Soccer America Archives

The South African government has allocated an extra 1.4 billion rand ($136 million) to stadiums for the 2010 World Cup to meet higher building costs, and a further 600 million rand ($57 million) to provide internet access to the stadiums, report Mike Cohen and Nasreen Seria. “The 2010 FIFA World Cup preparations remain on course, […]

If there’s one sport that can survive the global financial crisis then it’s soccer, writes the AP. It says that while individual clubs “will certainly suffer” by losing sponsors and investors, and perhaps some players with high wage demands, “cash flowing into the top end of the market, from television deals and multinational backers, is […]

Players at the last two World Cups took an average of nearly two legal medications or nutritional supplements per game, according to FIFA-funded research published by the British Journal of Sports Medicine. FIFA doctors found that “some players took a cocktail of up to 10 substances at once,” reports the AP. The report, compiled from […]

The 10-game suspension of RB New York’s Jon Conway and Jeff Parke last week for violating Major League Soccer’s Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health Policy raises a major question for the team over the offseason, writes Frank Giase. Simply put: will the team cut the two from its roster? Neither player’s absence was felt during […]

“I want to stop playing when I decide, not because I have been forced to by an injury.” Brazilian striker Ronaldo, 32, currently a free agent, says he is almost ready to play again after a knee injury that many thought had ended his career.

“In the last two games, we’ve given up game-winning goals to the opposition, which you can’t do at any level. We’re trying to win the match, obviously, but set plays with everybody back you shouldn’t be conceding goals like that. It’s heartbreaking for us to turn full circle from what we did five weeks ago.” […]

“I kind of had a feeling it was going to be tough for us. From the first moment, I didn’t think we were sharp, we were losing the ball too easily. But give them the credit. They came here, they wanted it more and they got it.” Chivas USA coach Preki concedes that Colorado deserved […]

“There were segments in the first half where we were just physically manhandled. It wasn’t as much about the soccer as it was about running harder, competing better. They were more alert, more physical, more aggressive.” L.A. Galaxy coach Bruce Arena explains his side’s 3-0 loss at Houston that finally ended the team’s lingering playoff […]

Not everyone, however, agrees with the generally positive media response to the Barca bid. “If Barcelona wasn’t involved in this deal, then there would be a lot more naysayers regarding Miami’s chance of seeing a MLS team come to South Florida again,” writes “The Gaffer.” He lists a number of problematical stadium issues surrounding the […]

Michelle Kaufman writes an open letter to Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber saying that she too would be skeptical about a franchise bid from Miami given the city’s history with soccer franchises. “We saw the Fusion — and teams before it — flop like a well-trained Italian forward,” she writes. “We know this is […]

Tottenham Hotspur’s disastrous start to the English Premier League campaign, with just two points from its first eight games, can be traced back to poor decision-making, writes Paul Doyle. The weekend’s 2-1 defeat at Stoke City left the team, which had seriously talked preseason about challenging for a Champions League spot, three points adrift at […]

RB New York coach Juan Carlos Osorio has called the ingestion of banned substances by goalkeeper Jon Conway and defender Jeff Parke a “genuine mistake,” and said that he and the team have accepted the apologies offered and the remorse that both players have shown. Parke, who like Conway has been suspended for 10 games, […]

“It was endearing to watch the entire Toronto FC team and front office staff congratulating one another on the field after Saturday’s win over Chicago,” writes Ryan Johnston. “But amid the festivities I held a silent vigil for a season lost.” Johnston says it was “excruciating” to think back on the points that Toronto squandered […]