By CARL SETTERLUND
Real Madrid’s defense of their UEFA Champions League title begins on Tuesday afternoon.
Los Blancos host FC Basel with their two new midfield additions, Toni Kroos and James Rodriguez, each being handed starts, while the famed BBC of (Karim) Benzema, (Gareth) Bale, and Cristiano Ronaldo start in the forward three.
Elsewhere in Champions League action, Liverpool return to the competition for the first time since 2009, with Anfield playing host to Ludogorets of Bulgaria. Arsenal hit the road to face former German champions Borussia Dortmund at the packed Signal Iduna Stadium, and Atletico Madrid visit Olympiacos for their Champions League opener.
All eyes will be on PPL Park tonight as the underdog Philadelphia Union host the Supporters’ Shield favorite Seattle Sounders at 7:30pm. The Sounders will be looking for their fourth U.S. Open Cup title, having appeared in five of the last six finals. The Union are no slouch, however, with Sebastien Le Toux, the all-time scoring leader in the U.S. Open Cup on their side. The Union have also only lost once since the start of August.
Meanwhile, back over in North America, D.C. United and the Portland Timbers both face key games in their search to reach the CCL quarterfinals.
Here’s the full schedule of today’s action:
2:45pm — ESPN3 — Olympiakos vs. Atlético Madrid
2:45pm — ESPN3 — Juventus vs. Malmö FF
2:45pm — FOX Sports 2 — Liverpool vs. Ludogorets
2:45pm — ESPN Deportes — Real Madrid vs. FC Basel
2:45pm — ESPN3 — AS Monaco vs. Bayer Leverkusen
2:45pm — ESPN3 — Benfica vs. Zenit St. Petersburg
2:45pm — ESPN3 — Galatasaray vs. Anderlecht
2:45pm — ESPN3/FOX Sports 1 — Borussia Dortmund vs Arsenal
7pm — ESPN3 — Cornell vs. Syracuse (men’s soccer)
7pm — Fox Sports GO — Estudiantes vs. Gimnasia La Plata
7:30pm — GOLTV USA — Philadelphia Union vs. Seattle Sounders
7:50pm — Univision Deportes — Guadalajara vs. Tijuana
7:55pm — ESPN Deportes — Puebla vs. Morelia
8:00pm — Fox Soccer 2Go — Cruz Azul vs. Chorrillo
8:00pm — Fox Soccer Plus — Waterhouse FC vs. D.C. United
8:30pm — Fox Sports GO — Peñarol vs. Deportivo Cali
9:55pm — ESPN3 — Celaya vs. Necaxa
9:55pm — ESPN3 — CorAS Tepic vs. Zacatepec
10:00pm — Fox Sports 1 USA — Portland Timbers vs. Olimpia