Monthly Archives: December 2008

English native Roger Faulkner was the president of the 1994 World Cup Detroit Host Committee when a natural grass surface was laid at the Silverdome and four games attracted average gates of over 70,000. "Since then, we've seen absolutely nothing," he told Jo-Ann Barnas. Without a professional team, Michigan soccer is "getting left behind in […]

Grass Not Greener For DeRo In Toronto?

As Canadian midfielder Dwayne De Rosario is traded to his hometown Toronto FC, Andrea Canales lauds a player who "spun the notion that North American soccer consisted just of the U.S. and Mexico on its head by becoming one of the very best in MLS." At the same time, she wonders if his recent slump […]

Section 2 Around the Net, Story

Blatter: No Plan B For South Africa

FIFA President Sepp Blatter has said there is no way the 2010 World Cup will be moved from South Africa, after admitting earlier this year that soccer's world governing body did have contingency plans to move the event. "There definitely is no plan B or C, the only plan is to make the South African […]

Section 2 Around the Net, Story

Ancelotti Ready To Welcome Beckham

AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti was initially not thought to be wildly enthused at the idea of taking L.A. Galaxy midfielder David Beckham on loan. Now, however, he thinks that Beckham will boost his injury-depleted squad when he arrives in January since Italian national team midfielder Gennaro Gattuso is out for the season with a […]

Section 2 Around the Net, Story

WPS Strikes $10 Million Deal With Puma

Women's Professional Soccer is set to announce Monday a three-year, $10-million deal with German company Puma to be its official equipment supplier, writes Matthew Futterman. "Women's soccer is on a tremendous growth pattern in the U.S.," said Jochen Zeitz, Puma's chief executive. "This is a huge opportunity for us." Its decision to join forces with […]

AWARDS: Nogueira, Hanks, DiMartino in Hermann hunt

Casey Nogueira, who led North Carolina to the 2008 NCAA Division I women’s title, Kerri Hanks, a four-time All-America, and Christina DiMartino, the Pac-10 Player of the Year, are the finalists for the 2008 Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy.

AWARDS: Cronin and Wake duo are Hermann finalists

Seniors Sam Cronin and Marcus Tracy of NCAA Division I semifinalist Wake Forest and Akron’s Steve Zakuani, the nation’s leading scorer, are the three finalists for the 2008 Missouri Athletic Club’s Hermann Trophy.

MEN’S COLLEGE CUP: Logic prevails

by Paul KennedyDecember 15, 2008

With three out of the four finalists, the odds were that an ACC team would win the 2008 Men’s College Cup. Most figured it would be Wake Forest, the defending national champion and No. 1 seed. But the more logical choice should have been the ACC champion, Maryland. Two days after the Demon Deacons were upset by North Carolina, 1-0, Maryland beat the Tar Heels by the same score to finish the year with both the NCAA and ACC titles and 18 wins in a row.

ALL-AMERICANS: NSCAA/adidas NAIA Men

Azusa Pacific (Jared Karkas, Eric Winblad and James Crawford) and Lindsey Wilson (Moses Aduny, Mikael Lunneryd and Frederick Were) led all teams with three selections each on the NSCAA/adidas NAIA Men’s All-America Team. For all the NAIA men’s selections …

ALL-AMERICANS: NSCAA/adidas NCAA Division III Men

Tyrone Petrakis of Trinity (Texas) and York’s Jon Ports each earned their third selection as an NSCAA/adidas Division III Men’s All-America. Three other Trinity players and two other York players were also honored. For all the selections …

ALL-AMERICANS: NSCAA/adidas NCAA Division II Men

Five teams — Lewis, Metro State, Rockhurst, Sonoma State and Tusculum — each had three players named to the 2008 NSCAA/adidas Division II Men’s All-America Team. For all the selections …

ALL-AMERICANS: NSCAA/adidas NCAA Division I Men

Wake Forest placed five players on the 2008 NSCAA/adidas Men’s Division I All-America Team, including three first-team selections — sophomore Corben Bone and seniors Sam Cronin and forward Marcus Tracy. Six other schools placed two players on the team: Akron, Creighton, Harvard, UIC, Loyola (Md.) and UC Davis. For all the selections …

Soccer America Daily, What They're Saying

What They’re Saying

“Women’s soccer is on a tremendous growth pattern in the U.S. This is a huge opportunity for us.”

