[GERMANY] Hoffenheim took the unofficial “fall champion” title, but the top teams could only tie on the Bundesliga’s final round of play before its six-week winter break.
Category: Story
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Boca, Tigre and San Lorenzo to play off for Apertura title
[ARGENTINA] Boca Juniors, Tigre and San Lorenzo finished level on points at the end of the Opening Championship, meaning a three-way playoff for the title.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
MLS stars help Reggae Boyz win Caribbean title
[DIGICEL CARIBBEAN CHAMPIONSHIP] Former England star John Barnes passed his first test as Jamaica’s national team coach with flying colors as the Reggae Boyz won the Digicel Caribbean Championship with a 2-0 win over Grenada in Sunday’s final played at Kingston’s National Stadium. Five MLS players — Shavar Thomas, Tyrone Marshall, Andrew Williams, Dane Richards and Omar Cummings — played for Jamaica.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
First big MLS deal of offseason
[MLS] A month after its bid for its third straight MLS title ended, Houston Dynamo dealt star Dwayne De Rosario to Toronto FC as part of its effort to rebuild its attack. De Rosario, who grew up in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough, returned home in a trade that sent Trinidad & Tobago defender Julius James and allocation money reported to be between $125,000 and $150,000 to the Dynamo.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Marseille scouts eye Onyewu
[AMERICANS ABROAD] Oguchi Onyewu could have played his last important game for Standard Liege before heading to France. Scouts for French club Marseille were once again on hand Sunday to watch the giant American defender in action for the Belgian champion in its 4-1 win at Club Brugge, and reports out of France Monday morning indicate that Onyewu could be headed to OM within the next few days.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Ellerston delivers in new position
[U.S. WOMEN] Playing her first game as a striker in her international career, Tiny Ellertson scored to give the USA a 1-0 win over China on Saturday before 3,619 fans at the Home Depot Center.
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
Static College Game A Worry for Expanding MLS
As an event that should be of compelling interest, the college final four has ceased to engage me for a number of years. Mainly because the soccer itself is not that brilliant. It would be unfair to blame this entirely on the college sport — after all, when was the last time we had superb finals at any level of the sport, right up to the World Cup?
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Torres’ Pachuca advances with big comeback
[CLUB WORLD CUP] Jose Francisco Torres became the first American to play in the Club World Cup when he started for Mexico’s Pachuca in its 4-2 overtime win over Egypt’s Al Ahly on Saturday before more than 30,000 fans in Tokyo.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
European Weekend Scores
Barcelona and Inter Milan opened up big leads in Spain and Italy, respectively. Hoffenheim and Bayern Munich are tied at the Bundesliga break. Liverpool and Chelsea remained 1-2 in England. Lyon’s lead in France was reduced to three points. AZ won at Feyenoord, 1-0, to remain on top in the Netherlands. For all the weekend results, standings and leading scorers …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Toluca closes in on mark held by Chivas and America
[MEXICO] Despite losing at home, 2-0, in the second leg of the Torneo Apertura final, Toluca won Mexico’s opening championship when it prevailed 7-6, over Cruz Azul on penalty kicks.
