In the wake of the NFL’s decision to play its first regular-season game in London, English Premier League officials and American businessmen have started talking about bringing EPL games to the U.S. For one, West Ham United chairman Eggert Magnusson thinks it’s a great idea. “I can see that happening sooner rather than later,” he […]
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
Wildfires impact Southern California programs
For almost a week now, fires have been raging across Southern California, affecting the movement of college teams. Pepperdine’s women managed to play at San Diego in WCC action last Sunday but then couldn’t get back home. Classes at San Diego have since been canceled and the campus used as an evacuation site. Unable to practice, the Torero women headed to Portland a day early to prepare for their nationally televised match on Thursday night. San Diego State teams have been forced move home games outside the area — to Los Angeles and as far away as Provo, Utah. Then there’s San Diego State men’s assistant coach Oscar Rodriguez, a San Diego firefighter who has been battling fires non-stop since last Sunday.
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
Tennessee, Georgia and Florida remain close
[SEC UPDATE] Quite a race is shaping up in the Southeastern Conference’s Eastern Division, where three ranked teams are battling for the regular-season title.
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
Soccer America Women’s Top 25 Results & Schedules
No. 1 UCLA hosts No. 5 in a Pac-10 battle for Los Angeles bragging rights on Friday night. The Bruins hold a 15-2-1 edge in the series and have not lost to the Women of Troy since 1998. Other notable matchups this weekend include No. 3 Virginia at No. 16 Boston College and. No. 12 Santa Clara at No. 6 Portland, both on Sunday. For the complete Top 25 results and weekend schedules …
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
Soccer America Men’s Top 25 Results & Schedules
This weekend’s big showdown pits No. 1 Wake Forest, one of only two unbeaten NCAA Division I men’s teams, against No. 12 Boston College, the ACC leader at 5-0-0, on Saturday. In other Top 25 action this weekend, No. 13 Virginia hosts No. 23 Duke on Friday night, and No. 6 Michigan State travels to No 17 Northwestern on Sunday. For the complete Top 25 results and weekend schedules …
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
NCAA Division I Men’s Thursday Results
Tulsa recorded its largest victory in 17 years when the No. 7 Golden Hurricane beat Centenary, 9-0. For all of Thursday’s scores …
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
NCAA Division I Women’s Thursday Results
UNC Greensboro improved to 8-0-0 in the Southern Conference with a 2-1 win over Appalachian State. Kennesaw State and Mercer remained tied for first in the Atlantic Sun at 8-1-0 after wins over Campbell and Gardner-Webb, respectively. For all of Thursday’s scores …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
“I’ve heard nothing from anybody. In the next week or so, we’ll talk about planning for next year, so I’ll get a better idea of what [team president Alexi Lalas] is feeling. If people think I’m a bad coach and have coached this team badly, they can say that. But I feel that not all the results were down to coaching.”
— Los Angeles Galaxy coach Frank Yallop on his future with the team, which missed the playoffs. (Los Angeles Daily News)
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Wilmer Cabrera named U.S. U-17 coach; Rongen rehired for U-20s
Colombian World Cup veteran Wilmer Cabrera, who moved to the United States four years ago and has been coaching youth soccer in the New York area, has been named U.S. U-17 boys national team coach and will oversee the U.S. Soccer Residency Camp in Bradenton, Fla. Thomas Rongen, who guided the USA to the quarterfinals of last summer’s U-20 World Cup, has had his contract extended through the 2009 U-20 World Cup. “Wilmer is going to be a great addition to all of our player development initiatives,” said U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati. “He has played at the highest level of the sport and will bring a unique perspective to our programs. He has been very involved in our youth national teams across the past year, and has done the work at the grassroots since relocating to the United States that make him an ideal candidate.”
