On Monday, Crystal Palace touched down more than 3,000 miles from its Selhurst Park home in the London suburbs. Its first stop: Talen Energy Stadium in Chester.
Kicking off a North American preseason tour, the English Premier League team, which was founded in 1905, is set to take on the Union in an international friendly on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
The rest of its tour is to include a game against FC Cincinnati on Saturday and a matchup with the Vancouver Whitecaps next Tuesday.
While the games mean little to its MLS and USL opponents, which are in the middle of their seasons, Crystal Palace manager Alan Pardew anticipates a challenging week.