Kansas City’s Livestrong Sporting Park has been announced as the venue for the annual MLS All Stars match on July 31.

At Thursday’s announcement, MLS commissioner Don Garber claimed the decision to take the All Stars game to Livestrong Sporting Park was based on a promise he made when work began on the stadium in 2010.

The MLS All Stars will take on a yet-to-be-named international club at the Kansas City venue.

“We said when we came here for the ground-breaking and for the opening of this stadium we would be back with special events and we are here today to announce that the 2013 MLS All-Star game will be here in Kansas City, in this beautiful new stadium and we are so very excited about that,” Garber said.

Sporting Kansas City head coach Peter Vermes will take control of the All-Star team against an opponent that is expected to be a major European side.

It will be the 10th time that an MLS All Stars team has played an international opponent, with last year’s game being a 3-2 victory over Premier League side Chelsea.

“Our All Star game will continue with the format of the MLS versus The World,” Garber said.

We think it is one of the most exciting All-Star formats in the whole of pro sports.

“We are not just playing each other in another game because we do that every weekend and every Wednesday.

“We are going to go and take on some really big guys and hopefully stand toe-to-toe against the great powers (in football).”