Four-time MLS Cup champions D.C. United will host 31-time German Bundesliga champions FC Bayern Munich in the Audi Football Summit, a friendly set for July 20 at 7:30 pm ET at D.C.'s Audi Field, the clubs announced Thursday.
Bayern will visit D.C. as part of their US summer preseason tour prior to opening the 2022-23 Bundesliga campaign. By then, they're likely to be the 32-time Bundesliga champs; they currently hold a nine-point lead atop the table with four matches to play.
"FC Bayern Munich are one of the biggest and most storied clubs in our sport. It’s a pleasure to host them and their side full of global superstars, like Robert Lewandowski, Manuel Neuer, Leroy Sane, and so many more, as part of the Audi Football Summit at our home stadium this summer alongside our great partner Audi,” D.C. president of business operations Danita Johnson, said in a release. “We look forward to delivering a highly competitive and enjoyable experience for our fanbase and the sporting community in the DMV.”
This match will mark the first meeting between the two sides and the second international friendly between D.C. and a top-division European side at Audi Field since the stadium opened in the summer of 2018. The Black-and-Red hosted La Liga side Real Betis in May 2019.
One of Major League Soccer's founding members, D.C. United have also hosted regular friendlies against top European sides prior to their move to Audi Field, including contests against fellow European titans A.C. Milan, Chelsea FC, Ajax and Paris Saint-Germain FC.
Audi Field won't be an entirely unfamiliar destination for Bayern. Former Vancouver Whitecaps FC prodigy Alphonso Davies was the first visiting player to score a goal at the stadium in a 3-1 defeat to D.C. in the stadium's inaugural match on July 14, 2018.
