U.S. women’s national team on its way back to Birmingham

By Jon Solomon - News staff writer

 The U.S. women’s national soccer team will return to Birmingham on May 3 for an exhibition against Australia in preparation for the Summer Olympics in Beijing. It will be the first appearance by a U.S. national soccer team since artificial turf was installed at Legion Field in 2006. The U.S. men most recently played here in 2005 for a World Cup qualifying match, and the women’s most recent appearance was in 2004 for an exhibition. Gene Hallman, executive director of the Alabama Sports Foundation, said he expects between 15,000 and 20,000 people to attend. The exhibition will be televised nationally on the Fox Soccer Channel. "We’ve played a number of games in Birmingham, and every time it’s been excellent," said Neil Buethe, U.S. Soccer Federation spokesman. "It’s a great atmosphere. There are definitely a lot of American fans there. Sometimes that’s not always the case." The time of the match has not been announced. Tickets go on sale Thursday and are available through TicketMaster at 715-6000, or online at ussoccer.com. Advance tickets cost $55 (midline), $35 (sideline), $25 (corner) and $18 (end line). Purchases on the day of the exhibition cost $60 (midline), $40 (sideline), $30 (corner) and $20 (end line). Hallman said the installation of artificial turf at Legion Field has cost Birmingham international soccer events. When the turf was installed, then-Birmingham Mayor Bernard Kincaid said the city had to consider the overall good that turf would bring for other events in spite of soccer concerns. "The thing with turf is - and it’s this way for every soccer player and every team - they prefer to play on grass," Buethe said. "But with all the new technologies and all these stadiums going to artificial turf because of costs, it’s a non-issue for us