Stars from English and Italian clubs likely to play in International Champions Cup in Singapore
With no major international football tournaments this summer – no World Cup, no European Championship, no Olympics – top players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Paul Pogba, Harry Kane and Son Heung-min are set to grace the International Champions Cup (ICC) in Singapore this July.
The event organisers announced the ICC’s blockbuster line-up to the media on Wednesday (27 March) – English giants Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur taking on Italian giants Juventus and Inter Milan over the weekend of 20 and 21 July at the National Stadium.
And while the pre-season tournament is into its third edition in Singapore, this year will see most of the top players available and fresh, as most of their national-team commitments would have ended by the time the event rolls into town.
The Copa America, the premier international competition of the Americas, will finish on 9 July. And while the African Nations Cup will see its final being played on 19 July, there are no major African star footballers among the four ICC teams.
Fans should expect superstars to come
“We will attend with the whole team,” said Fabrizio Ravanelli at the media briefing held at the Incubator, near the Padang. The former Juventus striker was in Singapore to grace the event together with Dwight Yorke (former Man United striker), Teddy Sheringham (former Spurs striker) and Francesco Toldo (former Inter goalkeeper).
“This is a great tournament to participate in, we have three great teams being involved. And Juventus are always keen to expand our knowledge of this side of the world and make friends with the fans here.”
Yorke concurred, adding that the opportunity for Man United to connect with their huge Asian fan base is a major reason why they are keen to make the long flight from England.
The 47-year-old said, “We know that Asia is one of our biggest markets, and we want to feel connected to our fanbase. We are excited to come back to Singapore and to improve our brand as well.
“This year, with no major competitions, no international games, I hope that all the superstars will be out in the numbers.”
Past encounters in Singapore
The last time Man United came to Singapore was in 2001, when they played a Singapore selection team at the old National Stadium and thrashed them 8-1. Yorke was among the scorers that night, as was the current United interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Indeed, all four participating ICC teams have visited Singapore before. Tottenham last played in Singapore in 1995, when they lost after a penalty shootout to the Lions. Meanwhile, Juventus were featured in the first football match to be played at the current National Stadium at the Sports Hub, beating a Singapore selection 5-0 in 2014.
Inter played in the first Singapore ICC edition in 2017, and managed to beat both Chelsea (2-1) and Bayern Munich (2-0) to come out tops in the round-robin format.
The format was also used in last year’s edition, which featured Arsenal, Atletico Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain. This year’s tournament, however, will see only two matches at the National Stadium – Man United taking on Inter on 20 July, with Juve facing Tottenham the next night.
Friendly war of words begins
And even though the ICC is merely a pre-season competition with little at stake, the four teams still want to win a trophy to boost the team morale for the upcoming 2019/20 season.
And the four former players have immediately engaged in a friendly banter among themselves.
Ravanelli wasted no time teasing Toldo that, unlike his Inter side which have not won the Italian Serie A title since 2010, his Juventus are “always at the top”. Meanwhile, Yorke loudly proclaimed to much laughter, “What I’m seeing here is that all the other teams are vying for second and third and fourth places.”
Ticketing details
Official tickets will go on sale to the general public from 10am on 4 April at Sports Hub Tix and box offices, as well as other physical locations.
UnionPay, one of the official sponsors of the tournament, will offer priority access to its cardholders, enabling them to buy tickets via an exclusive pre-sale from 12pm on 28 March to 12pm on 31 March. In addition, cardholders will enjoy a 10-per-cent discount on tickets if they purchase from 28 March to 30 April.
Fans in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines can purchase official tickets on Shopee.
For more information, visit the official tournament website.
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