Red Stars add two top Division I universities to preseason

CHICAGO – The Chicago Red Stars finalized their 2017 preseason schedule ahead of their fifth season in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL). The Red Stars will play five matches throughout preseason, including three matches during the Portland Thorns Spring Invitational at Providence Park in Oregon.

Chicago head coach Rory Dames will test his side immediately when the Red Stars head on the road for a match against the University of Wisconsin-Madison on Thursday, March 16.

From March 26 to April 1, the Red Stars will take on the Thorns and Houston Dash of the NWSL and the U.S. Under-23 Women’s National Team in the Thorns Spring Invitational. This will mark the first year that Chicago has travelled to train for the NWSL season.

“We realized after last season that we needed to take on challenging opponents during preseason to prepare for the rigorous NWSL season,” Dames said. “With the tournament we are able to take on top teams in the NWSL and the U-23’s, which will be highly beneficial when regular season kicks off and give us a great look at our roster at that time.”

The final preseason match will be on April 6 when Chicago will head to Indiana to take on top NCAA program, University of Notre Dame.

Both away matches against Wisconsin and Notre Dame will be open to the public and free of charge for fans. Full Thorns Invitational details and ticket information here.

Full Preseason Schedule:
Thursday, March 16^th
University of Wisconsin-Madison vs. Chicago Red Stars 7 p.m. CT (Reddan Soccer Park)
Sunday, March 26^th
Portland Thorns FC vs. Chicago Red Stars 5 p.m. PT (Providence Park)
Wednesday, March 29^th
Houston Dash vs. Chicago Red Stars 5 p.m. PT (Providence Park)
Saturday, April 1^st 
Chicago Red Stars vs. U-23s 5 p.m. PT (Providence Park)
Thursday, April 6^th
Notre Dame vs. Chicago Red Stars 4 p.m. CT (Alumni Stadium)

The Red Stars preseason roster consists of all players currently under contract and two selections from the 2017 NWSL College Draft. There will be a possibility of more hopefuls joining the roster after open tryouts commences on February 23-24.

A full schedule of training camp, including information for media, will be released in March.