Author Archives: Soccer America

In the fight for the right to watch soccer highlights in free television, the German antitrust agency has handed soccer fans a victory.

Bayern Munich fell to Borussia Dortmund, 2-1, on Wednesday in pre-season action — its first loss under new coach Juergen Klinsmann, who was unconcerned even though he fielded a near-full strength Bayern team.

Luiz Felipe Scolari didn’t bite back following Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson’s barb that he didn’t see much room for improvement in Chelsea under the Brazilian. Speaking in China, where Chelsea is on a pre-season tour, Scolari said the Blues have what it takes to win. “I think that I have some players with […]

After six seasons in Scandinavia, American speedster Robbie Russell is returning home to play for Real Salt Lake. “This is the guy we wanted,” Real Salt Lake general manager Garth Lagerwey said of the fellow Duke alum who is expected to be available for RSL’s next MLS game, against Toronto at home on Monday. The […]

FC Dallas midfielder Dax McCarty has been named the the U.S. Olympic men’s team, replacing the injured Nathan Sturgis. The 21-year old McCarty, a starter on the team that beat Canada, 3-0, to qualify for the Olympics, was himself injured this spring and was first selected as an alternate on the Olympic team, which will […]

The success of Toronto FC, the second-year MLS club and host of Thursday’s MLS All-Star Game, has prompted talk of further expansion in Canada. Both Vancouver and Montreal are interested in joining the MLS expansion queue. NBA superstar Steve Nash will team with Vancouver Whitecaps owner Greg Kerfoot in a bid to bring MLS to […]

Don’t expect any fan trouble at Thursday’s MLS All-Star Game in Toronto. Following a skirmish between West Ham and Columbus Crew fans during Sunday’s friendly in Columbus, Toronto security is on notice to watch out for problems. “We’re going to be paying very specialized attention to the West Ham supporters group,” said Bob Hunter, executive […]

Lithuania’s Kaunas and Ventspils of Latvia both are through to the second qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League.

FIFA and Europe’s top clubs remain at odds over the release of under-23 players for next month’s Olympics in China. FIFA president Sepp Blatter issued a statement on Wednesday, saying “the release of players below the age of 23 has always been mandatory for all clubs. The same principle applies for Beijing 2008.” But Bayern […]

Tottenham Hotspur is pursuing Roman Pavlyuchenko and Andrei Arshavin, who starred for Russia at Euro ’08.

Spain’s La Liga has the reputation of being one of the best leagues in the world, but the reality is that Spanish soccer is hurting. Real Madrid and Barcelona generate huge revenues, but many pro clubs are struggling. Clubs in the top two Spanish divisions owe players more than $60.50 million in back pay, according […]

An incident involving Columbus Crew and West Ham United fans during Sunday’s exhibition between the two clubs at Crew Stadium again brought attention to the MLS team’s hard-core supporters. While Crew officials downplayed the incident that began when Hammer supporters entered a Crew fan section at halftime, it drew plenty of media coverage. “We didn’t […]

With the departure of Jozy Altidore (Villarreal) and Brad Guzan (Aston Villa), two of its brightest young stars, MLS must groom a new generation of young players. Olympic teammates Sacha Kljestan and Robbie Rogers, both 2008 all-star selections, head the list of young MLS stars. ESPNsoccernet columnist Ives Galarcep adds his list of young players […]

Italian police have issued another arrest warrant against former Cosmos star Giorgio Chinaglia in connection with a probe into a Naples-based organized crime group’s attempt to buy Italian club Lazio with laundered money. Police arrested seven people and sought three others who tried to buy Lazio with money coming from the illicit activities of the […]