Starting on Wednesday, June 5, a quartet of LAFC players will temporarily remove their black club kits and take the field for their home countries in a variety of international competitions. It’s called the FIFA international window, and the Black & Gold are well-represented.
Here’s a schedule of games and the best way to watch LAFC players compete abroad until the MLS season resumes on June 15.
DENIS BOUANGA – GABON
WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS – GROUP STAGE
Ivory Coast vs. Gabon – Fri. June 7, 12pm PT
Gabon vs. Gambia – Tue. June 11, 12pm PT
WATCH LIVE: FIFA+
INSIGHT: A record nine African teams will qualify for the 2026 World Cup in North America. Bouanga scored a goal for Gabon in both of its World Cup qualifier victories last fall, over Burundi and Kenya. The June 7 match against Ivory Coast is a big one; those two countries have gone 2W-0L-0D so far in Group F, and Ivory Coast boasts several current English Premier League players.
MAXIME CHANOT - LUXEMBOURG
FRIENDLIES
France vs. Luxembourg – Wed. June 5, 12pm PT
Luxembourg vs. Belgium - Sat. June 8, 11am PT
WATCH LIVE: Fubo
INSIGHT: France, among the favorites at Euro 2024, will play two friendlies in preparation for that tournament. The first will pit two recent LAFC signings against one another, defender Maxime Chanot (Luxembourg) and forward Olivier Giroud (France). Chanot and Luxembourg will face another Euro 2024 contender, Belgium, three days later.
CRISTIAN OLIVERA - URUGUAY
FRIENDLY
Mexico vs. Uruguay - Wed. June 5, 6pm PT
WATCH LIVE: Fubo
INSIGHT: LAFC winger Cristian “Kiké” Olivera joined Uruguay’s national team just hours after LAFC’s 1-0 victory over FC Dallas on Saturday. Olivera and La Celeste will play Mexico in a friendly in Denver on Wed., June 5, ahead of three Copa America matches against Panama on June 23, Bolivia on June 27, and against the United States (and Olivera’s LAFC teammate Timmy Tillman) on July 1.
TIMMY TILLMAN – USA
FRIENDLIES
USA vs. Colombia – Sat. June 8, 2:30pm PT
USA vs. Brazil – Wed. June 12, 4pm PT
WATCH LIVE: TNT
INSIGHT: Tillman is one of four MLS players who was recently named to the U.S. Men’s National Team’s training camp roster—and the only MLS player under 26. Should Tillman and his younger brother Malik both appear in the same game for the U.S., they would become the ninth set of brothers to do so, and the first since 1988.
The friendlies against Colombia and Brazil are warm-up matches ahead of Copa America, where the U.S. will face Bolivia on June 23, Panama on June 27, and against Uruguay (and Tillman’s LAFC teammate Cristian Olivera) on July 1.
LAFC’s regular season resumes on June 15 when the Black & Gold faces Orlando City SC, in Orlando, Florida. That game will be broadcast on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, 710 AM ESPN LA, and 980 AM La Mera La Mera [Español].
