Philadelphia Union to hold training camp in Clearwater, Florida

the700level.com announced today that the Philadelphia Union's February training camp will be held in Clearwater, Florida. Since MLS may or may not have rules prohibiting teams from hosting training camp within a certain proximity of an MLS club's home, the Union had to abandon their previous camp in Deltona (roughly 30 miles northeast of the Citrus Bowl where Orlando City SC will play) and look for something a bit further away (Clearwater is roughly 104 miles west of the Citrus Bowl).

The benefits of this are obvious. The Philadelphia media will already be in Clearwater covering the Philadelphia Phillies spring training (pitchers and catchers will report when the Union are in training), so it's natural to assume they would cover some of the Union's training camp goings on as well. Also, having Philadelphia fans already there can hopefully generate some interest in the Union in Phillies fans. It's also worth noting that the Tampa Bay Rowdies of the NASL play just on the other side of Tampa Bay from Clearwater, so there may be some opportunities there for friendlies and training stints.

Aside from a February friendly against Jacksonville Armada, there has been no other confirmed friendlyatches announced. The 2015 Walt Disney Pro Soccer Classic, which the Union has participated in since 2012, has been cancelled according to Orlando City blog The Mane Land.