ATLANTA — Atlanta United play their first "home" competitive match of the season tonight in Kennesaw, where they'll be trying to reach the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals against Honduran club FC Motagua.
The two teams played last week in Honduras, where a Josef Martinez goal helped Atlanta leave with a 1-1 draw, giving them a slight advantage going into tonight's second leg of the Champions League round of 16 matchup.
In the Champions League, as in much of international soccer, away goals count as a tiebreaker for two-legged knockout competitions. Meaning if this game ends 0-0, Atlanta wins 1-0 on away goals. (Conversely, if it ends 2-2, they would lose 2-1 on away goals.)
The basics
- Who: Atlanta United vs. FC Motagua
- What: Champions League round of 16 second leg
- When: 8:00 p.m., tonight
- Where: Fifth Third Bank Stadium, Kennesaw
- Tickets: The game is officially sold out, with tickets on secondary sites like StubHub and Vivid Seats going for about $90 on the low end (for perspective, face value on those tickets went as low as $30).
- TV: Fox Sports 1
Anticipation for United's return to action in front of a home crowd is obviously high, with tickets on the secondary market going for about three times face value in some instances.
The CONCACAF Champions League is a regional competition for the best teams from North and Central America and the Caribbean, an equivalent to Europe's famed Champions League.
It represents something of a coveted prize for MLS clubs: No MLS team has won it since 2001, with Mexican teams winning the last 14 regional titles.
The winner of the competition also eventually gets to play in the year-ending FIFA Club World Cup, which would potentially give them a shot at European giants such as Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.
If Atlanta United prevail against Motagua, they'll next play Club America of Mexico or Comunicaciones FC of Guatemala.
The game comes ahead of the team's first MLS match of the season, which will be in Nashville on Saturday.
Their first match of the season back in the cacophonous confines of Mercedes-Benz Stadium will be on March 7 against FC Cincinnati.
MORE HEADLINES