Category: Section 2 Around the Net

Concacaf today announced the groups and schedule for the 2009 Gold Cup, with Group A kicking off the competition on July 3 at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif., as Canada meets Jamaica and Costa Rica takes on El Salvador. Group B takes its turn on the Fourth of July at Qwest Field in […]

To survive in MLS, the basic understanding goes that a team needs its own soccer-specific stadium. But to really thrive financially within the league, it seems a team needs a stadium that’s also jam-packed with other sports and entertainment events. I mean, who can’t use a little extra cash on the side? So it’s promising […]

Fox Network edged out ESPN as the future rights-holder for the world's most popular club competition and announced today that it would televise more than 100 matches as official U.S. broadcast partner the 2009-10 UEFA Champions League. A total of 31 matches will be shown live (up from ESPN's 28) and another 79 shown on […]

As Major League Soccer grows, so does the United Soccer Leagues First Division, with the second-tier league announcing today that with the inclusion of newest expansion franchise FC New York, there will be a total of 13 teams set to compete in the USL-1 in 2010. In part to offset the loss of longtime teams […]

"When you have 11 guys on the field working hard and working together as a team, an individual can have a good night. That's just how it happens." Well-spoken 19-year-old Jozy Altidore, whose hat trick in the 3-0 win over T&T gave him six career goals for the U.S., five of which have come in […]

"That was the pleasing thing. I think 18 months ago when we got a goal against us this side might have gone into our shell and played the final 20 minutes with fear. But this was much more positive. It was a good reaction. We showed a lot of character and deserved the win in […]

“For some of us playing in the altitude was something new, for others not so much, but we can’t say that we lost because of the altitude, but because our rivals played better and nothing turned out right for us.” Argentina captain Javier Mascherano, on playing at over 11,000 feet in La Paz in a […]

"It's not right, not right. Ninety minutes with 10 men because of that? At the international level? It is not right in any way." Italy coach Marcello Lippi, angry at Giampaolo Pazzini's dismissal, which forced the defending World Cup champion to play a man down for the rest of what would end up being a […]

I'm pretty sure there's no Spanish translation for "D'oh!" but seeing how Mexican midfielder Edgar Castillo originally hails from Las Cruces, New Mexico, perhaps he knows Homer enough that it was the aggravated expression he uttered when he realized he lost not only his passport but the opportunity to represent Mexico in an important World […]

After spending 15 seasons playing in Europe, World Cup veteran Gregg Berhalter is set to return to the USA and play for MLS very soon after his contract with German second division club 1860 Munich was recently terminated in advance of its June 30 expiration date, according to the AP. “The time has come to […]

Former England captain and Newcastle United striker Alan Shearer is set to return to the place where he gained fame, this time on the sidelines. Controversial owner Mike Ashley is expected announce tomorrow that Shearer will be given the reins of the once-proud club through the end of the current campaign, which finds Newcastle in […]

"Because of his movement, his passion and leadership on the pitch, he is very similar to Raul. When I started at Madrid for the first time, Raul was 19. He was very young but he was already a leader on the field. Can Rooney be England captain? Why not? But you have to wait. Now […]

“We are very happy that we won at home, but now we have to win as visitors. It will be very important that we win if we want to qualify. I have said it from the start of qualifying, that it is fundamental that we win away from home. We have to manage the times […]

FIFA announced on Wednesday it had received more than 1.6 million ticket requests from over 200 countries for the 2010 World Cup as part of the first phase of online sales, which closed Tuesday night. This first group of tickets will be allocated in a lottery to take place on April 15, which I'm sure […]

“A big strength of our team is our camaraderie, on and off the field. We have a fairly young group of guys, and we all get along well. I think our game plan for the most part proves that we have good chemistry throughout the team. The coach has tried to instill that in us, […]

In what is becoming an increasingly familiar but equally alarming phenomenon, young Jozy Altidore is yet another U.S. player who while considered among the best talent America has to offer, can’t seem to find the field while plying his trade overseas in Europe. The notion “sounds crazy,” writes MLSnet.com’s Michael Lewis, but that’s just the […]

"All it took was one shaky performance" in a 2-2 tie at El Salvador for the U.S. men's national team to go from an "unstoppable force that should cruise to a place in the 2010 World Cup" to a "flawed power with some problems that need correcting" heading into Wednesday's home match with Trinidad & […]

Determined to do their part in making good on late owner Lamar Hunt‘s vision to build soccer into the “No. 2 sport in the United States,” executives at the Kansas City Wizards ownership group, OnGoal LLC, continue to search for the perfect site for their own soccer-specific stadium. According to the KC Star’s Alan Goforth, […]

According to an AP report, Central Michigan University has agreed to pay just over $450,000 to settle an “inappropriate sexual activity” suit brought by two varsity soccer players against former coach Tony DiTucci, who resigned back in October 2008. The deal, which was signed on Monday, earmarks $150,000 for each player with the final third […]

Assuming that South American powers Argentina and Brazil, as well as CONMEBOL standings leader Paraguay, are all but assured of qualifying for the 2010 World Cup, SI.com's Tim Vickery predicts that the race for the fourth and final (full) berth from the region will come down to Chile and Uruguay, which face off in a […]

Solid defense, scoring and solitude: these are apparently the three keys to success for Turkish team Sivasspor, which is the surprise leader of the Super League, ahead of perennial powers Galatasaray and Fenerbache, which each hold the record of 17 titles. "Located in Anatolia's bleak central heartland" and "a tortuous 12-hour drive from the temptations […]

"If we were to scrap the name, the most devastated guy would be yours truly. [General manager Denny Veitch] was driving into Vancouver over the Lions Gate Bridge and looked at the snow-capped mountains and the sea below and thought, 'whitecaps,' [Owner] Herb [Capozzi] said they got the name from the caps on his teeth. […]

"I think that if they have quality and a Mexican passport, they have to be in the Mexican national team. Nobody told me this was prohibited. It's a little bit difficult for me to understand all this. If I don't select (Argentine-born Matias) Vuoso or (Brazilian-born Anthony) Naelson, they criticize me; if I pick Lucas […]

"His career is going down the pan and it's upsetting me. I'm Michael Owen's biggest fan but, at the moment, I'm his biggest critic. I'm waiting to see Michael on TV, or read about him in the press, saying how tough it is not being involved in the England team. But this interview doesn't seem […]

"I got slammed. I got bumped. I actually had the ball in my hands, then she hit me and that's when the ball went in. I got the wind knocked out of me a little bit." Washington Freedom goalkeeper Briana Scurry, lamenting a tough "no call" by referee Kari Seitz in which Sol defender Allison […]