US Soccer Catch-All

Fedaykin98 wrote:

You did see in my post where I said they referenced that Astros uniform, right? It's a Houston thing.

Yeah, I saw that. My post was meant as reinforcement, not some kind of exciting new insight.

Fedaykin98 wrote:

and the current Dash kit, which is the lovechild of that Astros shirt and the USA Inkjet jersey:

IMAGE(https://imgur.com/a/Zv9va)

Yeah, that one's pretty nice.

The link wouldn't embed, but I could paste it into the address bar and have a look.

Fedaykin98 wrote:

You did see in my post where I said they referenced that Astros uniform, right? It's a Houston thing.

See also: The 2016 Dynamo away kit:

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/lb7eqKv.jpg)

and the current Dash kit, which is the lovechild of that Astros shirt and the USA Inkjet jersey:

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/qnpxQhJ.jpg)

EDIT: I have no idea why my image tags are failing; pretty sure I did that correctly (you have to reply to see what I actually did). In any case, these are fantastic jerseys. The Astros also have a current shirt that features the rainbow stripes on the sides.

FTFY

Thanks, man.

United States-led 2026 World Cup bid in jeopardy to Morocco's - sources

I gotta admit, I'm trying to figure out how hard I should laugh at this.

I mean, they gave 2022 to Qatar, a nation that didn't meet any of the qualifications to host in terms of stadiums, infrastructure, etc., and which has killed dozens or hundreds of laborers in its quest to prepare. And which would see the games played in November and December, which again, as I understand it, is outside of the requirements.

It's going to take quite some time to rid FIFA of the legacy of Sepp Blatter.

Yeah, even given my political leanings, I'm disinterested in hearing their reasons for why FIFA is turning against the U.S.'s bid for the World Cup when they have given the next two WC's to Vladimir Putin and Qatar, and would probably give it to Kim Jong-un if he could pony up the $$$.

Prederick wrote:

Yeah, even given my political leanings, I'm disinterested in hearing their reasons for why FIFA is turning against the U.S.'s bid for the World Cup when they have given the next two WC's to Vladimir Putin and Qatar, and would probably give it to Kim Jong-un if he could pony up the $$$.

This is a horrifying thought that immediately strikes me as very likely true.

That said, even if he could pay the requisite bribes, I don't think anyone believes that a North Korean WC could generate the billions in revenue that everyone feasts off of for years. Come to think of it, can the Qatari WC do that? It's hard for me to imagine the whole world flocking there, although I believe they at least have a decent tourism industry.

NASL wrote:

The NASL announced that it has canceled the 2018 Season after failing to receive a preliminary injunction preventing the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF) from revoking the NASL’s Division II status

Heck of a job by US Soccer, and I think underscores how problematic the close bonds between US Soccer, SUM, and MLS are, in actuality.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/DZ2yfMg.png)

Dimmerswitch wrote:
NASL wrote:

The NASL announced that it has canceled the 2018 Season after failing to receive a preliminary injunction preventing the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF) from revoking the NASL’s Division II status

Heck of a job by US Soccer, and I think underscores how problematic the close bonds between US Soccer, SUM, and MLS are, in actuality.

There is a second division. It's the USL, a league that hasn't been plagued for the past five years with failed teams, bad actors, and league-killing financial difficulties. In fact, a lot of the NASL teams are going to end up in the USL.

I don't want to carry too much water for USSoccer and MLS. They clearly wanted this incarnation of the NASL to go away and acted accordingly. But this wasn't brought about by USSoccer. This was brought about by mismanagement of the very type that makes pro-rel risky business in markets that aren't very well established.

And btw, I don't believe for a minute that the goal of people like Silva and whoever's running the Cosmos these days was some sort of idyllic pro-rel scenario. They were trying to force a merger with MLS ala the AFL and NFL, and end run around the expansion fee. Pro-rel was a useful fig leave for that maneuver.

USWNT in 49 minutes!

I am Jack's lack of surprise that the USL, which has close ties to the MLS (and has b-sides from 6 MLS teams currently participating), has been given the stamp of approval by US Soccer, who has close commercial ties to MLS.

And I should probably be more clear that (snarky meme notwithstanding), I don't see promotion / relegation happening in US soccer any time soon, even without misbehavior by US Soccer. My objection is mostly that US Soccer, MLS, and SUM are intertwined in ways that I think are detrimental to both the growth of the sport on a professional basis here, and do a poor job both of cultivating young talent and of developing a competitive national team.

And I think elbowing aside an existing second-tier league in favor of one with closer ties to those groups only exacerbates those concerns.

Edit: from the Wikipedia page on USL, it's even more tightly-coupled with MLS than I realized.

As of February 2018, 21 USL teams are affiliated to MLS teams and every MLS team but Orlando City SC and the New England Revolution has a USL affiliate.

On a more-positive note, I agree those Houston away jerseys are easily the best MLS ones I've seen.

How the hell did I miss Atlanta United buying Ezequiel Barco?

He's only 18, but he could be very, very good.

Prederick wrote:

How the hell did I miss Atlanta United buying Ezequiel Barco?

He's only 18, but he could be very, very good.

He's out for the first four-plus weeks of the season, however, which, hey, starts today!

MLS STARTS TODAY!

I'll be at the Houston - Atlanta match with TheWalt. Let's go Dynamo!

Fedaykin98 wrote:

I'll be at the Houston - Atlanta match with TheWalt. Let's go Dynamo!

