The Tennessean reports here that the Nashville Metros soccer team will host the Monarcas of Morelia, Mexico tonight at Ezell Park Stadium:

The Metros will play their third international match of the season Saturday night at Ezell Park Stadium, taking on Monarcas of Morelia...

The Metros-Mexican matches this season have come about in large part because of Martin Sanchez, who joined the team’s ownership group a couple of months ago. A businessman formerly based in Birmingham, Ala., Sanchez has many ties to Mexico and has been able to arrange the contests.

The Metros have long sought to make inroads in the area’s Hispanic community and believe games like this serve as significant steps in that direction.

“International matches tend to give people a little taste of home — they get people excited," [Metros Coach Rico] Laise said. “I think a large contingency of the Mexican population here is from the state (Michoacan) where Morelia is, so hopefully they’ll come out and take a look."

Photo by Julio Marquez. Licensed under Creative Commons.

Labels: events, immigrants, mexico, sports