Kickers face Premiere Team Swansea City in a Saturday friendly

Let’s play ball. Football that is, you know mate soccer.

July 15, 2016; 12:09 PM • by Richard Hayes

For those of you not down with the soccer parlance a friendly is game that has no consequences. This isn’t part of a tournament nor does it affect the league standings in any way.

The game taking place on Saturday only serves as a celebration of soccer and a chance for Richmonders to watch players from one of the top leagues in the world. It will be the most attended game of the year for the Richmond Kickers and if the past is any indication it will be a raucous time. The fun this year is aided by a later start. Previous friendlies at City Stadium had a midafternoon start and as a result several fans were reduced to melted pile of goo. This year kickoff is at 7 PM so the temperature should be at least bearable.

The Kickers are coming off a two game road winning streak that last of which was played on Thursday. Expect the majority of starters to be on the bench recovering from their latest game. If the past is in indication the game will be mainly played with fringe players for both teams. Pride is on the line so you can expect a hard fought match and the Kickers would be thrilled with saying they beat a Premier League team.

Swansea City played the Charlotte Independence on the 12th and won 4-0. You can check out the highlights here.

A little history on Swansea from the Richmond Kickers:

Established in 1912, the Welsh club based in Swansea, South Wales, battled for many years in the lower divisions before making a historic climb from near bankruptcy in the Fourth Division to the Premier League in 2011, becoming the first Welsh team to play in the top flight since the league’s restructure in 1992. Swansea celebrated their greatest success to date by winning the Capital One Cup in 2013, with a record-breaking 5-0 victory over Bradford City, claiming the club’s first major trophy and qualifying for the 2013-14 UEFA Europa League. Most recently, Swansea finished the 2015-16 season in 12th place in the English Premier League standings with a 12-15-11 record and 47 points.

The pregame party starts at 5:00 p.m. with live music by The Folly, RVA food trucks and over 20 craft beers on tap and the game kicks off at 7:00 p.m. Tickets ($30) are on sale now at RichmondKickers.com.