Borussia Dortmund have been training in San Diego since Monday. The first friendly game of the 2023 USA Tour will also take place on the Californian coast. We have put together some facts for you about BVB’s opposition, the stadium and the city.

The first opponents of the Black and Yellows in the USA are San Diego Loyal SC. Founded in June 2019, the club are now playing in the second tier in America, the USL Championship. The team have been coached by Nate Miller since December 2022. They usually play their home games at Torero Stadium, a multi-purpose stadium that is also home to university football, rugby and American football teams.

US football legend holds a position on the board

Landon Donovan is co-owner of the club from California. The former professional footballer, who was under contract with Bayer 04 Leverkusen from 1999 to 2005, is still the record goalscorer for the American national team (57 goals in 157 games). After stints in Germany, the USA and Mexico, he ended his playing career in 2019. In the same year, Donovan took over the position of head coach of the newly founded club San Diego Loyal SC. Since December 2022, he has been managing director and vice-president of football operations. In May 2023, the 41-year-old former striker was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame.

A young stadium

Snapdragon Stadium will be the venue when BVB play San Diego Loyal SC on July 27 (19:30 local time). The stadium was opened in September 2022 after two years of construction and can accommodate up to 32,000 fans for football matches. Snapdragon Stadium is the home of the San Diego State Aztecs, San Diego State University’s college football team. The San Diego Wave FC women’s football team and the Rugby Union Club also play their home games there.

Dortmund times two

San Diego is located in the south-west of California. With 1.38 million residents (as of 2020), San Diego is more than twice the size of Dortmund (as of 2022: 593,317 inhabitants).  There are 9200 km between the two cities as the crow flies. The San Diego Padres are the city’s most famous sports team. The baseball team play in the top tier in the United States, Major League Baseball (MLB). The coastal city of San Diego is not only known as one of the sunniest cities in the USA, but also for its craft beer.. 

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