USMNT to Play at Switzerland Prior to Concacaf Nations League Semifinals

A tune-up in St. Gallen will precede the conclusion of the delayed Concacaf Nations League final four.

The U.S. men's national team will kick off its extended May/June international window with a May 30 friendly at Switzerland, the host association announced Friday morning. The match will take place in St. Gallen, in the country's northeast.

When reconfiguring the international calendar because of the pandemic, FIFA planned several windows that could accommodate more than two matches. For the USA, the window that'll open with the Switzerland game closes June 15. It will be highlighted by the Concacaf Nations League finals, which are scheduled for June 3–6 at a U.S. location yet to be announced (they originally were supposed to take place in Dallas and Houston last year).

There should also be time for an additional friendly following the Nations League's conclusion, if the U.S. Soccer Federation wants to schedule one. American players based at European clubs will gather for the Switzerland game, then travel west for the Nations League matches. U.S. coach Gregg Berhalter is expected to call up his first-choice players during the June window, with the understanding that many will be offered a break over the summer and during July's Concacaf Gold Cup.

The USA and Switzerland have met eight times, most famously at the 1994 World Cup at the old Pontiac Silverdome. The result there, a 1–1 draw, was the same as at their most recent meeting back in 2015. Switzerland holds a 3-1-4 advantage in the all-time series and currently is ranked 16th in the world. It will use the match to prepare for this summer's European Championship, where it'll face Wales, Italy and Turkey in the group stage.

The Americans will meet Honduras in the Nations League semis on June 3, then play either Mexico or Costa Rica in the consolation game or final three days later. The Gold Cup then kicks off on July 10, with World Cup qualifying set to begin in early September. Berhalter and his staff departed Thursday for Austria, where they'll be joined by a team unveiled this week. The USA will play Jamaica on March 25 in Wiener Neustadt and then travel to Belfast for a friendly against Northern Ireland on March 28.