Brenden Aaronson and his new wife, Milana D’Ambra, found themselves in a bit of a panic when they realized their highly anticipated wedding date conflicted with the United States men’s national soccer team’s World Cup training camp.
The couple, who have known each other since they were 16, tied the knot on May 30 along the New Jersey coastline. Aaronson then joined the team for training on Saturday in Fayetteville, Georgia, ahead of the USMNT’s friendly match against Senegal in Charlotte.
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The couple had confirmed their wedding venue nearly two-and-a-half years in advance, believing the May 30 date would be perfect since training camp was slated to start on June 1.
“When she found out that we were going to report around that time, we both just turned red and started freaking out because so much time and effort went into planning the wedding—it was genuinely frightening,” Aaronson shared with reporters.
In the span of a week, the midfielder made the journey from his club team, Leeds United in the UK, to the U.S. roster announcement in New York, then back to training in Fayetteville, before celebrating his wedding in South Jersey, and finally returning once again to Fayetteville to continue preparing for the World Cup.
“It was an incredible whirlwind, one that I’ll never forget,” said Aaronson. “It was truly special.”
Aaronson mentioned he spoke with U.S. head coach Mauricio Pochettino back in March about possibly changing his wedding date.
“Having an open conversation with the coach is great. He’s very approachable and understands the challenges of being a footballer, so it was an easy discussion,” Aaronson noted.
Fortunately for the couple, the scheduling conflict didn’t impact his plans as severely as initially thought.
“I feel very fortunate to have spent that day celebrating. I’m immensely grateful to the coaching staff. It was an extraordinary day, but now it’s time to refocus and prepare for the World Cup,” Aaronson said.
The USMNT will play its last warm-up match before the World Cup against Germany in Chicago on Saturday, then kick off the tournament against Paraguay at SoFi Stadium near Los Angeles on June 12.