FC Tulsa to Play Oakland Roots SC in Tuscon on Feb. 20
TUCSON, Ariz. – With FC Tulsa’s regular season officially on the 2022 calendar, the club has begun locking in dates and times for its preseason matches. This year, FC Tulsa will participate in one of soccer’s premier warm weather preseason tournaments by making a trip west to Tucson, Ariz. for the 12th annual 2022 Desert Showcase presented by Visit Tucson and hosted by FC Tucson of USL League One. Tulsa be joined by three fellow USL Championship Playoffs clubs from a year ago – Louisville City FC, El Paso Locomotive FC, Oakland Roots SC.
FC Tulsa will travel to Tucson on February 16, spending a week training at Kino North Complex before taking on Oakland Roots SC on Sunday, Feb. 20 at 11 a.m. CT.
The USL Championship portion of the Desert Showcase will consist of three matches between the five teams:
- Saturday, Feb. 16: Louisville City FC vs. El Paso Locomotive FC, 3 p.m. CT
- Sunday, Feb. 20: Oakland Roots vs. FC Tulsa, 11 a.m. CT
- Saturday, Feb. 26: Oakland Roots vs. FC Tucson, TBD
It will be the first time FC Tulsa has matched up with Oakland Roots SC, the 2021 USL Championship expansion franchise that reached the postseason in its inaugural campaign. The teams are not scheduled to play each other during the 2022 regular season, making the preseason match an excellent opportunity to work on tactics and objectives during a full speed match.
“The trip to Tucson is about improving the understanding of our travel cadence during the season,” said FC Tulsa head coach Michael Nsien. “We want to simulate the standards and expectations of the club when we travel. We have some new players that will be adapting to our routine, and it’s important that our team builds camaraderie. Our training sessions in Tucson will focus primarily on our style of play and we will want to execute that in what should be a competitive match against Oakland.”
All three of the Desert Showcase matches will be held at the Kino Grandstand field and tickets are available on a limited basis for $10. There is currently no plan to stream the matches.
