Author Archives: Soccer America

A campaign is underway in Austria to withdraw the team from next summer’s European Championship. Austria, along with co-host Switzerland, has automatically qualified for the finals as host. More than 10,000 supporters, however, have now signed a petition urging the team to withdraw from its own tournament. Why? Simply put, “it is the worst Austrian […]

Interview: U.S. Women Coach Pia Sundhage

GreenPitch.com has an exclusive interview with new U.S. women’s head coach Pia Sundhage, who just signed a one-year contract that will see her coach the team through the Beijing Olympics next summer. Sundhage says “very, very” excited about the opportunity. “We have to work as a team and show that we are the best again […]

Did Emilio Deserve to be MVP?

When D.C. United’s Luciano Emilio was named Major League Soccer’s Most Valuable Player on Thursday, there were always going to be a few disappointed rumblings in the press that the award didn’t go to New York’s Juan Pablo Angel, the other hot favorite to win the prestigious award. In the end, Emilio’s 20 goals, which […]

MLS Finally Arrived in 2007

The general consensus is that 2007 was the best ever season for MLS. Game attendance was up, TV viewership was up, Beckham and — to a far lesser extent, Blanco — drew all kinds of media buzz, and some teams found a new revenue source in shirt sponsorship. Overshadowed by all these positives is the […]

MLS’s Successful, Measured Approach

Business Week has a lengthy article about Major League Soccer’s recent success. In 2007, the league saw attendances rise 8.2 percent to an average of 16,770. TV ratings were also up, helping the league secure its first national broadcasting fee in its history. The biggest jump came in sponsorship revenue, a 25 percent increase, and […]

2007 Pac-10 Women’s Awards

UCLA sophomore forward Lauren Cheney was named Pac-10 Player of the Year. It was the first time since 2003 that a Bruin captured Player of the Year honors. Coach Jillian Ellis, whose Bruins are ranked No. 1 in the final Soccer America Women’s Top 25, was named Pac-10 Coach of the Year. Stanford’s Christen Press was named Freshman of the Year. UCLA and Stanford dominated the all-conference team with a combined seven of the 12 selections.

2007 Big East Men’s Awards

Connecticut’s Julius James was named 2007 Big East Defensive Player of the Year for the third straight year, while teammate O’Brian White was tabbed Offensive Player of the Year. Other player honors went to DePaul’s Brian Visser (Goalkeeper of the Year), West Virginia senior Andy Wright (Midfielder of the Year) and Seton Hall midfielder Brayan Martinez (Rookie of the Year). DePaul head coach Craig Blazer, along with his staff, earned Coaching Staff of the Year accolades.

Lightning doesn’t deter Golden Hurricane

Top-seeded Tulsa got an early goal by Eric DeFreitas to stand up as the Golden Hurricane beat host UAB, 1-0, in the quarterfinals of the Conference USA men’s tournament in Birmingham, Ala. Tulsa, ranked No. 7 in the latest Soccer America Men’s Top 25 rankings, had to wait a day to get in its game against the Blazers. Wednesday’s game, the last of four quarterfinal matches, got underway but was delayed due to lightning and eventually postponed.

NCAA Division I Men’s Scoreboard

WITH WEEKEND UPDATES … Vernont (America East) and Campbell (Atlantic Sun) knocked off top seeds Saturday to win their respective conference tournaments. Six top seeds were knocked off in semifinal play on Friday night: St. Louis (Atlantic-10), Coastal Carolina (Big South), Drexel (CAA), Loyola, Ill. (Horizon), Monmouth (MAAC) and Holy Cross (Patriot). For all the conference tournament results and goalscorers, as well as schedules and television updates …

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: NJCAA Division I National Championships

WITH FRIDAY UPDATES … Sunday’s championship games are set at the NJCAA Division I National Championships. In the men’s final, top seed Georgia Perimeter (21-0-2) meets Yavapai (23-2-0). In the women’s final, CCBC Catonsville (20-1-0) faces Iowa Western (21-1-1). For all the scores and schedules …

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: NAIA National Championships

WITH WEEKEND UPDATES … Simon Fraser and Concordia (Calif.) moved into the semifinals with wins on Saturday at the NAIA Men’s National Championships. At the women’s nationals in Daytona Beach, Fla., No. 1 seed Lee beat St. Xavier, 3-0, in Saturday’s first quarterfinal match. For all the results, goal scorers and schedules …

