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ICC 2017: Fixtures, teams, TV & guide to the International Champions Cup
Real Madrid, Barcelona and Manchester United will take part in this summer's ICC, which will be played in the United States, China and Singapore
The fifth edition of the International Champions Cup kicks off on Tuesday, with many of European football's top clubs once again signed up to take part.
With a footprint in both Asia and the United States, the pre-season tournament has tapped in to the huge fanbases that exist for those teams outside of their local markets.
It has drawn huge crowds and sees the clubs involved pocket significant appearance fees - rumoured to be worth up to $20 million - in addition to the longer-term commercial benefits of engaging with supporters across the globe.
The downside is the amount of travel involved, with many Premier League managers bemoaning their inability to hold a more focused training camp in one location due to their new international commitments.
With the ICC getting underway, here is everything you need to know about the latest competition.
The International Champions Cup is a pre-season tournament that has been held every summer since 2013. For the past two years, the ICC has been split into three different regions; the United States, China and Australia. In the two years prior to that, it was held exclusively in the USA.
This year, Australia has been replaced by Singapore. China and Singapore will host seven games in total, while the USA section has 12 games on the schedule.
Bayern Munich and Inter will play in both the China and Singapore tournaments but all three are unrelated, with a separate 'champion' emerging from each one. In reality, those league tables mean very little as not all teams will play each other and some will play more games than others.
In short, the ICC is a series of exhibition matches in three countries played in large stadiums. It begins on July 18 and ends on July 30, getting everyone back in Europe by the start of August as the competitive campaign looms.
WHO ARE THE TEAMS IN THE ICC 2017?
Roma, Lyon and Arsenal are the only teams entering the competition this year who were not involved in 2016, while Atletico Madrid, Celtic, Liverpool and Leicester City - as well as Melbourne Victory, who played on home turf in last year's Australian section - drop out.
Having played in Asia or Australia last year, Tottenham, Juventus and both Manchester clubs will visit the United States this summer while Chelsea, Bayern Munich and the two Milan sides will switch over to Asia.
ICC 2017 FIXTURES
Due to the time difference between the USA and UK, many of the games played across the Atlantic Ocean will kick-off late at night in Britain or even in the early hours of the following morning.
Both local and UK times are listed below. Manchester United against Manchester City, for instance, will be played at 20:30 local time in Houston on July 20, which makes for a 02:30 start on the morning of July 21 in the UK.
United States:
China:
Singapore:
http://www.goal.com/en-za/news/4563/main/2017/07/18/36061682/icc-2017-fixtures-teams-tv-guide-to-the-international
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