2017 Florida Cup Preview: FC Challenge Stage

International soccer will return to the Sunshine State next month, as the third edition of the Florida Cup welcomes 14 teams to the state from Jan. 8-21. For the first time, the tournament will be divided into two formats, spreading the matches across four stadiums – Orlando’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex and Bright House Networks Stadium (UCF), Lockhart Stadium in Ft. Lauderdale, and St. Petersburg’s Al Lang Stadium.

The first part, to be disputed Jan. 8-15, is called the FC Challenge, a tournament in which clubs represent their countries in a format similar to the Davis Cup in tennis. In this stage, each team will play two matches and fight for points for its country. The nation with…