The Maryland men’s soccer team has embarked on a 10 day tour of Portugal March 16-26, playing three matches during that span. The Terps in Portugal daily blog will keep you updated on the matches, the stories and the sights of Maryland’s trip to the oldest country in Europe.
Introduction
Olá Portugal! Welcome to the Terps in Portugal daily blog where we will take you inside the sights, sounds and stories of Maryland’s 10-day journey in one of Europe’s most historic nations.
Let’s set the stage shall we? Maryland’s trip to Portugal will run from March 16-26, with the squad setting up shop in the country’s two biggest cities: Porto and Lisbon. The Terps begin the trip in Porto, with trips into the nearby town of Braga, before driving down to Lisbon for the rest of the trip. Maryland is set to play three matches against U-23 sides from three clubs that have first team squads in the top-five of Portugal’s Primeira Liga table. The full match schedule: March 18: vs. Vitória S.C. U-23, March 21: vs. Braga U-23, March 24: vs. Benfica U-23.
Maryland’s travel party will also get the chance to see two fantastic matches. The Terps will visit Estádio Municipal de Braga on March 19 to watch Braga take on F.C. Porto in a matchup between the clubs that sit second and third in the Primeira Liga standings. On March 23, the Terps will head to Estádio José Alvalade to watch the Portugal National Team take on Liechtenstein in a Euro 2024 qualifier. It will be the debut of new manager Roberto Martinez and his picked a squad that features all-time legend Cristiano Ronaldo, and world stars Bruno Fernandes, Joao Felix, Pepe and Bernardo Silva among others.
The Terps will also get the chance to visit many of the countries most historic places and engage in cultural immersion activities. Let’s have some fun!
Day One
The Terps set off on their journey on Thursday afternoon with an early evening flight from Dulles to Lisbon with a connecting flight to the squad’s first destination, Porto. The bus ride to the airport was a stressful one, but not for any travel issues (we’ll get to some of those). Maryland’s players, coaches and staff watched breathlessly as the Maryland men’s basketball team tried to complete a first round NCAA Tournament win over West Virginia. The boys cheered with every Hakim Hart bucket and roared for JuJu…
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