U.S. Women’s National Team to face China in Detroit, Houston and Boca Raton, Fla., in final three matches of Fan Tribute Tour

The U.S. Women’s National Team will play the final three matches of the 2012 Fan Tribute Tour, presented by Panasonic, in Detroit, Houston and Boca Raton, Fla. The three matches will all be played against China during an eight-day span, starting with a match at Ford Field in Detroit on Dec. 8, and followed by matches at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston on Dec. 12 and FAU Stadium in Boca Raton, Fla., on Dec. 15.

The match in Houston will kick off at 7:30 p.m. CT and will be televised on FOX Soccer. Kickoff for the match in Detroit is set for 1:30 p.m. ET, while the kickoff time in Boca Raton will be determined shortly.

Tickets for the game in Detroit go on sale to the general public Saturday, Nov. 10, at 10 a.m. ET through ussoccer.com, by calling 1-800-745-3000, at all Metro Detroit Ticketmaster ticket centers (including Walmart stores) and the Ford Field ticket office (open Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.).

For the match in Houston, tickets go on sale to the general public Friday, Nov. 16, at 10 a.m. CT through ussoccer.com, by calling 1-888-929-7849, and at the BBVA Compass Stadium ticket office (open Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.). For the match in Houston, the Visa advance sale begins at ussoccer.com on Thursday, Nov. 15, at 10 a.m. CT and runs until Friday, Nov. 16, at 8 a.m. CT.

Ticket information for the game in Boca Raton will be announced at a later date.

The visit to Ford Field will be the U.S. WNT’s third trip to Michigan and second to the home of the NFL’s Detroit Lions. The U.S. played China at Ford Field in December 2008 during its post-Olympic tour, picking up a 1-0 victory on a goal from Heather O’Reilly. The U.S. WNT’s only other match in Michigan came at the Pontiac Silverdome in 1993 in a run-through for 1994 FIFA World Cup matches.

The U.S. Women will make their first visits to BBVA Compass Stadium, home of Major League Soccer’s Houston Dynamo, which opened last May, and FAU Stadium, built for the Florida Atlantic University Owls football team and opened in October 2011.

The USA has played China once so far in 2012, a 4-1 victory on May 27 in front of a sold-out crowd at PPL Park in Chester, Pa., as Alex Morgan scored twice, Abby Wambach scored once and China knocked in an own goal.

The Dec. 15 match in Florida will be the USA’s final match of 2012 and the 49th all-time meeting between the USA and China. That match will also be the first for the U.S. WNT in Palm Beach County and the first in South Florida in nearly 13 years.

The USA has averaged more than 18,000 fans per game while going 3-0-2 so far on the Fan Tribute Tour presented by Panasonic, defeating Costa Rica 8-0, beating Australia by 2-1 and 6-2 scores and drawing Germany twice, 1-1 and 2-2. The USA returns to action for a pair of matches against the Republic of Ireland on Nov. 28 at JELD-WEN Field in Portland, Ore., and Dec. 1 at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.

Tickets for the match in Portland are on sale through ussoccer.com, by phone at 1-800-745-3000 and at all Ticketmaster ticket centers throughout the Portland area (including Fred Meyer and Walmart stores). Tickets are also available at the JELD-WEN Field ticket office (open Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.).

Tickets for the Dec. 1 match in Arizona are on sale through ussoccer.com, by phone at 1-800-745-3000 and at all Ticketmaster ticket centers throughout metropolitan Phoenix (including Fry’s Marketplace), as well as the University of Phoenix Stadium ticket office (open Monday-Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.).

The China matches will be the first time new U.S. head coach Tom Sermanni will watch the team play in person since taking the job. He will not coach the matches, but will attend in an observatory role as U.S. Soccer Director of Women’s Development Jill Ellis will lead the team in the final five matches of the tour.

The U.S. won its third straight gold medal (and fourth gold medal overall) at the 2012 London Olympics. The USA went undefeated at 6-0-0 for the first time at an Olympic tournament, which included a thrilling come-from-behind overtime victory in the semifinal against Canada on Aug. 6 and Carli Lloyd’s two-goal performance to lead the U.S. to a 2-1 win against 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup champion Japan in the gold medal match on Aug. 9.