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Chicago takes Round 1 against hobbled D.C. United
The regular season’s best team, D.C. United, lost its postseason opener, 1-0, at Chicago in front of 17,834 fans on Thursday and faces a must-win second-leg game at home next week to keep its campaign for a fifth MLS title alive. Chris Rolfe scored the gamewinner with a 15-yard volley while D.C. United’s offense sputtered because of Jaime Moreno and Luciano Emilio‘s foot injuries.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Wizards face rising Chivas USA
The Wizards are back in the playoffs three years after finishing runner-up at MLS Cup; among the veterans of that solid team are defenders Jimmy Conrad and Jose Buricaga Jr., midfielders Sasha Victorine and Kerry Zavagnin, and attackers Scott Sealy and Davy Arnaud. They needed a win on the final day of the season to make the playoffs as the No. 8 seed, and as the fifth-placed team in the Eastern Conference are matched against the Western Conference champion on the other side of the bracket. First-year head coach Preki has upgraded Chivas USA from good to borderline excellent by incorporating a more direct, yet skillful, style of play.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Houston’s title defense starts in-state
[MLS PLAYOFF PREVIEW] The Texas Shootout has been more of a stampede this season, with Dallas avoiding defeat only once by tying Houston, 0-0, at Pizza Hut Park June 30. Houston is deeper than last year’s championship team. The additions of Nate Jaqua, Richard Mulrooney and Joseph Ngwenya brought experience as well as ability.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Red Bulls out to ruin another Revs’ postseason
[MLS PLAYOFF PREVIEW] More than few fans and pundits believe this is the season the Revs finally break their jinx and win the whole thing. They lost the 2006 final on penalties, lost in overtime in 2005, and were also beaten in overtime in 2002 in front of the home crowd. They must be due. Maybe. In their first full season under Coach Bruce Arena, the Red Bulls are far from the finished product. But they are potent going forward and have a lot of big-game experience in Juan Pablo Angel, Dave van den Bergh and Claudio Reyna
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Sensational Robinho apologizes for tardiness, not partying
[VIDEO] Robinho’s sensational performance for Real Madrid in its 4-2 win over Olympiakos in the Champions League on Wednesday went a long way toward winning back the support of Madrid fans after his no-show last weekend.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
WEEKEND PREVIEW: International Soccer Headliners
Arsenal carries a 12-game winning streak into Anfield, where it faces Liverpool in a battle of EPL unbeatens. Two other matches pit Champions League competitors against each other: AC Milan-Roma in Italy and Sevilla-Valencia in Spain. Chelsea looks to continue its winning ways under its new manager, Avram Grant, when it hosts Manchester City, one of the pleasant surprises of the new EPL season.
Posted inSoccer on TV., Story
Soccer on TV
Three MLS playoff games overlap on Saturday. In the English Premier League, struggling Liverpool takes on undefeated Arsenal on Sunday.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
UEFA Cup Results
In what proved to be Dutchman Martin Jol‘s last game as Tottenham manager, Spurs fell at home to Spanish club Getafe, 2-1, on Day 1 of the UEFA Cup’s group stage. Jol and assistant Chris Hughton both agreed to leave Spurs just before the game. Tim Howard was the only American in action on Thursday, starting in goal for the Toffees in their 3-1 win over Larissa at Goodison Park. For all Thursday’s UEFA Cup results …
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Insider
Improving skills on your own
A player can always improve his fitness by working out hard. He can comprehend certain tactics by studying the game. But how far he goes will be determined mainly by how well he has mastered ball skills. Those are acquired by playing, day after day, year after year.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Rosenborg Fires Coach After Stunning CL Victory
One day after Rosenborg recorded one of its greatest Champions League victories, a 2-0 win at home over Spanish giant Valencia, the Norwegian team announced the sacking of its coach, Knut Toerum. The decision came after a meeting between the club’s board and Toerum following the victory over Valencia, a two-time Champions League finalist. Rosenborg chairman […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Philadelphia Unveils Stadium Plans
Philadelphia wants one of the two MLS franchises up for grabs for the 2010 season. The only problem, aside from the cost to taxpayers, is that the proposed new stadium isn’t in the most desirable of neighborhoods. Chester, Pa., a good 30-minute drive from downtown Philadelphia, “is conceivably the poorest, most crime-riddled and poverty-stricken city […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Chicago Should be Favored for Game 1
Forget tradition, the Chicago Fire should be favored for Wednesday’s first leg of the Eastern Conference semifinals for a whole host of reasons, says USSoccerPlayers’ Ian Plenderleith. First, D.C. United is in trouble if it lines up at Toyota Park without one of either Luciano Emilio or Jaime Moreno, which looks likely. That’s because the […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
American Bosses Back Benitez Despite Poor Form
After yet another poor performance in the Champions League, Liverpool co-owner Tom Hicks came out in defense of Manager Rafael Benitez, insisting that the Spaniard’s job at Anfield was still safe. “We back Rafa,” Hicks said, referring to himself and fellow American George Gillett, the club’s other co-owner. “He’s the right manager” Hicks admitted that […]
Posted inSoccer Business Insider, Story
Soccer Glass Filling, But Not Simple to Reach
Advice for both soccer sponsors and organizations.
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
Northwestern and Akron fall on golden goals
[WEDNESDAY UPDATE] Two of the Midwest’s hottest teams, Northwestern and Akron, lost in overtime. No. 17 Northwestern was 89 seconds away from escaping from Northern Illinois with a victory Wednesday afternoon, but lost, 2-1, on a pair of goals by Marcus McCarty. No. 22 Akron’s 10-game unbeaten streak was snapped when it fell 1-0 to Michigan in double overtime.
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
Irish cruise as Big East hits crunch time
[UPDATE] Notre Dame remained the only unbeaten team in Big East Conference play with a 3-0 win over Pitt on Wednesday night. Notre Dame leads the Big East’s Blue Division by four points (23-19) over Connecticut. St. John’s is first, one point ahead of Louisville and South Florida, in the Red Division thanks to the Red Storm’s 1-0 win over Rutgers and DePaul’s 2-1 win over Louisville.