Arena names U.S. World Cup team

NEW YORK, May 4 (UPI) -- Twelve players from the 2002 World Cup U.S. roster have been chosen by Coach Bruce Arena for the U.S. squad for the 2006 World Cup in Germany.

The United States opens the tournament June 12 against the Czech Republic in Gelsenkirchen and plays its second game June 17 against Italy at Kaiserslautern.

The roster includes 23 World Cup players and 13 alternates, including mid-fielders Ben Olsen, Pablo Mastroeni, Claudio Reyna, and Landon Donovan and defensemen Eddie Lewis and Eddie Pope.

Reyna is playing for Manchester City in the English Premier League while Donovan, Mastroeni, and Pope are playing in Major League Soccer.

Olsen is the only player on the roster who did not play in any of the United States' 59 World Cup qualifiers.

"This is a special moment for me and I'm looking forward to representing my country in Germany next month," Olsen said.