the 2016 North American International Champions Cup was announced earlier today, and we're pleased to say that there are some tasty fixtures to look forward to. Some of the biggest matches include Real Madrid vs PSG in Columbus, Ohio and Bayern Munich vs Real Madrid in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The tournament also features Chelsea, Liverpool, AC Milan, Inter, Celtic and of course, Leicester City and Barcelona.
This year's ICC schedule. Photo: @IntChampionsCup | Twitter
Despite the fact that the ICC is a preseason tournament, it stands as the only real chance for American fans to see some of the biggest teams in the world without spending a small fortune. It has also proven surprisingly competitive (for preseason anyway) over the past few iterations, with teams fielding strong lineups in an attempt to win a trophy and gear up for the coming season.
The big headline of this year's tournament is the inclusion of everybody's favorite Premier League fairy tale, Leicester City. All eyes will be on the Foxes as they test their mettle against the giants of PSG and Barcelona in a scenario that, frankly, we never thought we'd see.
So #LCFC will face PSG & Barca in the International Champions Cup. I think they're through the Twilight Zone, and landed on fantasy island.
— Arlo White (@arlowhite) March 22, 2016
We do have a couple of small complaints, however.
For one, there are no MLS teams or Liga MX teams in this year's lineups. While we can understand that the MLS season is still going on during the tournament, it was a blast to see U.S. and Mexican teams going against the European giants. It also allows us to see where the MLS is at quality-wise in comparison to the rest of the world, though it is preseason so it is far from definitive.
Secondly, Barcelona vs Leicester City is taking place in Stockholm. That was the match we were most looking forward to! Last time we checked, Stockholm is not in North America. At least you gave us PSG vs Leicester in Los Angeles. We suppose that will do.
Oh, and while we're at it, give Denver some love too.
Read more about the International Champions Cup here
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