SD Loyal Announces 2022 Home Opener March 12th

San Diego Loyal SC (SD Loyal) announced its home opener for the 2022 USL Championship season today. The club will kick off its third campaign on Saturday, March 12 at 7PM against LA Galaxy II in a week 1 match at Torero Stadium at USD.

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High expectations

“We’re extremely excited to kick off our third season in front of our home crowd and passionate supporters at Torero Stadium on March 12,” said Landon Donovan, EVP of Soccer Operations and First Team Manager. “Our goal, as always, is to bring a championship home to San Diego and that journey starts now.”

SD Loyal is coming off its first-ever playoff appearance in 2021 in only its second season after a third-place finish in the Pacific Division. The club’s first match in 2022 is the first home opener expected to host a full capacity crowd since the team’s inaugural match March 7, 2020, before stoppage of play due to the COVID-19 pandemic. SD Loyal’s home opener was at 20 percent capacity in 2021 due to local health and health guidelines at the time.

SD Loyal’s full 2022 USL Championship schedule will be announced next Wednesday, Jan. 12, with the 34-game regular season set to conclude on the weekend of October 14-16 ahead of the 2022 USL Championship Playoffs.

Preseason starts Feb 5th

In addition to the home opener announcement, SD Loyal also announced its 2022 preseason schedule, which includes exhibitions against Major League Soccer (MLS) side Vancouver Whitecaps FC and LIGA MX side Club Tijuana Xolos, both at Torero Stadium. SD Loyal will also face New Mexico United of The USL Championship, Central Valley Fuego FC of USL League One, LA Force of the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA) and San Diego State University.

SD Loyal players will begin reporting to training camp this month at the Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center (CVEATC), a U.S. Olympic and Paralympic training site with state-of-the-art sports venues. The facility will host a handful of SD Loyal’s preseason matches. It will also host home matches for Loyal Select, the club’s youth development program.

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2022 Preseason Match Schedule:

Feb. 5 – New Mexico United // Central Valley Fuego FC // at CVEATC // TBD
Feb. 13 – Vancouver Whitecaps FC // at Torero Stadium // 3PM
Feb. 19 – Club Tijuana Xolos // at Torero Stadium // 7PM
Feb. 26 – LA Force // at CVEATC // TBD
March 5 – San Diego State University // at SDSU // 6:30PM

All dates and times are subject to change. Preseason matches at the CVEATC will be closed to the public.