Manchester United confirm friendly to warm up for US tour

Manchester United’s pre-season is starting to take shape after the club confirmed the first warm-up match before the squad flies out to the United States for a mini-summer tour to gear up for the new season. Ten Hag’s men will face classic Norwegian side Rosenborg at the Lerkendal Stadion in Trondheim on Monday 15 July with kick-off set for 18:00 hours local time (12 noon ET / 9 a.m. PT).

Norwegians would

Rosenborg is Norway’s top team in terms of participation in European competition - since their first continental appearance in the 1965/66 European Cup Winners’ Cup, the Troillongan have taken part in more than three decades of UEFA tournaments - famously reaching the quarter finals of the 1996/7 Champions League when they were eliminated by Juventus. But by some strange twist of fate, they have never crossed paths with United in 32 seasons playing in Europe. The two clubs have met before a couple of times in preseason friendlies - the most recent in August 1992 (United won 3-2 in Norway) but never in official competition.

A number of Norwegian players have left their mark at Old Trafford over the years - the most famous of all being Ole Gunnar Solskjaer; others include Henning Berg, Joshua King, Ronny Johnsen and Erik Nevland - none of whom have particularly strong links to Rosenberg.

United also have a friendly against Rangers lined up at Murrayfield on 20 July before the squad flies out to the United States for a ten-day mini-tour. The team will take on Arsenal at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on 27 July, then Spanish side Betis at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego on 31 July before concluding their stay with a clash against the old enemy Liverpool at Williams-Brice Stadium in South Carolina on 3 August - a game which has long sold out.

The club could add more dates to their summer schedule, depending on what happens between now and the end of the season - for instance, if United win the FA Cup, they will be involved in the Community Shield which is scheduled to be held on 11 August. If that doesn’t happen, United could arrange at least one friendly for that weekend.

United football director John Murtough said: “Everyone at Manchester United is pleased to be returning to Norway for the opening match of our pre-season campaign, renewing the special relationship which exists with our huge support base in Scandinavia. It’s surprising that these two clubs have never met competitively, and not for over 30 years in pre-season, making this a rare opportunity to see United taking on the most successful team in Norwegian football as we begin our preparations for the 2024-25 season.”