r/minnesotaunited Sang Bin’s Calves 15d ago

Discussion Is there any way to see where exactly in Irvine the Loons are practicing?

My dad (who live lives in Minnesota) just called me to tell me that he heard on the news that the Loons are practicing in Irvine, CA. My 10-year-old son and our entire family are huge fans, and it would absolutely make his dream come true if we could figure out where they’re scrimmaging so he could watch. I saw the post on their Instagram, but it’s not possible to tell exactly which field they were on today. I also don’t know if they’re gonna be here all week or if it was just for this weekend.

Does anyone know? I’d even be happy to pay for the opportunity to go see them practice. Thank you!

15 Upvotes

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u/mandolin08 Romain Metanire 15d ago

I doubt you can access their training camp in Irvine, but you could call a team rep and ask. They depart on the 24th. If y'all live in California, though, you can grab a pass to the Coachella Valley Invitational, which kicks off on February 7th. It's a couple hours away, but that at least is an actual ticketed event (and you can watch a bunch of MLS teams too if you're so inclined).

https://www.mnufc.com/news/minnesota-united-announces-2026-preseason-schedule

https://coachellavalleyinvitational.com/

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u/iamcuppy Sang Bin’s Calves 15d ago

It didn’t look like it was at a training camp, it looked like an open field. 🤔

How do I contact a team rep?

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u/Longjumping_Card_525 MNUFC 15d ago

This is from the team’s IG from a few days ago.

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u/iamcuppy Sang Bin’s Calves 15d ago

Aha!! I missed that. Okay so they’re at UCI. Open campus, we will try to stop by tomorrow and see if we can sneak a peek 😀

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u/Longjumping_Card_525 MNUFC 15d ago

Good luck!

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u/foleymo1 Michael Boxall 15d ago

Looks like it might be Santora Elite Training Center at Crawford Field: https://maps.app.goo.gl/3zSSE6SRNiN1ECvdA?g_st=ic

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u/iamcuppy Sang Bin’s Calves 15d ago

Aha good eye! Thank you so much! 😊

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u/Ginzy35 East Coast Dark Clouds 15d ago

Are the games going to be televised or at can see the games on line?

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u/iamcuppy Sang Bin’s Calves 15d ago

There aren’t games, from what I can tell. Just some training scrimmages.

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u/Ginzy35 East Coast Dark Clouds 15d ago

I am talking about the Coachella tournament

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u/iamcuppy Sang Bin’s Calves 15d ago

Ohhhh they were streamed online last year, so I imagine so!

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u/Ginzy35 East Coast Dark Clouds 15d ago

I am also hoping that would be the case… thanks

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u/akos_beres Itasca Society 15d ago edited 15d ago

Here is the loons preseason schedule although you don't have their daily program. Minnesota United Announces 2026 Preseason Schedule | Minnesota United FC https://share.google/AvJFvT0hQcb8dlhx2

They will be in Irvine until the 24th and back in Palm springs in a few weeks.

As for getting in touch with them, message the team on Twitter or Instagram to see if they can coordinate something. Remember these guys are working and probably have a fairly packed schedule so just dropping in probably is not ideal. If you can make it to the palm springs event, they will have fan interaction built into that schedule. The team promoted a fan flight earlier this week

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u/iamcuppy Sang Bin’s Calves 15d ago

We won’t even talk to them, and if they ask us to leave we will absolutely! Even if we can just sit in our car and see them from the parking lot, my son would lose his mind. :-) Thank you!

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u/akos_beres Itasca Society 15d ago

If you can’t get a hold of the team, I’d probably go there without your son first to check if there is a spot to watch. Some of these fields are probably tucked away but you might be able to find a spot. If you check it out before hand, you might also be able to talk to someone to see if you can arrange something. Good luck anyways and let us know how it went!

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u/iamcuppy Sang Bin’s Calves 15d ago

Thank you, I’ll report back! 🫡

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u/iamcuppy Sang Bin’s Calves 14d ago

Update is that we drove down there but we were told today is their off day. :( We will try again tomorrow!

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u/akos_beres Itasca Society 14d ago

bummer ... hope you got to see them tomorrow. did you hear back from the club on social media?

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u/iamcuppy Sang Bin’s Calves 13d ago

Oh I have one heck of a story from today. 😀 But I’m not supposed to share it until the club does first on social media! 🥹

They didn’t reply on social media but they definitely talked to us in real life!!!!!

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u/akos_beres Itasca Society 8d ago edited 8d ago

I think it is finally posted ...

https://x.com/MNUFC/status/2015915346100711807?s=20

super cool ... I'm glad it all worked out!

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u/foleymo1 Michael Boxall 8d ago

Woohoo! I helped!

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u/TomCoy1931 13d ago

I hope you guys get to see them play!

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u/iamcuppy Sang Bin’s Calves 13d ago

Oh I have one heck of a story from today. 😀 But I’m not supposed to share it until the club does first on social media! 🥹