The U.S. men’s national team will open its busy 2021 schedule against Trinidad & Tobago in Orlando, Fla. on Sunday, Jan. 31.

Coverage from Exploria Stadium begins at 7 p.m. ET on FS1, UniMas and TUDN.

The match will serve as an important preparation opportunity for players to stake their claim to represent the USA during on the full national side or the Under-23 team, which will try to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics.

At the start of the month, head coach Gregg Berhalter called 12 USMNT players and U-23 USMNT head coach Jason Kreis summoned 26 players to train alongside each other in Bradenton, Fla. as the U-23 USMNT prepares for March’s Concacaf Men’s Olympic Qualifying Championship.

Berhalter’s final game roster consists of nine players named to the senior team and 16 U-23-eligible players, including 10 who will seek their international debut. Falling outside of a FIFA international window, all 25 players come from Major League Soccer.

Due to the current conditions related to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the match will be conducted under U.S. Soccer’s comprehensive Return to Play Protocols, with a stadium capacity limited to 4,500 fans.

The Trinidad match is just the start of a loaded year for the USMNT and U-23 USMNT. The first major tournament comes in March, when the U-23s head to Mexico for the Concacaf Men’s Olympic Qualifying Championship. There, the team will look to qualify the USA for its first Olympic appearance since 2008.

Following a friendly window in March, the USMNT will play in the final four of the first Concacaf Nations League in June, its first opportunity of the year to lift a trophy. Shortly after, the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup kicks off in July, the second edition of the expanded 16-team tournament format. In September, the USA will embark on the new World Cup qualification process for Concacaf, an eight-team round robin competition that will send three teams to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

The roster

GOALKEEPERS (3): Matt Freese (Philadelphia Union; 0/0), JT Marcinkowski (San Jose Earthquakes; 0/0), Matt Turner (New England Revolution; 0/0)

DEFENDERS (9): Julian Araujo (LA Galaxy; 1/0), George Bello (Atlanta United FC; 0/0), Kyle Duncan (New York Red Bulls; 1/0), Aaron Herrera (Real Salt Lake; 0/0), Aaron Long (New York Red Bulls; 18/3), Mauricio Pineda (Chicago Fire FC; 0/0), Miles Robinson (Atlanta United FC; 2/0), Sam Vines (Colorado Rapids; 2/0), Walker Zimmerman (Nashville SC; 13/2)

MIDFIELDERS (7): Kellyn Acosta (Colorado Rapids; 24/2), Sebastian Lletget (LA Galaxy; 17/4), Benji Michel (Orlando City SC; 0/0), Andrés Perea (Orlando City SC; 0/0), Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders FC; 19/0), Tanner Tessmann (FC Dallas; 0/0), Jackson Yueill (San Jose Earthquakes; 8/0)

FORWARDS (6): Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC/CAN; 115/42), Paul Arriola (D.C. United; 34/6), Daryl Dike (Orlando City SC; 0/0), Jesús Ferreira (FC Dallas; 1/0), Jonathan Lewis (Colorado Rapids; 6/0), Chris Mueller (Orlando City SC; 1/2)

Front Row Soccer editor Michael Lewis has covered 13 World Cups (eight men, five women), seven Olympics and 25 MLS Cups. He has written about New York City FC, New York Cosmos, the New York Red Bulls and both U.S. national teams for Newsday and has penned a soccer history column for the Guardian.com. Lewis, who has been honored by the Press Club of Long Island and National Soccer Coaches Association of America, is the former editor of BigAppleSoccer.com. He has written seven books about the beautiful game and has published ALIVE AND KICKING The incredible but true story of the Rochester Lancers. It is available at Amazon.com.