U.S. captain Nico Calabria is pictured. (credit: Nigel Degraff)

The U.S. amputee soccer team is pictured (credit: Carl Calabria)

STONY BROOK, N.Y., UNITED STATES, September 19, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Team USA will kick off its quest for the Amputee Soccer World Cup with an opening match against England when the sport’s premier global event gets underway in Istanbul, Turkey, later this month.

The Americans will take on England at 6 a.m. EDT (1 p.m. local) on Oct. 1 before rounding out the group stage against Argentina (Oct. 2) and Indonesia (Oct. 3). England, one of the strongest sides in the 24-team field, will pose a particularly staunch foe after reaching the final of the 2017 European Amputee Football Championship.

Sixteen teams will advance to the knockout rounds: the top two sides from each of the six groups, in addition to the top four third-place teams. Nef Stadium, the home of famed Turkish soccer club Galatasaray, will host the Oct. 9 final. Turkey, which finished second at the 2018 World Cup, is an early favorite to hoist the trophy.

The U.S. will bring 15 players and 11 staff, representing 10 states, to the World Cup. In the squad is captain Nico Calabria, of Boston, Mass., who was named Most Valuable Player of the regional qualifying tournament in Jalisco, Mexico, this past March. The Americans also enjoy some high-profile support from outside the squad: Los Angeles F.C. midfielder Kellyn Acosta, a regular for the U.S. men’s national team and hopeful for the World Cup this November, was recently named an ambassador for the amputee team.

Head coach Dr. Eric Lamberg, an associate dean in the School of Health Professions at Stony Brook University and president of the American Amputee Soccer Association, said: “The U.S. Amputee Soccer team has been training and is at peak performance. We look forward to competing against the best amputee soccer teams in the world.”

Codified in 1980 by Seattle native Don Bennett, amputee soccer is played on a ¾-size pitch with seven players to a side. Field players use forearm crutches and may play the ball with only one leg. Goalkeepers defend a 7’x16’ net and may use only one arm.

The AASA believes everyone should have access to play soccer. Our mission is to 1) promote, develop and provide access to the sport of amputee soccer for all people living with amputation or limb difference and 2) to develop and train elite amputee soccer athletes to represent the United States in international competition.

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The AASA is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Please direct sponsorship inquiries to info@usampsoccer.org. Donations are welcome at www.usampsoccer.org/donate.
Learn more about us at www.usampsoccer.org.

Eric Lamberg
American Amputee Soccer Association
+1 516-526-1244
email us here

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