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Insider
Feedback on Parent Behavior, Overcoaching …
Soccer America readers comment on recent editions of the Youth Soccer Insider e-letter.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Sundhage Helps Boxx Get Back In The Groove
U.S. women's national team midfielder Shannon Boxx, 31, was close to quitting last year because she was emotionally drained, writes Corinna Knoll. But the Olympic gold medallist was re-energized by the appointment of Pia Sundhage as coach in November 2007. "I was close to being done," Boxx said. "It started to become a job. I […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Platini: Euro 2012 Could Be Poland’s Alone
UEFA President Michel Platini has said that the 2012 European Championship, to be hosted jointly by Poland and the Ukraine, could take place solely in Poland if the stadium in the Ukrainian capital Kiev is not finished on time, according to Polish newspaper Dziennik. However, Platini is cool on a previously aired idea that Poland […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
FIFA Reveals Player Of The Year Nominees
World soccer’s governing body FIFA has named the contenders for the 2008 World Player and FIFA Women’s World Player awards. The award will be presented January 12. There are no U.S. players on either list. The male nominees are Kaka (Brazil), Lionel Messi (Argentina), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), Fernando Torres (Spain) and Xavi (Spain). The women […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
UEFA To Deliver Rooney Verdict Monday
UEFA will decide Monday whether to punish Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney over his clash with Aalborg's Kasper Risgard at Old Trafford in Wednesday's Champions League group game. Any suspension would mean him missing at least one game when the competition's Round of 16 knockout phase begins in February. Risgard claimed Rooney deliberately stomped on […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Boy Sells Memorabilia To Help Find Donor
Eleven-year-old Evan Mundine of Bastrop, Texas, is selling his autographed soccer memorabilia to help find a bone marrow donor for the wife of his favorite player, Real Salt Lake’s Andy Williams. Marcia Williams has leukemia. The fifth-grader broke his legs two years ago while playing soccer and, while recovering, received soccer balls, jerseys and photographs […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Benitez Tries Reverse Psychology
“For us to win the league we need Chelsea, Man United and Arsenal to mess up their season. It is very rare that three teams all mess up. So there’s no point waiting for our direct adversaries to slip up because it won’t happen. They all have a lot greater financial means than us.” EPL-leading […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Champions League A Beast Bound By Money And Self-Interest
"The truth is that when Uefa brought in their Champions League they were not so much breaking new ground as buying time. They do know the nature of their beast. It is unbounded by any force but the one of self-interest. What happened this week was not football competition but money-spinning." James Lawton adds his […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Toronto Sells Out For 2009
"We're amazed at the support by our fans." Toronto FC's senior director of business operations, Paul Beirne, expresses the team's surprise that it has already sold out its quota of 16,000 season tickets for the 2009 season.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Ahly Accuses Pachuca Of Spying
"Three spies from Pachuca came to inspect our practice today. It's not fair. We didn't watch their practice. It's not fair." More high jinx from the Club World Cup as Manuel Jose, the coach of Egyptian club Al Ahly, accused Mexican side Pachuca of spying on his team's practice. The two teams meet Saturday in […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Barca Ready For Revenge
"Hopefully it will be a great game and we can convince people that the 4-1 is forgotten. It's something that I don't like thinking back to and I understand people want revenge." Barcelona's Mexican defender Rafael Marquez hopes to banish the memory of last season's 4-1 defeat at Real Madrid in this Saturday's superclasico at […]
Posted inSoccer on TV., Story
Soccer on TV
The NCAA Division I men’s champion will be crowned this weekend; semifinals take place on Friday. Club World Cup games air Friday and Sunday. On Saturday, there’s the clasico of clasicos when Barcelona hosts Real Madrid. The second leg of the Mexican league final between Toluca and Cruz Azul takes place on Sunday, 1 pm ET (check local listings)
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
MEN’S COLLEGE CUP: ACC rivals meet in Frisco
Wake Forest and North Carolina are located only 85 miles apart, but the schools will be meeting Friday 1,100 miles away in Frisco, Texas, in the semifinals of the Men’s College Cup (TV: ESPN2, live, 5:30 pm ET). The Tar Heels lead the all-time series 19-10-7, but the Demon Deacons have enjoyed recent success, winning the last three meetings, most recently, 4-2, at Chapel Hill this fall in one of their most impressive performances of the season.
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
MEN’S COLLEGE CUP: Rematch of tournament foes
Maryland coach Sasho Cirovski says the 2008 Men’s College Cup has the potential to be one of the best ever. The four participants — Maryland, St. John’s, North Carolina and Wake Forest — have all won national titles in the last 12 years. Maryland takes a 14-game winning streak into its game against St. John’s (TV: ESPNU, live, 8 pm ET; ESPN2, Saturday, 11 am ET).
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
UPDATE: Akron’s Porter awarded new deal
Akron’s Caleb Porter, one of the most-sought after coaches in college soccer, has been awarded his second new contract in less than a year. The new contract for the 2007 and 2008 Mid-American Coach of the Year is a five-year deal.