The buildup and hype for the U.S. men's national team's FIFA World Cup qualifier against Mexico is really going to start picking up in the latter stages of this week.
U.S. Soccer was happy to begin stoking the frenzied environment around this storied rivalry match, which will be contested domestically in the current World Cup cycle at FC Cincinnati's TQL Stadium on Nov. 12, by announcing Monday the match was officially sold out.
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On Thursday around 11:30 a.m., attentions should shift to the match once again as U.S. Soccer will announce its travel roster for the upcoming two-match window of qualifying matches. USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter is expected to address media members around noon on the subject of the personnel selections for the games.
Excitement around the roster reveal was boiling over into Tuesday and Wednesday.
On Wednesday, a German news outlet reported 18-year-old defender Joe Scally of Borussia Mönchengladbach would be included in the roster.
American star Christian Pulisic, who plays his club soccer at famed English Premier League side Chelsea FC, is also widely projected to earn a call-up for this international window after missing three qualifiers in October through injury.
According to U.S. Soccer, fans from all 50 states and Washington, D.C. have purchased tickets, helping make this the third-consecutive sellout for the USMNT in the 2022 qualifying campaign.
The federation's Monday news release announcing the sellout didn't put an exact number on the sellout, but TQL Stadium has a capacity around 26,000.
By midweek, the secondary market for tickets looked slightly better than it had in recent weeks. On Wednesday, SeatGeek listed tickets for the match for $414. It wasn't long ago that tickets couldn't be had for less than around $500.
U.S. Soccer, which will reveal its roster for the upcoming two-match international window of World Cup qualifiers on Thursday, also announced further activities locally.
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Starting Friday, buildings in Downtown will be lit red, white and blue through Nov. 12 during nighttime hours.
U.S. Soccer and the American Outlaws, a supporters group for the men's and women's national teams, will host a kick-off party Thursday (6 p.m.) at The Pitch Cincy (1430 Central Pkwy.)
The party is open to attendees of all ages until 9 p.m. It will then turn to 21-plus for entry. National team merchandise will also be available for purchase at The Pitch on Thursday, as well as Friday.
A "FanHQ" will operate on Central Parkway on Friday starting at 5:30 p.m.
These and other activities lead into the scheduled 9:10 p.m. kickoff between the U.S. and Mexico on Nov. 12.
