The Revolution is out of town this weekend, but that doesn’t mean the Gillette Stadium pitch will sit empty on Saturday.
Members of the Revs’ two official supporters groups – The Midnight Riders and The Rebellion – will meet late Saturday afternoon and vie for the first-ever New England Revolution Supporters Cup.
Squads comprised of the two groups’ members, all of whom donated money for the opportunity to play, will kick off at 5 p.m. tomorrow. Gillette Stadium’s Patriot Place gate (located at the north end of the stadium under the bridge and lighthouse) will open at 4:30 p.m. for spectators.
Visit one of the two supporters groups’ sites - midnightriders.com or nerebellion.org - to find out how to support the event, either in person in the stands or through a straight donation.
Midnight Riders President Fran Harrington said, “We are looking forward to taking the field against the Rebels. We're brothers in arms in The Fort, but on the pitch on Saturday for 90 minutes, it will be each side for itself. The Riders are definitely looking forward to raising the Cup when all is said and done.”
“We support the Revs for 90 minutes every week, now we are going to try and do what they are so great at,” Mark Purkis of the Rebellion said. “So if you want a great laugh, come on down!"
The Rebellion will be playing on behalf of The Fisher House (fisherhouse.org) and Little Feet (littlefeet.com). The Fisher House is a charity that provides the families of our nation’s wounded warriors a home-away-from-home so they can be near their recovering service members, while Little Feet provides soccer balls to needy children around the world.
“Families of our recovering wounded have to pay out of pocket to visit and be close with their loved one during their recovery and rehabilitation and Fisher House provides a means to offset that cost by providing housing near medical facilities,” Rebellion Executive Director Brendan Schimmel said. “With many Iraq and Afghanistan veterans in the ranks of The Rebellion, it's a cause close to home. We aim to support those who protect us and allow us to enjoy our soccer obsession in peace and safety.”
Schimmel continued, “Secondly, we are playing for Little Feet, which provides soccer balls to children in need the world over. It's pretty simple, you buy a Little Feet branded ball and for every ball you buy, they donate one to an area in need. Just think that you are helping possibly give the next Messi his gateway into the beautiful game.”
The Riders are playing in support of Think Taylor (thinktaylor.org), former Revs star Taylor Twellman’s newly-launched organization to further concussion and sports-related brain injury awareness and research.
Both organizations will also donate part of the proceeds to the New England Revolution Charitable Foundation.
Revolution President Brian Bilello will serve as the game’s special referee, while Revs staff members will help stage the event and support Bilello’s reffing efforts.
Following the match, both supporters groups will host an away-game viewing party at the British Beer Company (85 Providence Highway/Rt. 1 South) in Walpole, Mass., as the Revs battle Eastern Conference leader Sporting Kansas City at 8:30 p.m. ET. All Revolution fans are welcome to attend.
