The U.S. men's national team will not be heading to Qatar for January camp as originally planned, announcing the squad will train at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. instead.
In a statement issued by the U.S. Soccer Federation on Friday, the U.S. national team scratched the Qatar trip due to the "developing situation in the region." The USMNT was scheduled to depart for a three-week camp in Qatar on Saturday.
The developing situation involves rising tensions between the USA and Iran following the U.S. airstrike that killed Iranian commander Maj. Gen. Qassim Suleimani in Iraq. In the aftermath, the Iranian ambassador to the U.N. stated that Iran would be seeking "revenge, harsh revenge," and the United States is deploying more troops to the Middle East.
Below is the full statement from the U.S. Soccer Federation:
Due to the developing situation in the region, U.S. Soccer has decided to postpone traveling to Qatar for the Men's National Team's scheduled January training camp. In the meantime, we are working on alternative arrangements in preparation for the match against Costa Rica on February 1 at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. We are working with the Qatar Football Association to find an opportunity in the near future for our team to experience Qatar's world-class facilities and hospitality.
US national team head coach Gregg Berhalter called up 25 players, including 22 from MLS, for the January camp that was due to take place at the Aspire Academy in Doha, Qatar from January 5-25. The players will now commence training in Bradenton on January 6 ahead of the February 1 friendly against Costa Rica to be played at Dignity Health Sports Park in Los Angeles.
Other club teams scheduled to train in the warmer weather of Doha, Qatar are at present moving forward with their plans. German giants FC Bayern Munich are set to begin a two-week training camp in Doha during the Bundesliga's winter break. Austrian side FC Red Bull Salzburg, coached by American Jesse Marsch, were due to be scrimmage opponents of the USMNT in Doha.
Qatar is set to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup and the camp would have given Berhalter's USMNT an opportunity to begin to familiarize itself with the country, the climate and the facilities in the hope of qualifying for the tournament after missing out on the last edition in 2018.