NCAA Division I Women’s Scoreboard

WITH SUNDAY UPDATES … Texas knocked out No. 2 seed Texas A&M, 3-2, on Saturday, and three other regional seeds fell on Sunday. Indiana beat No. 2 Purdue in a shootout. Duke beat No. 3 Georgia, 1-0. Connecticut also downed No. 4 Wake Forest, 1-0. For all the weekend results and goalscorers …

USA finishes off year with South Africa friendly

The U.S. national team will play its 18th and final game of 2007 when it faces South Africa in the Nelson Mandela Challenge Cup on Saturday (9 am ET, live on Fox Soccer Channel & Galavision). The Americans have compiled a 11-5-1 in 2007, winning the Gold Cup last summer but exiting in the first round of the Copa America. In a late roster change, Heath Pearce and Jonathan Spector have replaced Eddie Lewis and Landon Donovan.

Beckham to sport britches for big bucks

Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder David Beckham has reportedly signed a three-year $41 million endorsement deal with Giorgio Armani that will have him modeling the fashion designer’s new Emporio SS08 line of underwear. Ads with Beckham in briefs will begin running on billboards and in fashion magazines beginning in January.

Puerto Rico Islanders knocked out of Caribbean championship

Joe Public FC of Trinidad & Tobago knocked the USL First Division Puerto Rico Islanders out of the 2007 CFU Club Championship with a 1-0 win in the semifinals on Wednesday night at Macoya’s Marvin Lee Stadium in Trinidad.

Changes in U.S. Soccer communications department

U.S. Soccer’s longtime Director of Communications, Jim Moorhouse, is leaving his current position at its headquarters in Chicago to take a new role with U.S. Soccer as the Director of Youth National Teams at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.

Soccer America Daily, What They're Saying

What They’re Saying

“I’m not overly superstitious, but I can be when I need to be and perhaps this is one of these occasions. I understand that, for the Italians, the 17th of the month is our equivalent of the 13th. You should also bear in mind the game kicks off at 17:00 hours!”

— Scotland assistant coach Andy Watson believes luck might be on his team’s side in its potentially decisive Euro 2008 qualifying game against Italy on Saturday. (Telegraph)

U.S. U-15 girls to face international foes at Interregionals

The U.S. under-15 girls national team will play the under-16 national teams of Canada and Chile and the Region I ODP team at at the U.S. Youth Soccer ODP Thanksgiving Interregionals being held Nov. 17-23 in Coral Springs, Fla.

Lynn Berling-Manuel is new AYSO Chief Marketing Officer

Soccer America’s CEO & Publisher, Lynn Berling-Manuel, who in 1975 became its first full-time managing editor, is leaving Soccer America to be the new Chief Marketing Officer of the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO).

“I have been very happy at Soccer America and hadn’t considered leaving,” said Berling-Manuel. “But when [AYSO National Executive Director] Rick Davis spoke with me about this opportunity, it was a very exciting challenge. I thank the staff and owners of Soccer America for giving me their full support in this move.

D.C. United’s Luciano Emilio is MLS 2007 MVP

D.C. United’s Brazilian striker Luciano Emilio was named the 2007 MLS Honda Most Valuable Player. The 28-year-old was also MLS’s scoring leader with 20 goals, helping D.C. United to the league’s best regular-season record before falling to Chicago in the playoffs. Emilio arrived in MLS this season from CD Olimpia of Honduras.

Argentina’s Most Capped Players

[MAKING A LIST] Javier Zanetti will become Argentina’s most capped player if he plays in Saturday’s World Cup qualifier against Bolivia in Buenos Aires. Zanetti won his 115th cap in the 2-0 win over Venezuela in October, equaling the record set by former teammate Roberto Ayala, who quit the national team in July.

Euro 2008 Qualifying TV Schedule

Euro 2008 qualifying concludes Saturday with a full slate of games. Ten qualifiers will be available on U.S. cable or pay-per-view, most notably Scotland-Italy and Israel-Russia.

Story, Youth Soccer Insider

How expectations affect performance

by Soccer AmericaNovember 15, 2007

Whether you know it or not, the expectations you form as a coach about players on your team affects not only your own behavior toward them but also the feelings and performance of those players. Having such an influence on your players’ athletic experience and development is a huge responsibility and a process every coach should understand.

Here’s how the process works.

Play in Italy Set to Resume Nov. 25

by Soccer AmericaNovember 15, 2007

Players, ex-players and the Italian media will continue to debate whether the shooting death of Lazio fan Gabriele Sandri should result in the indefinite suspension of play in Italy, but Italian soccer federation president Giancarlo Abete says the organization expects play to resume as scheduled on Nov. 25. “We were clear yesterday. We decided unanimously […]