PREVIEW: Orlando City Set to Host Intrastate Rivals Inter Miami CF at Exploria Stadium

ORLANDO, Fla. (July 8, 2022) – Orlando City SC (7-7-4, 25 points) is set to face off against Inter Miami CF (6-7-4, 22 points) on Saturday, July 9 at 8 p.m. ET at Exploria Stadium. The match, presented by Heineken, will be locally televised on FOX35 PLUS and LionNation TV.

Tickets for Saturday’s match are available here or by calling (855) ORL-CITY. In addition to being televised on FOX35 PLUS and LionNation TV, local radio coverage of the match will be available on 96.9 The Game in English and Acción 97.9 in Spanish.

“It seems like we spoke a day ago with these games coming so quickly. Our training and our preparation has been the same with not much time, but we’re trying to organize and be active. We’re getting ready for Miami, that’s where we’re at,” Head Coach Oscar Pareja said ahead of the match. “They have had a good period and are getting good results. It seems like they’re finding some stability in the way they do things and that’s something we recognize, but we’re trying to be ready and be prepared and worry about what we can do.”

Saturday will mark the first time both sides face off against one another during the 2022 MLS regular season, but the two teams are familiar after matching up earlier this year in the Round of 16 of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. That match finished in a 1-1 draw with City midfielder Facundo Torres finding the back of the net for the Lions in extra time, forcing a penalty-kick shootout. A Mason Stajduhar save and a Miami miss led Mauricio Pereyra to seal the victory in the shootout, punching City’s ticket to the Quarterfinals of the nation’s oldest cup competition. 

In the Club’s last outing, City dropped a 5-3 decision against D.C. United. The match saw the Lions score a season-high three goals, with Facundo Torres, Ercan Kara and Alexandre Pato all finding the back of the net. Defender Ruan recorded his 100th appearance as a Lion across all competitions, joining current teammates Robin Jansson and Tesho Akindele in the century club, as well as former Lions Chris Mueller and Cristian Higuita.

Inter Miami CF comes into this match following a 1-1 draw against FC Dallas. Miami went down early in the first half, but managed to tie it up just before the 90th minute to split the points with the Toros. 

Historically the Lions hold a 3-2-2 record against Inter Miami, with the last pair of outings ending in a draw in league play. The last regular-season meeting between the two sides resulted in a scoreless stalemate, marking the first time either team held a shutout against the other. 

Orlando City Homegrown Mikey Halliday recently returned to The City Beautiful after helping the United States U-20 Men’s National Team qualify for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Indonesia and the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris by winning the CONCACAF U-20 Championship. Halliday was a key piece of the puzzle for the team over the course of the tournament, featuring in all three group stage matches, starting the middle game against Canada and playing the second half in the other two. The Orlando defender then started each of the Americans’ first three knockout matches, including the two major qualifying games.

Following Saturday’s fixture, Orlando will travel to Dick’s Sporting Goods Park to face the Colorado  Rapids on July 13. That match is set to kickoff at 9 p.m. ET and will be locally televised on FOX35 PLUS and LionNation TV.