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Sam Marsden, Barcelona correspondent
Barcelona Femení will return to the United States this summer as part of their preparations for the new season, with friendlies scheduled against Bay FC and Dallas Trinity FC in August.
The European champions will kick off their mini-tour against National Women’s Soccer League side Bay FC at Paypal Park in San José, California, on Aug. 27.
They will then head to Texas where they will play Dallas Trinity, who will compete in the brand new USL Super League, at the Cotton Bowl Stadium on Aug. 30.
It is the third time Barça’s women have been to the U.S. In 2018, they travelled alongside the men’s team, beating SoCal FC 5-0 in a friendly played in Los Angeles.
They returned in 2021 as part of the Women’s International Champions Cup, losing to Lyon in the semifinal before winning 3-2 against Houston Dash in the third-place playoff.
Barça head to America as the dominant team in European football after winning a second successive Champions League earlier this year, beating Lyon in the final and recording a first-ever win over the French side in the process.
A series of changes have followed that success, though, which capped four-trophy campaign, with coach Jonatan Giráldez moving to NWSL side Washington Spirit and Mariona Caldentey and Lucy Bronze among the players to leave.
Pere Romeu, Giráldez’s former assistant, is the new manager, while striker Ewa Pajor, goalkeeper Ellie Roebuck and forward Kika Nazareth have all joined the club.
Meanwhile. Barça Atlétic — the men’s reserve side — have also appointed a new coach after Rafa Márquez’s decision to leave to become Javier Aguirre’s assistant with the Mexico national team.
Albert Sánchez, Márquez’s No. 2, has signed a one-year deal to take over the team, who compete in the third tier of Spanish football.
Sánchez, 37, has been at Barça for four years, working with the under-19s before linking up with Márquez in 2022. He previously worked in China, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
