San Diego And Florida Meet In The MASL Finals

The San Diego Sockers—presented by Kaiser Permanente San Diego-have booked their trip to the Major Arena Soccer League’s championship series, the Ron Newman Cup Finals. The Sockers take aim at their second straight MASL championship, and sixteenth title overall. In their way, the Florida Tropics, making their first-ever Finals appearance.

The schedule for the 2022 Ron Newman Cup Finals has been announced by the MASL. A best-of-three series, the Finals will begin with Match One in Florida on Monday, May 2 at 4:00pm PDT, at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland. The Sockers will host a Watch Party at the CaliFino Sub-Limit Lounge in Carlsbad (3238 Grey Hawk Ct) for fans to gather and watch the match.

The series will conclude on Sunday, May 8 in San Diego, when the Ron Newman Cup will be awarded. The Tropics and Sockers will meet at 5:05pm at Pechanga Arena for Match Two. If the series is tied 1-1 at the end of Match Two, a 15-minute Knockout Game will follow after a 15-minute break, serving as Match Three to decide the series.

The Sockers (23-0-1) and Tropics (18-3-2) had the top two records during the 2021-22 MASL regular season. In their only head-to-head meeting, the Sockers beat the Tropics 11-4 on March 31 at Pechanga Arena, clinching the MASL Shield for the league’s best regular-season record.

In the Ron Newman Cup playoffs, the Sockers advanced through 8th seed Milwaukee in two games, beating the Wave 9-2 and 9-3 in the quarterfinals. The Tropics dispatched 7th seed St. Louis in consecutive games by 8-4 and 6-4 scores. The semifinals proved to be a tough challenge for both clubs, as San Diego outlasted the Chihuahua Savage in three games, losing 7-6 in OT on April 18 in Mexico before rallying on April 24 for 6-2 and 4-1 victories at home, clinching the series two-games-to-one. The Tropics similarly dropped an 8-7 decision to Kansas City on the road in Game One of their semifinal, before coming home for 4-2 and 4-2 wins in Games Two and Three.

With the Grand Final falling on Mother’s Day, the Sockers are announcing a special “Bring Your Mom BOGO” deal for the championship. Loge seats (regularly $40) are being offered in a buy-one/get-one-free offer, to encourage families to treat their Moms to some of the best seats in Pechanga Arena for a championship experience at a discount price. Fans can find the deal online at sdsockers.com/tickets under single game tickets, or call to get tickets without fees at (866) 799-GOAL.

In addition, the Sockers are offering a $17 group rate for groups of 15 or more for the Final, including the “Parade of Champions” pre-match experience on the field. Group organizers are encouraged to call (866) 799-GOAL to get the best deal and seating option possible, and online info is available at sdsockers.com/groups

The Ron Newman Cup Finals will be broadcast exclusively online on the MASL’s Twitch channel: @masl_soccer. Brian Ackley will head the broadcast from Florida on May 2, while Craig Elsten and Nate Abaurrea have the broadcast call on Grand Final Day on May 8.

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