The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has upheld the appeals filed by FC Schalke 04, SV Werder Bremen and FC Barcelona, who were protesting FIFA’s orders to release players – Rafinha, Diego and Lionel Messi, respectively — for the men’s Olympic tournament, an under-23 competition. But it seems unlikely that Barcelona will demand Messi to return from China and the German clubs have already given the Brazilians permission to stay in China. FIFA President Sepp Blatter, however, said the decision could have dire consequences in the future.
Author Archives: Soccer America
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
USA falls in FIFA rankings
The U.S. men’s national team dropped to No. 31 in the FIFA world rankings, its lowest placing since being at No. 35 in October 1997.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
“Sir Alex Ferguson heard my arguments, I heard his and, in fact, it was settled that the best for both parties would be for me to stay. Therefore, I can confirm that, next season, I will play for Manchester United. Before rumors emerge saying that I will play against my will, I want to make this clear – whoever says or writes that is lying. I will play for Manchester with all my heart and soul. I will fight and honor that shirt with the same commitment and dedication as always.”
— Cristiano Ronaldo finally ends the tug-of-war between Man U and Real Madrid. (The Guardian)
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
UEFA Champions League Results
Longtime European contender Anderlecht was knocked out of the UEFA Champions League when the Belgian club fell to BATE Borisov of Belarus in the second round of qualifying. Another surprise was Cypriot club Anorthosis Famugusta’s win over Rapid Vienna. For all the results …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Olympic Soccer TV Schedule
Soccer will continue on Thursday morning with live coverage of the USA-Japan men’s game on MSNBC and delayed coverage on Universal HD at 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. ET. Soccer will also be available on various NBC networks, including USA, CNBC and Telemundo. Complete soccer coverage will be available on the NBC Olympic Soccer Channel and online at nbcolympics.com. Check with your television provider for the availability of the NBC Olympic Soccer Channel.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Special Edition: U.S. Olympic soccer
MEMBERSHIP ALERT: Soccer America apologizes for the delayed and imperfect delivery of yesterday’s special edition of SoccerAmericaDaily with coverage of Wednesday’s women’s action. A special edition with U.S. Olympic soccer coverage will appear each day during the Olympics that a U.S. team is playing, so look for our coverage of the USA-Japan men’s game later today. For fans not wishing to read our coverage until after they have watched the game, the subject line of these e-letters will begin “Special Olympic Edition.”
Posted inSpecial Edition, Story
Postgame from Qinhuangdao
[REACTION] The U.S. players talked about the nightmarish first four minutes and the plays that led to Norway’s two goals — a difficult cross from the left and Kate Markgraf‘s horrendous backpass …
Posted inSpecial Edition, Story
Olympic Soccer TV Schedule
The USA-Norway women’s game will be replayed tonight on Universal HD at 8 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. ET. Soccer will continue on Thursday morning with live coverage of the USA-Japan men’s game on MSNBC and delayed coverage on Universal HD. Soccer will also be available on various NBC networks, including USA, CNBC and Telemundo. Complete soccer coverage will be available on the NBC Olympic Soccer Channel and online at nbcolympics.com. Check with your television provider for the availability of the NBC Olympic Soccer Channel.
Posted inSpecial Edition, Story
Women’s Soccer Scoreboard
Parity has arrived in women’s soccer. Except for Norway’s 2-0 win over the USA, all the opening games in the Olympic women’s soccer tournament were decided by one-goal margins or ended in ties.
Posted inSpecial Edition, Story
2004 hero Tarpley off form
[NORWAY-USA REPORT CARD] Soccer America’s Ridge Mahoney grades the U.S. players’ performance in their 2-0 loss to Norway on Wednesday. …
Posted inSpecial Edition, Story
What They’re Saying
“My glass is always half full. For us, it is a new experience to lose a game and the fact we tried to turn around and create some chances in the second half is positive. I’m happy that this is the first game and not the last.”
