SEATTLE, WASH. – Sounders FC today announced that forward Clint Dempsey and midfielder Marco Pappa have each been called into national team duty for a pair of international friendlies. Dempsey travels to Europe with the U.S. Men’s National Team for matches against Denmark and Switzerland, while Pappa remains stateside with Guatemala to take on Canada and El Salvador.
The U.S. faces Denmark on Wednesday, March 25 in Aarhus in the first meeting between the teams since 2009 (3:00 p.m. PT / ESPN2, WatchESPN, UniMas, UDN). Six days later, Jurgen Klinsmann’s side meets Switzerland on Tuesday, March 31 in Zurich (9:00 a.m. PT / FOX Sports 1, UniMas, UDN).
Dempsey is tied for sixth all-time with 112 USMNT appearances and seventh with 101 starts for his country, including appearances in each of the last three FIFA World Cups. The current U.S. captain, Dempsey’s 40 international goals rank second all-time for the Stars and Stripes, while his 13 assists are tied for eighth.
Guatemala takes on Canada in a closed-door friendly on Friday, March 27 at Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The team then travels to Carson, California on Tuesday, March 31 for a match against El Salvador at 8:00 p.m. PT at the StubHub Center.
Pappa has 37 caps and 12 goals for the Guatemalan National Team. He won the Golden Ball and Golden Boot at the 2014 Copa Centroamericana after scoring four goals in three games.
Both Dempsey and Pappa are expected to miss Tuesday’s international friendly with Club Tijuana, as well as next Saturday’s MLS regular season match at FC Dallas. The Xolos match kicks-off Tuesday evening at 7:00 p.m. PT on the Xbox Pitch at CenturyLink Field, while Saturday’s return to league action is slated for 5:30 p.m. PT at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas and is being broadcast throughout Western Washington on Q13 FOX.
