River Plate Canadian Tour 2009: Juventus Out, Impact In, and Information On Seating For Everton Friendly

By: Christian | June 17th, 2009

First and foremost, let me extend a warm thank you to Salvi Cammarata and Chris Billings of the Alberta Soccer Association, and Mel Kowalchuk of the Canadian Major Indoor Soccer League. All three have been very gracious in answering my emails regarding a dedicated fan section in the Commonwealth Stadium for the July 25th friendly against Everton. And guess what? There will indeed be a Fan Zone set aside just for River Plate fans! You can now go to the Ticketmaster event page to see a seating chart; our section will be on the east side of the stadium, sections S to N. Remember, tickets will go on sale June 22nd.

More updates regarding River’s anticipated Canadian pre-season tour:

* I wrote previously that Juventus would be facing River twice in Canada on the 5th and 8th of August, a rematch of sorts of the 1996 Intercontinental Cup. But according to La Página Millonaria, those matches have been cancelled after Juve announced they will instead head off to Japan for a series of games there.

* This past Monday, the Montreal Impact, a member of the USL First Division, announced an August 4th friendly with River at the Stade Saputo.

“We are glad to add this international game to our calendar,” said Montreal Impact and Saputo Stadium President Joey Saputo. “River Plate is a great club in South America, among the two most prestigious in Argentina. It’s therefore an honor to have the opportunity to play against them.”

The Impact made headlines this year when they advanced to the semifinals of the CONCACAF Champions League, defeating Mexico’s Santos Laguna in the opening leg at the Olympic Stadium in front of 55,000-plus fans before eventually losing 5-4 on aggregate.

Tickets for the game will go on sale Friday at 10 am through Admission (a Tickemaster affiliate), or at the Stade Saputo ticket office. Unlike the astronomical prices set for the Carlsberg Cup match, tickets will be more moderately priced between $15 to $40 (taxes included). Youth rates for spectators aged 16 and under, as well as special group rates, will also be offered.

Read the full press release from the Impact here.