— U.S. coach Pia Sundhage after the shock loss to Norway, only the Americans’ second-ever in Olympic play.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
League Two Preview
England’s second, third and fourth tiers kick off this weekend, a week before the Premier League. Read all about “potential surprise package” Lincoln City and their ilk in what we old-timers still call the fourth division. Come on, you know you need to know your Aldershots from your Darlingtons, and why so many teams are […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Salt Lake Stadium To Open In Fall
Let’s hear the chants from Utah’s soccer fans: “No More Rice-Eccles Stadium!” The team will move into its new stadium in the suburb of Sandy for the season’s final two regular season games.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Spurs Are The Biggest Spenders
Tottenham Hotspur has been Europe’s biggest spender this summer, reckons Gavin Hamilton, having spent “a small fortune” on the likes of David Bentley, Giovani dos Santos, Luka Modric and Heurelho Gomes. And it’s not out of love for the beautiful game. Tottenham Chairman Daniel Levy looks like he is “banking on spending his way into […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Shaksin To Sell City?
Manchester City’s controversial owner, the former Thailand Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, may be looking to sell the team after just one year. According to Ian Ladyman, Shinawatra “has spoken to an intermediary in the financial world over the past month about finding prospective buyers.” And he quoted “sources close to the situation” as saying […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Sons of Ben Pleased At Philly Stadium Plans
The planned 18,500-seat soccer specific stadium that will host the Major League Soccer Philadelphia franchise from 2010 will include a special 2,000-seat area for the Sons of Ben supporters group. “I think it’s great and forward-looking of the owners to set aside that many seats,” said Bryan James, a spokesman for the Sons of […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Beasley’s Rangers Count Cost Of Champions League Defeat
When a team wins or loses a European series at this time of the year, there is little talk of the defeat in terms of lost honor and prestige. The only thing that really counts is the cost, and Glasgow Rangers’ accountants will be gloomily doing their sums after the team’s exit from the second […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Revs and Dynamo Show Superliga Solidarity
Tuesday’s Superliga final was an entertaining game, but at the end it was maybe “too peaceful,” writes Frank Dell’Apa. Celebrations were low-key as players immediately exchanged shirts after New England’s penalty kick win over Houston, and “Revolution captain Steve Ralston could not have been much more subdued as he collected the SuperLiga trophy.” Both […]
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Reporter
Special Edition: U.S. Olympic soccer
MEMBERSHIP ALERT: Soccer America will kick off its Olympic coverage with a special edition of SoccerAmericaDaily later today with coverage of Wednesday’s women’s action, including the USA-Norway game in Qinhuangdao. A special edition with U.S. Olympic soccer coverage will appear each day during the Olympics that a U.S. team is playing. For fans not wishing to read our coverage until after they have watched the game, the subject line of these e-letters will be “Special Edition: U.S. Olympic soccer.”
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Reporter
U.S. Youth Soccer National Championships featured on FSC
[SOCCER ON TV] On Saturday, Aug. 9 at 1 p.m. ET, the 2008 U.S. Youth Soccer National Championships will be featured on Fox Soccer Channel during the two-hour highlight show.
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Reporter
San Diego Surf Cup Results
The 27th annual San Diego Surf Cup included for the first time an academy division for U.S. Soccer Development Academy U-17/18 teams. The host club won all three academy games. On the girls side, the Mustang Soccer Club won two divisions on the second weekend of play. For all the U-16 to U-19 finals and goal scorers …
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Reporter
Champions entered in U.S. Youth Soccer National League
Three 2008 U.S. Youth Soccer girls national champions — the U-15 and U-16 Dallas Texans and U-14 San Juan Spirits Blue — will compete in the 2008-09 U.S. Youth Soccer National League, which qualifies the champion and runner-up of each division to the National Championships. For all the entrants …
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Reporter
Chicago and Triangle claim Super-20 championships
The Chicago Fire got two goals from Matt Eliason to beat the short-handed Toronto Lynx, 2-1, in the men’s division of the Super-20 North American Finals. Triangle FC beat Parsippany, 4-2, in a shootout to win the girls division after the final ended in a 2-2 tie.
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Reporter
U.S. boys national teams split abroad
Three U.S. boys national teams — the U-20s, U-18s and U-17s — spent last week abroad. The U-20s finished third at the Milk Cup in Northern Ireland. The U-18s went 1-2 at a youth tournament in Uruguay, while the U-17s tied Panama twice on the first leg of their three-country tour of Central America.
Posted inYouth Soccer Reporter, Youth What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
“Back in the day, we used to go to tournaments like that and turn them into mini family vacations, maybe go to Sea World, go to the beach, stay in a hotel. So we all just voted no, because it wasn’t going to be anything like that.”
— Nikole McGinn of Castaic, Calif., on the impact high gas prices and a weak economy have had on her family’s summer soccer tournament expeditions (Los Angeles Times).