NEW YORK, NY, UNITED STATES, September 8, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Team USA will train in the New York City area this weekend as it wraps up preparations for the Amputee Soccer World Cup, which begins later this month in Istanbul, Turkey.

The team will train Friday at Sports Domain Academy in Clifton, N.J., (9 a.m. to noon) and at the New York Red Bulls’ facility in Whippany, N.J. (7-9 p.m.) before holding an intrasquad scrimmage at RBNY’s facility on Saturday morning (9-11 a.m.). Team USA will also host a public demonstration game in Times Square at 2 p.m. on Saturday as part of the Street Soccer USA Cup, a pop-up series meant to help fight poverty and boost community development. The NYC-area training camp will be the team’s final tune-up as a full group before the 24-team World Cup, to be held Sept. 30-Oct. 9.

Head Coach Dr. Eric Lamberg, an associate dean in the School of Health Professions at Stony Brook University and president of the American Amputee Soccer Association, said: “Since we are spread across the country, our players typically train in their hometowns. We are excited for this final tune-up and to showcase amputee soccer at the crossroads of the world, Times Square.”

The Americans qualified for amputee soccer’s premier global event by placing second at a North and Central American qualifying tournament in Jalisco, Mexico, in March. That competition — the region’s first-ever Amputee Soccer World Cup qualifier — included national teams from the U.S., Costa Rica, El Salvador, Haiti and Mexico. Playing four games in as many days, Team USA secured a 2-1-1 record to finish behind only Haiti and ahead of Mexico, which placed fourth at the 2018 World Cup. Team captain Nico Calabria, of Boston, Mass., was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.

Team USA includes players and staff from 10 states, including eight members from New York. The team has previously held World Cup training camps in Houston and Dallas.

Codified in 1980 by Seattle native Don Bennett, amputee soccer is played on a ¾-size pitch with seven players to a side. Field players use forearm crutches and may play the ball with only one leg. Goalkeepers defend a 7’x16’ net and may use only one arm. The AASA believes everyone should have access to play soccer. Our mission is to 1) promote, develop and provide access to the sport of amputee soccer for all people living with limb difference and 2) to develop and train elite amputee soccer athletes to represent the United States in international competition.

Sponsors can help send Team USA to Turkey via donations@usampsoccer.org. Donations are welcome online.

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The AASA is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Please direct sponsorship inquiries to info@usampsoccer.org. Learn more about us at www.usampsoccer.org.

Eric Lamberg
American Amputee Soccer Association
+1 516-526-1244
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