U.S. sees Copa America tuneup with Colombia at Commanders Field as dogfight

The U.S. men’s soccer team will test itself against high-level competition on Saturday when it squares off against Colombia at Commanders Field in Landover.

The friendly marks one of the final exhibitions before the U.S. hosts the Copa America, an international tournament featuring the best national teams from North and South America, later this month.

In discussions with reporters, players and coaches have said the friendly and the Copa America serve as valuable experiences for their ultimate goal.

“This is preparation for the World Cup,” defender Chris Richards said of the Copa America and June friendlies. “Of course whatever tournament, whatever game we’re playing in we want to win. But we’re playing for something bigger. We’re trying to get ready for the World Cup.”

As a host country, the U.S. has already qualified for the 2026 World Cup. While other national teams scrape and claw for a qualifying spot, the Americans say they’ve trained with an eye on the future.

“You always want to perform to the best of your abilities. That’s something you want to do. But for us, the focus is on performance,” midfielder Cameron Carter-Vickers said. “Obviously Colombia is a good team … It’s just about trying to find that good performance level … just trying to maximize the most learning that we can.”

In preparation for Saturday’s game, the U.S. team has stayed in Virginia and trained in Maryland. Most of the players arrived on May 29, allowing them 10 consecutive days of training, a luxury for the busy squad.

“It’s an opportunity that we’re looking forward to … having long periods where we can create competitive training sessions and solidify a lot of the principles that we want to play with,” assistant coach B.J. Callaghan told reporters on the first day of camp. “We have a lot of time to learn and to really build our identity both on and off the field.”

The Colombians are riding a 21-match unbeaten streak that began in February 2022. In the latest FIFA rankings of the world’s national teams, the U.S. and Colombia clock in at 11th and 12th, respectively.

Players said fans at Saturday’s match are in for a dogfight.

“Colombia is a very difficult opponent, every game they play with a lot of intensity,” midfielder Yunus Musah told reporters. “They are very physical, especially in the defense, and I think they [have] a lot of talent in attack too.”

“For us, this isn’t the end all, be all. Our goal is the 2026 World Cup. … This is a building step for us to get there,” forward Haji Wright said. “To get on the pitch against high-profile teams that are of great quality … so we can build as a group and have that experience when we come into the 2026 World Cup.”

After Saturday’s match, the U.S. National Team will head to Orlando for a face-off against Brazil on Wednesday. The Americans open group play in Copa America on June 23 against Bolivia.