England reveal US friendly dates

England reveal US friendly dates

Published Jan. 16, 2013 12:00 a.m. ET

The English Football Association have announced that England will complete their preparations for this summer's World Cup in Brazil with friendlies against Peru, Ecuador and Honduras.

England will play Peru on May 30 at Wembley - the first match ever to be played between the two nations - before England travel to Miami for a pre-World Cup warm weather training camp.

They will play Ecuador on June 4 before facing Honduras on June 7. Both matches will take place at the 70,000-capacity Sunlife Stadium - home of the Miami Dolphins NFL team.

With England set to face Costa Rica and Uruguay in the World Cup group stages, Roy Hodgson revealed playing Central and South American opposition was a major priority for him.

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"I'm delighted with the games we have been able to secure and the program running up to the World Cup in general," the England manager said.

"I was clear to those responsible at the FA that I was looking for Central and South American opposition ahead of the tournament and that is exactly what has been delivered."

Hodgson is expected to name his provisional World Cup squad including standby players by mid-May and will whittle his squad down to a final 23-man party after the home friendly against Peru.

Before that, England will then make their way to Portugal for a training camp the week between the FA Cup final and the Champions League final, which takes place on May 24 in Lisbon.

Hodgson believes the training camps in Europe and America ahead of the World Cup are the best way to ensure England have every opportunity to have a successful tournament in Brazil.

"In our training camps here and abroad, I hope to foster the spirit and work ethic that we are going to need out in Brazil," he said.

"It is a tournament I want us to enjoy, but to do that we must work hard and play well."

Meanwhile, Gareth Southgate will lead an England Under-20 side to the south of France for the Toulon tournament, which starts on May 21.

Featuring 10 nations including Brazil and Italy, Southgate believes it is a good chance for some of England's top young players to taste tournament action against some of the best young players in the world.

"It will be a brilliant opportunity for the players," Southgate said.

"It's a tournament we haven't taken part in for a number of years because possibly we've worried about release of players and clashing with other tournaments, but we certainly feel this year it's worthwhile and are looking forward to the challenge of playing some of the world's best under-20 teams."

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