Tottenham Hotspur to play AC Milan in Minneapolis this summer

There’s still quite a bit to be decided this season in the Premier League. Tottenham are in the semifinals of the FA Cup, and don’t know whether they’ll be playing in the Champions League or the Europa League next year.

But it’s already that time of year where pre-season plans are being solidified, and American Spurs fans have a reason to rejoice.

According to a report from TwinCities.com, Tottenham are set to play AC Milan in Minnesota this summer.

U.S. Bank Stadium will host two top European soccer clubs this summer, a source told the Pioneer Press on Friday. Tottenham Hotspur, of the English Premier League, will face AC Milan, a legacy club in Italy’s Serie A, in the International Champions Cup.

The date of the match was not shared, but the tournament, which constitute as preseason friendlies for a select group of renowned European clubs, has been run during the last week of July and into early August since 2013.

Tottenham officials were seen touring Minnesota United’s training grounds in Blaine on Friday, and AC Milan is expected to visit the MLS club’s practice spaces this weekend. Tottenham officials planned to meet with local Spurs supporters groups on Friday night.

The location is a bit of a surprise, but it seems like this is really happening. U.S. Bank Stadium is a brand new arena that is fresh off of hosting Super Bowl LII. AC Milan also played there in August 2016 against Chelsea. That was the first sporting event to ever be held in the Minnesota Vikings’ new home, and it drew a sellout crowd of 64,101.

Minneapolis isn’t exactly the largest metropolitan area in the country, but Spurs fans have traveled well to these events in the past. Last season they played games in Florida, New Jersey, and Tennessee. Those contests were also part of the International Champions Cup. The ICC tries to pretend like it’s more than a series of friendlies, but the reality is that these will be exhibition matches.

The big soccer event this summer is obviously the World Cup in Russia, which will run from June 14th through July 15th. It’s probably safe to assume that this would take place after that tournament has concluded. It’s also probably safe to assume that it will be a B-Squad of Spurs players taking part, as quite a few of Tottenham’s stars will be on vacation after playing in Russia.

But who cares? The great thing about pre-season matches overseas is that they give more fans a chance to see the teams they love play, without having to make that expensive trip over to London.

This is all we know about Tottenham’s pre-season so far, but it’s possible that it won’t be their only game in the states this summer.

Start planning your road trips!