Monthly Archives: March 2009

The schedule for the World Football Challenge that will feature four international club teams in six U.S. cities this summer is one piece of a busy calendar. Returning for 2009 is SuperLiga, the annual exhibition tournament contested by that MLS Commissioner Don Garber says is important because it gives MLS teams a chance prove themselves against their Mexican counterparts.

[MLS] When the Red Bulls lined up at Home Depot Center last fall to play Columbus in MLS Cup 2008, rookie midfielder Luke Sassano took a spot in central midfield to start his fourth straight playoff game despite a sore ankle to which had been festooned a big bag of ice during the week. Last weekend, as the Red Bulls opened their 2009 season in a rowdy, boisterous Qwest Field against the expansion Sounders, he watched from the bench as everything New York accomplished in October and November seemed to vanish in a 3-0 defeat. Sassano looks set to return to the Red Bulls lineup for this weekend’s home opener.

[WPS] Wednesday was the final day for Women’s Professionel Soccer teams to make cuts to get their rosters down to the maximum of 18 players plus four developmental players. For all the rosters …

[BY THE NUMBERS] The University of North Carolina and Brazil have supplied the most talent to Women’s Professionel Soccer teams. Five holdovers from the 1999 U.S. World Cup championship team are among the former WUSA players on opening day rosters.

[HEXAGONAL] U.S. attacker Landon Donovan‘s two-and-a-half month loan stint ended in time for him to rejoin the Los Angeles Galaxy for its MLS opener against D.C. United and he scored twice in the 2-2 comeback tie. Now he looks forward to World Cup qualifying games at El Salvador on Saturday (TV: ESPN2, TeleFutura, live, 9 pm ET) and Trinidad & Tobago April 1 (TV: April 1, live, 7:30 p.m. ET/6:30 p.m. CT, ESPN2 and Galavision).

[IN THESE TIMES] La Liga club Villarreal is offering unemployed season-ticket holders free passes in 2009-10. “Season-ticket holders who are on the dole will be allowed in free next year,” said club president Fernando Roig said on Tuesday.

[MLS] Swedish attacker Freddie Ljungberg, whom the Seattle Sounders signed as a Designated Player at $1.31 million before they even hired Coach Sigi Schmid, is set to play on Saturday against Real Salt Lake in what would be his first competitive match since the 2008 European Championship.

[MLS] FC Dallas signed goalie Dario Sala to a new contract last year, yet backup Ray Burse will be the starter for the short-term.

[MLS] Obviously, the Galaxy shouldn’t have been awarded a penalty kick when a ball bounced off the underside of defender Rodney Wallace’s leg and not his arm in its 2-2 tie with D.C. United Sunday, but should referee Jair Marrufo have given a penalty earlier when Christian Gomez and Dema Kovalenko got tangled up at the edge of the penalty area?

During a conversation last week MLS commissioner Don Garber refuted a suggestion that the international calendar in 2009 was so crowded with World Cup qualifiers, Confederations Cup, and Gold Cup commitments there wouldn’t be much room left for club matches. “Believe it or not, it seems the consumer has an insatiable appetite for international exhibition matches,” said Garber. “There will be many, many played in the U.S. this summer, with [Guadalajara], Barcelona, Chelsea, [AC] Milan. It will be very busy.”

[WPS] Both the Los Angeles Sol and Washington Freedom, who will play in Sunday’s Women’s Professional Soccer game, are awaiting clearances on their respective French signings, Camille Abily (Los Angeles) and Sonia Bompastor (Washington), whose move to the United States has touched off controversy at their French club Lyon, in part because their departure comes on the eve of the UEFA Women’s Cup semifinals.

[WPS] Amid a severe economic slowdown that has hit Americans sports leagues hard, Women’s Professional Soccer is set to begin its first season on Sunday when the Los Angeles Sol featuring Brazilian star Marta hosts the Washington Freedom (TV: Fox Soccer Channel, live, 6 pm ET/3 pm PT). While WPS Commissioner Tanya Antonucci says the league goal for average attendance remains 4,000-6,000 a game, the push to opening day has not been without some upheaval, the replacement of one team’s president and general manager.