Author Archives: Paul Kennedy

[WORLD CUP 2018/2022 BID]. Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, the most famous American soccer fan of his generation, has joined the USA Bid Committee seeking the 2018 or 2022 FIFA World Cup.

[CANADA] Less than two years after he was hired, Dale Mitchell has been fired as Canada’s national team coach. Mitchell, whose contract was to run through 2010, was ousted following another humiliating World Cup qualifying campaign. Canada failed to win any of its six games and finished last in its semifinal qualifying group, behind Mexico, Honduras and Jamaica. His ouster is only the latest in a series of setbacks for the Canadian Soccer Association.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] While Ivory Coast began three days of morning following the death of 19 fans in a stampede before Sunday’s World Cup qualifier between Ivory Coast and Malawi at Abidjan’s Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium, an investigation into the tragedy continued. Star Didier Drogba called it “a national drama,” adding that he and his Ivorian teammates did not learn about what happened until after the game, which ended in a 5-0 victory.

[WPS] The Women’s Professional Soccer inaugural game was supposed to spotlight the Los Angeles Sol’s Brazilian star, Marta, but teammates Alison Falk and Camille Abily stole the show with goals to give the Sol a 2-0 victory over the Washington Freedom in front of 14,832 fans Sunday at The Home Depot Center.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING-EUROPE] Spain, Germany and the Netherlands all won to maintain comfortable leads in their World Cup 2010 qualifying groups. Portugal’s troubles continued, though, when it could only tie Sweden, 0-0, in Oporto. Elsewhere, American Neven Subotic debuted for Group 7 leader Serbia in a 3-2 win at Romania.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING-SOUTH AMERICA] Argentina was outstanding in Diego Maradona‘s home debut as national team coach. He said the welcome he received from fans at the Monumental Stadium was better than he expected, and he watched Argentines go out and crush Venezuela, 4-0, to move into a tie for second place with Chile in the South American qualifying group ahead of Brazil, which was lucky to tie Ecuador, 1-1.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING-AFRICA] At least 22 fans were killed and 132 injured in a stampede before Ivory Coast’s World Cup qualifier against Malawi Sunday at Abidjan’s Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING-ASIA] Fans in the crowd of 100,000 at Tehran’s Azadi Football Stadium demanded Coach Ali Daei‘s resignation after Iran blew a 1-0 lead and fell to visiting Saudi Arabia, 2-1, in World Cup 2010 qualifying in the Asian zone.

[HEXAGONAL] With Coach Sven-Goran Eriksson‘s job on the line, Mexico snapped its four-game winless streak in World Cup qualifying with a 2-0 win over Costa Rica Saturday before 105,000 fans at Azteca Stadium. Trinidad & Tobago, which will face the USA Wednesday in Nashville, was lucky to escape with a 1-1 tie against Honduras in a battle of teams coached by Colombians.

[WPS OPENER] Brazilian Marta won’t be the only star on display when the Los Angeles Sol hosts the Washington Freedom Sunday in the Women’s Professional Soccer opening game (TV: Fox Soccer Channel, live, 6 pm ET). Both teams are loaded with international and collegiate stars who were once teammates but will be on the opposing side of the field Sunday at the Home Depot Center.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] Portugal and France, two of Europe’s strongest teams for the last decade, could see their chances of qualifying for South Africa 2010 compromised if they don’t get favorable results against Sweden and Lithuania, respectively, on Saturday. European champion Spain, on the other hand, could move closer to booking a ticket with a win over Turkey. For a look at all the top matches in Europe on Saturday and predictions …

[HEXAGONAL] U.S. eyes will be on Port of Spain, where Trinidad & Tobago, which will face the USA on Wednesday in Nashville, hosts Honduras Saturday in a critical World Cup 2010 qualifier in the Concacaf zone.

[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.

[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.

[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.

[HEXAGONAL] Members of El Salvador’s national team resumed training on Monday in San Salvador for Saturday’s critical World Cup 2010 qualifier against the USA at Estadio Cuscatlan (TV: ESPN2, TeleFutura, live, 9 pm ET). Their Mexican coach, Carlos De los Cobos, admitted that valuable training was lost when the players went on strike last week in a dispute over unpaid bonuses, but he added they have a week to get ready for the game against the Americans.

[HEXAGONAL] Trinidad & Tobago coach Francisco Maturana has called in nine European-based players for World Cup 2010 qualifiers against Honduras and the United States (TV: April 1, live, 7:30 p.m. ET/6:30 p.m. CT, ESPN2 and Galavision). The squad includes goalie Clayton Ince and Chris Birchall, who are both suspended for the Honduras game but will be eligible to face the USA, but it does not include captain Dwight Yorke, whose four-game suspension by FIFA (for his red card for dissent against El Salvador in the Hexagonal opener) is currently being appealed.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] David Beckham can break the England record for most games played by a field player if he plays in one of England’s upcoming games — a friendly against Slovakia on March 28 and a World Cup qualifier against Ukraine on April 1.

[ENGLAND] Liverpool keeps piling it on, and Manager Rafael Benitez still isn’t happy. A 4-0 win over Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League was followed by 4-1 win at Manchester United and 5-0 victory over Aston Villa in the Premier League. Suddenly, there’s a race in the EPL, and don’t think Liverpool wasn’t thinking of goal difference — the tiebreaker — when it hammered Aston Villa. Benitez’s only regret Sunday was that the Reds didn’t add to their 5-0 margin following American goalie Brad Friedel‘s dismissal in the 64th minute.

[EUROPE] There may be no better player in Europe right now than Swede Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He scored another fabulous goal for Italian leader Inter Milan. For who’s up, who’s  down, who’s in and who’s out in Europe …

[MLS] At halftime of the Seattle-New York broadcast on ESPN2, MLS Commissioner Don Garber said he was headed after the game down south to Portland, and it wasn’t to see how the roses are doing. MLS has scheduled a news conference for Friday, and it is expected to announce Portland as its 18th franchise.

[SPAIN] The president the Spanish Second Division club that recently acquired American teen Jozy Altidore on loan quit on Thursday after he was suspected of being involved in a shooting at a brothel in Jerez de la Frontera in southwest Spain. Joaquin Bilbao and his driver spent the night in a police cell. Bilbao denied firing the shots at the door of a brothel, which was closed.