Real Madrid back in the USA for preseason

Madrid will return to the United States for the 2016-17 season preseason warm-ups. The club is finalising the details of the summer plans there but, unlike previous years in the States, this year's focus will not be around Los Angeles. The west coast city has hosted Real Madrid five consecutives years over the reigns of Mourinho (3) and Ancelotti (2).

The change means a start to the workout kicking off near Boston, on the East Coast. The reason for this is to have a shorter journey than has previously been the case. Last season, Los Blancos spent almost an entire day on the plane to get to Australia, prompting complaints from players like Cristiano and Modric. Zidane has given his thumbs up to this year's proposals.

The Spanish club (through José Ángel Sánchez, who is leading all the negotiations) is still trying to close off the dates of the matches that will be played while visiting. At the moment, the location of the International Champions Cup is being disputed between Boston, New York and Washington, three cities which are separated by no more than 300 kilometres. The goal of the coordination effort is to ensure that players do not end up exhausted, which is a lesson from what happened last year. The extra travel did make the club 19 million euros for the four games: 12 million for the two games in Australia and seven million for the other two in China. That works out at almost five million per game and the normal return is between two and three million euros per game.

Another friendly. There is also the option to play in another US city as part of the tour, if the opportunity arises and if it is beneficial to the club. In addition to this new summer tour, Madrid will have to play a match in Munich, which was agreed in the Kroos signing from Bayern. All proceeds from this would go straight to the coffers of the Bavarian club, as per the agreement.