U.S. unveils new home jersey for World Cup

The United States men's national team, poised to make its sixth consecutive appearance at the World Cup this summer in South Africa, unveiled its new home uniform Thursday in Manhattan.

The Nike jersey is white with a gray sash, resembling the shirts worn by the 1950 national team, which famously defeated England in one of the biggest upsets in soccer history. The United States is once again grouped with England this year and the two teams will meet in their opening game June 12.

The United States had already unveiled its away jersey, which is blue with a white sash and red trim. The team will wear its home jersey in a pair of games in May before it departs for South Africa. It hosts the Czech Republic May 25 in East Hartford and Turkey May 29 in Philadelphia.

The new jersey is hailed as eco-friendly, with each one made from fabric recycled from eight plastic bottles.

Head coach Bob Bradley was on hand at Niketown in New York for the unveiling ceremony and was joined by retired player Walter Bahr, who played on the 1950 team.

The United States joins England, Slovenia and Algeria in Group C. After clashing with England on the second day of the tournament, it faces Slovenia June 18 and Algeria June 23. The top two teams from each group advance to the Round of 16.

In 2006, the United States failed to win a game and did not make it out of the first round. The Americans tied eventual champions Italy, but lost to the Czech Republic and Ghana.

Bradley is expected to list a preliminary roster of 26 to 28 players May 11 and hold a training camp at Princeton University, where he once coached, May 17-23. The final 23-man roster will be announced by the end of the month.