— Jochen Zeitz, chief executive of Puma, on the three-year deal the German company is expected to announce Monday with Women’s Professional Soccer. Puma will pay roughly $10 million to become the official equipment supplier to WPS. (Wall Street Journal)

Marseille scouts eye Onyewu

by Paul KennedyDecember 15, 2008

[AMERICANS ABROAD] Oguchi Onyewu could have played his last important game for Standard Liege before heading to France. Scouts for French club Marseille were once again on hand Sunday to watch the giant American defender in action for the Belgian champion in its 4-1 win at Club Brugge, and reports out of France Monday morning indicate that Onyewu could be headed to OM within the next few days.

First big MLS deal of offseason

by Paul KennedyDecember 15, 2008

[MLS] A month after its bid for its third straight MLS title ended, Houston Dynamo dealt star Dwayne De Rosario to Toronto FC as part of its effort to rebuild its attack. De Rosario, who grew up in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough, returned home in a trade that sent Trinidad & Tobago defender Julius James and allocation money reported to be between $125,000 and $150,000 to the Dynamo.

MLS stars help Reggae Boyz win Caribbean title

[DIGICEL CARIBBEAN CHAMPIONSHIP] Former England star John Barnes passed his first test as Jamaica’s national team coach with flying colors as the Reggae Boyz won the Digicel Caribbean Championship with a 2-0 win over Grenada in Sunday’s final played at Kingston’s National Stadium. Five MLS players — Shavar Thomas, Tyrone Marshall, Andrew Williams, Dane Richards and Omar Cummings — played for Jamaica.

Boca, Tigre and San Lorenzo to play off for Apertura title

[ARGENTINA] Boca Juniors, Tigre and San Lorenzo finished level on points at the end of the Opening Championship, meaning a three-way playoff for the title.

Dropped points and late goals as Hoffenheim keeps lead

[GERMANY] Hoffenheim took the unofficial “fall champion” title, but the top teams could only tie on the Bundesliga’s final round of play before its six-week winter break.

Top teams tie, Villa moves up

[ENGLAND] All the top four teams tied, allowing Brad Friedel and Aston Villa to slip ahead of Arsenal into fourth place after its 4-2 win over Bolton.

Barca beats battling Real to go eight points clear

[SPAIN] Barcelona overcame Real Madrid with two late goals from Samuel Eto’o and Lionel Messi in the superclasico. Despite appearing as a second-half sub, Jozy Altidore couldn’t prevent 10-man Villareal from losing at Sevilla.

Goal glut hits Italy as Juve minces Milan

[ITALY] Juventus beat Milan, 4-2, in the weekend’s big game as Serie A went wild, averaging over four goals per game. Inter beat last-place Chievo to retain its six-point lead.

Toluca closes in on mark held by Chivas and America

[MEXICO] Despite losing at home, 2-0, in the second leg of the Torneo Apertura final, Toluca won Mexico’s opening championship when it prevailed 7-6, over Cruz Azul on penalty kicks.

European Weekend Scores

Barcelona and Inter Milan opened up big leads in Spain and Italy, respectively. Hoffenheim and Bayern Munich are tied at the Bundesliga break. Liverpool and Chelsea remained 1-2 in England. Lyon’s lead in France was reduced to three points. AZ won at Feyenoord, 1-0, to remain on top in the Netherlands. For all the weekend results, standings and leading scorers …

Torres’ Pachuca advances with big comeback