Sounds like you guys chose a good one to see.

ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?

Dimmerswitch wrote:
Fedaykin98 wrote:

I'll be at the Houston - Atlanta match with TheWalt. Let's go Dynamo!

Sounds like you guys chose a good one to see. :D

It was awesome! He has season tickets, bless him, and frequently invites me.

Dear Sports Illustrated panel who unanimously predicted Houston would miss the playoffs (despite making the conference championship last year!), and who showered ATL with tons of love (despite them immediately losing in the playoffs last year): SUCK IT!

US Women at noon Eastern, as well as another day of MLS games, including the first-ever game for LAFC.

US Women are playing their final game in the SBC right now!

Also tonight: Two CCL (CONCACAF Champions League) matches featuring MLS teams.

NYRB won the first leg of their CCL match up at Tijuana last night 2-0, btw! Wonderful performances by Luis Robles and Bradley Wright-Phillips. The Max and Herc podcast gave them the best chance to advance of any of the MLS teams, and you have to feel good after that result!

Fedaykin98 wrote:

US Women are playing their final game in the SBC right now!

Also tonight: Two CCL (CONCACAF Champions League) matches featuring MLS teams.

NYRB won the first leg of their CCL match up at Tijuana last night 2-0, btw! Wonderful performances by Luis Robles and Bradley Wright-Phillips. The Max and Herc podcast gave them the best chance to advance of any of the MLS teams, and you have to feel good after that result!

Okay, this is the third time in about a week that I've seen your posts about the USWNT playing.

Each time I think, "Oh, cool! I can watch!" and then I realize your post is three hours old and the match is done.

Holy crap, all three MLS teams have won (as much as you can win a game of a two-legged tie) the first leg of their quarter-final ties in CONCACAF Champions League!

Godzilla Blitz wrote:
Fedaykin98 wrote:

US Women are playing their final game in the SBC right now!

Also tonight: Two CCL (CONCACAF Champions League) matches featuring MLS teams.

NYRB won the first leg of their CCL match up at Tijuana last night 2-0, btw! Wonderful performances by Luis Robles and Bradley Wright-Phillips. The Max and Herc podcast gave them the best chance to advance of any of the MLS teams, and you have to feel good after that result!

Okay, this is the third time in about a week that I've seen your posts about the USWNT playing.

Each time I think, "Oh, cool! I can watch!" and then I realize your post is three hours old and the match is done. :)

Sorry, I used to update the OP with that info, but I stopped. Maybe I'll insert some permanent links to the teams' schedules.

Fedaykin98 wrote:
Godzilla Blitz wrote:
Fedaykin98 wrote:

US Women are playing their final game in the SBC right now!

Also tonight: Two CCL (CONCACAF Champions League) matches featuring MLS teams.

NYRB won the first leg of their CCL match up at Tijuana last night 2-0, btw! Wonderful performances by Luis Robles and Bradley Wright-Phillips. The Max and Herc podcast gave them the best chance to advance of any of the MLS teams, and you have to feel good after that result!

Okay, this is the third time in about a week that I've seen your posts about the USWNT playing.

Each time I think, "Oh, cool! I can watch!" and then I realize your post is three hours old and the match is done. :)

Sorry, I used to update the OP with that info, but I stopped. Maybe I'll insert some permanent links to the teams' schedules.

Not your fault, and I appreciate the effort. I just thought it was funny how it happened three times in a row that I just saw your post in time to realize that I missed the whole match.

I often check soccer on tv for upcoming things, but it's easy to miss stuff.

Go MNUFC! Woot!

It's great this season, as Fox Sports North is airing almost all the games, and Sling now carries Fox Sports North.

I'm so used to watching soccer before noon. Watching live games in the evening is a nice change.

CONCACAF Champions League resumes in 4 minutes! Free to watch on the Go90 app. Very exciting stuff this year!

No team from the MLS has won the title since 2000. Someone's got to break that stretch eventually, right? Weren't we supposed to be getting BETTER at this?

Fedaykin98 wrote:

CONCACAF Champions League resumes in 4 minutes! Free to watch on the Go90 app. Very exciting stuff this year!

Yes! I finally spotted one of your messages before the game mentioned ended. Thanks!

Prederick wrote:

No team from the MLS has won the title since 2000. Someone's got to break that stretch eventually, right? Weren't we supposed to be getting BETTER at this?

We are getting better at this, if the first leg of the quarterfinals is any indicator.

Btw, do you support an MLS team? One of the NY teams?

GOAL! As I'm typing. I can't believe BWP didn't shoot that, but it worked out!

RBNY just went up 3-1 (5-1 aggregate) in the 76'. I am really excited about our new #10 Kaku. We have a long history of bringing in underachievers (Lothar Matthäus anyone?), but Kaku has looked fantastic in his first couple of matches.

We also put 4 goals past Portland last weekend despite resting a number of our starters for this match. It could be a fun season.

In what other sport do you get to see a match between New York and Tijuana?

Man, 5-1! It's all over except for the TJ players getting cheap shots in.

Fedaykin98 wrote:

Man, 5-1! It's all over except for the TJ players getting cheap shots in. :razz:

Yeah, it's getting ugly. Same thing happened at the end of the away leg. Luckily (I think) yellow cards don't carry over into the semi-finals.

Edit: haha, I just noticed the Rocket League signage!

What a night this is (looking to be) for MLS!

Either this announcer doesn't understand the Away Goals Rule, or I don't. I feel pretty sure it's him.