On Tuesday, July 31 the 2018 Special Olympics Unified Sports All-Star soccer match will take place at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Training Ground at 5:00 p.m. CT, one day before the 2018 MLS All-Star Game presented by Target.
For the fifth year in a row, MLS WORKS and ESPN will host 42 delegates as part of the Special Olympics Unified Sports All-Star Experience. The Unified Sports All-Star soccer teams are comprised of players with and without intellectual disabilities and will play an 11 vs 11 match consisting of two 30-minute halves, outfitted in authentic uniforms provided by adidas. The teams will take the pitch in an East vs. West matchup prior to the fifth annual MLS Homegrown Game presented by Energizer®.
Representing the Chicago Fire are Special Olympics Athlete Ryan McDonough and Unified Partner Gautam Bhoyrul.
The Unified Sports match will be streamed live in the video player above via MLS YouTube and is also available on ESPN3, accessible on the ESPN app and ESPN.com.
MLSsoccer.com talent Bobby Warshaw and David Gass will serve as the match announcers, providing color commentary and interviews with players and coaches throughout the match. Atlanta United players will serve as celebrity coaches for both teams and present the Unified athletes with medals following the match.
The match will showcase the Special Olympics Unified Sports Soccer Exchange program, the cornerstone of the ongoing collaboration between MLS, ESPN, and Special Olympics North America. Through the Unified Sports Soccer Exchange program, Unified teams from MLS cities travel to other MLS markets to compete in exhibition matches with their Special Olympics counterparts. Unified matches are scheduled in conjunction with MLS club matches, providing MLS fans with an opportunity to witness first-hand the talents and abilities of Special Olympics athletes. Supporting the matches is ESPN, media partner to both MLS and Special Olympics International and the Global Presenting Sponsor of Special Olympics Unified Sports.
The best in MLS will face Italian giants Juventus, in the 2018 MLS All-Star Game presented by Target on August 1 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta and the match will be televised on ESPN, UniMás, TSN, and TVA Sports domestically as well as in more than 170 countries globally.
