Monthly Archives: December 2008

"I was within an inch of [joining Arsenal]. I have a lot of respect for [manager Arsene] Wenger, he is a very clever man." Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo reveals how destiny almost took him to north London.    

"I like the loose jackets, because I'm fat. I love the colors. We want to stand out, not be like the other teams." Comedian and Seattle Sounders FC minority owner Drew Carey models the team's new colors.    

"Based on the information gathered as a result of detailed enquiries, there is no evidence to suggest any irregularities around the progress or result of the game." The English FA clears Derby County and Norwich City of any involvement after allegations that their game earlier this season was rigged at the behest of Far East […]

Out of contract Columbus Crew Coach Sigi Schmid was on the West Coast Thursday for talks with Seattle Sounders FC GM Adrian Hanauer, with talks about the head coaching position "expected to continue" Friday, reports José Miguel Romero.    

A taped conversation implies that FIFA and UEFA Vice President and President of the Royal Spanish Football Association, Angel Maria Villar, was aware of match fixing in La Liga, writes Stine Alvad. The conversation, between the captain (Inaki Descarga) and President (Julio Romero) of Levante, relates to an allegedly fixed match on the final day […]

U.S. soccer is so desperate for the game to get positive publicity that we generally welcome it when a Drew Carey or a Steve Nash declares himself a soccer fan. It’s different in the more skeptical U.K., where The Times newspaper has come up with a highly entertaining Top 50 list of the worst celebrity […]

Auckland Regional Council is so keen to fill the 32,000-capacity Mount Smart Stadium for the L.A. Galaxy's game against the Oceania All-Stars this weekend that it's offering two tickets for the price of one, local radio reported. So far only 15,000 tickets have been sold. Last year David Beckham and his team sold out the […]

This year's Homeless World Cup in Melbourne, Australia, has been another success at providing life skills for recovering addicts and changing public attitudes toward homeless people, writes James Smith. Even the annual criticism that the $1.5 million spent organizing the events could have been better spent on other projects for the homeless has been muted. […]

Toronto FC goalkeeper Greg Sutton has joined Canadian national team colleagues Jim Brennan and Dwayne De Rosario in criticizing the way that Canadian soccer runs its men's national team program, and demanded change after Canada's failure to make the Concacaf final qualifying round for the 2010 World Cup. Sutton told Neil Davidson that the Canadian […]

Real Madrid youth coach Michel has resigned and criticized the club for failing to look after its young homegrown prospects. The former Spanish international told Spanish radio that club President Ramon Calderon, who this week said Barcelona had been more successful at developing youth players, "knows absolutely nothing about what goes on" at the club's […]