[AMERICANS IN MEXICO] Four days after U.S. product Edgar Castillo, who has dual citizenship, debuted for the Mexican national team, he helped Santos Laguna become the last Mexican League team with a perfect record with a 1-0 win over defending champion Pachuca. Both teams came into the game with a 3-0-0 record. Castillo went the full 90 in all four Santos’ wins. Texas-born Jose Francisco Torres, a 19-year-old, went the full 90 in his second start of the season for Pachuca.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Beasley gets his first Scottish Premier League goal
[VIDEO] Making his third Scottish Premier League appearance, American winger DaMarcus Beasley notched his first goal since joining Glasgow Rangers in the offseason. In the 2-1 win over Kilmarnock, which keeps Rangers’ perfect after four games, Beasley scored in the 52nd minute after chasing down a loose ball and lofting it home from six yards. Jean-Claude Darcheville scored the winner after a Beasley effort popped the ball into his path in the 76th minute.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Second Division wins for Yanks
[AMERICANS IN GERMANY]. Defender Gregg Berhalter and attacker Josh Wolff helped 1860 München to a 3-0 win over 1899 Hoffenheim to keep their team on top of the German Second Division with a perfect record after three games. For fourth-place Mainz, 18-year-old defender Neven Subotic made his third start of the season in a 4-1 win over fellow 2006-07 relegation victim Borussia Moenchengladbach. In the First Division, both Americans who saw action came out on the losing end.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Keller starts, Dempsey scores for Fulham
[AMERICANS IN ENGLAND] Clint Dempsey, after three appearances off the bench, got his first start of the season for Fulham and scored in the 6th minute in a 2-1 loss to Aston Villa. Goalkeeper Kasey Keller, signed last week, also started, as did defender Carlos Bocanegra. Fulham’s fourth American, Brian McBride, is sidelined until December after undergoing surgery for a dislocated knee cap.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Win over 10-man Belgium keeps USA alive at U-17 World Cup
[VIDEO] A 2-0 win over Belgium in its third and final first-round was enough to send the USA to the second round of the U-17 World Cup despite having lost its first two games, to Tajikistan and Tunisia. The USA, which got goals through Kirk Urso and Mykell Bates, faces Germany in the round of 16 on Thursday. The Americans played with a man advantage for 54 minutes after Belgium’s Christian Benteke was red-carded for a high slide tackle on Sheanon Williams.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Red-hot Rapids add to Galaxy woes
[MLS WEEKEND REPORT] New England and D.C. United pull away from the pack atop the Eastern Conference; Toronto sets futility record; Red Bulls’ keeper Jon Conway gives up long-distance own goal; the Fire edges closer to the playoff octet by winning again, thanks to Cuauhtemoc Blanco; the 10-man Crew escapes from Houston with a point; Colorado pulls even with Columbus by rolling over the sorry Galaxy; and Chivas USA continued its dominance at home. Soccer America’s Ridge Mahoney recaps the weekend’s MLS action …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
“You try to imagine the hysteria surrounding his arrival but when he’s here it’s so different. It’s not been easy. It’s been kind of testing, to be honest. At the start of the year there was so much anticipation that we would win every game and David wasn’t even here then. He wasn’t here for the start of the season either. Then we had injuries and it was: ‘Why aren’t you winning?’ Obviously we need to.”
— Los Angeles coach Frank Yallop in a Times of London article headlined “Klinsmann tipped for leading role in LA.” Southern California resident Juergen Klinsmann served as L.A. Galaxy technical adviser in 2004 before taking over as coach of Germany’s 2006 World Cup team. On Friday, the Galaxy named assistant coach Paul Bravo Director of Soccer. (Times)
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
U.S. women hammer Finland in final tune-up
Shannon Boxx scored her fifth goal in as many games at Home Depot Center as the U.S. women completed their preparation matches for the Women’s World Cup by thumping Finland, 4-0, on Saturday. Boxx, who grew up in nearby Torrance, Calif., returned to action earlier this year after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament and medial collateral ligament in her right knee during a training session on July 17, 2006.
Posted inSoccer Business Insider, Story
Sponsorships and the RSVP Rule
It’s time to get real about the numbers we use to invite potential sponsors to the soccer “party.” Our industry’s reputation suffers every time a sponsorship proposal is built on claims that are not delivered.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Platini Breathes Life into Domestic Cup Competitions
Thanks to UEFA President Michel Platini, winning the F.A. Cup might mean something once again. The Frenchman has proposed to make the domestic cup winner from Europe’s biggest leagues an automatic qualifier for the UEFA Champions League; UEFA will consider the matter next week. Platini’s original intention was to reduce the number of entrants from […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Philadelphia Confident of Expansion Success
Major League Soccer will be doling out a pair of franchises before the end of the year, and Philadelphia officials believe their city is close to being one of them. As Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Bob Ford points out, Philly, with one of the largest markets and a great sports tradition, has long been a target […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Things Get Uglier for the Galaxy
Chivas USA’s 3-0 second half drubbing of the L.A. Galaxy capped off what was a decidedly ugly evening for the David Beckham Show: the ill-tempered affair was marked by ugly defending, ugly attacking and the ugliest of team brawls involving the man himself. A “crude” foul against Beckham literally kicked it all off as the […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
New Ronaldo is “Like a Model”
AC Milan insists that Ronaldo (the “original” Ronaldo that is) will be back to his best for the Rossoneri this season, after doctors discovered a condition that has been affecting his form-and his weight. Called hypothyroidism, the condition is caused by insufficient production of hormones by the thyroid gland and can lead to weight gain, […]
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Insider
Is an elite team right for your child?
Committing to travel-team soccer can have a profound impact on family life.
Posted inSoccer on TV., Story
Soccer on TV
The Italian Serie A (Fox) and Spanish La Liga (Gol TV) seasons kick off this weekend. There’s six MLS games and the USL-2 championship. In their final home game before departing for the Women’s World Cup in China, the U.S. women face Finland on Saturday. The U.S. boys fight for survival in the U-17 World Cup very early on Sunday morning. Americans abroad with televised games this weekend include Tim Howard (Everton), Brad Friedel (Blackburn), Edgar Castillo (Santos), Michael Orozco (San Luis) and Steve Cherundolo (Hannover).
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Still hope for U.S. U-17s after second loss
[VIDEO] The USA lost its second straight game at the U-17 World Cup, falling 3-1 to Tunisia in a game that featured three penalty-kick goals. The Americans, who opened with a 4-3 loss to Tajikistan, meet Belgium in their third and final group game on Sunday (2:45 am ET, live, ESPNU & Galavision; ESPNU rebroadcast at noon ET.). A win over Belgium, which beat Tajikistan, 1-0, could enable the Americans to advance with help from other results.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
U.S. women face Finland in World Cup sendoff
The USA plays its last home game before departing for the Women’s World Cup in China when it hosts Finland in a friendly Saturday at the Home Depot Center (ESPN2, live, 9:30 pm ET).
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Richmond hosts Harrisburg in USL-2 final
The Richmond Kickers defend their USL-2 crown when they host the Harrisburg City Islanders in the 2007 final on Saturday (Fox Soccer Channel, delay, 10:00 pm ET).
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Beckham back but Galindo grabs the glory
Not for the first time, the man who’d survived the most arduous journey to reach Home Depot Center stole the show. Maykel Galindo came to Chivas USA via Seattle and all the piles of paperwork necessary to properly process a Cuban defector who’d left his national team 2 ½ years ago during the Gold Cup. He put away two goals of exquisite class as Chivas USA (10-6-3) embarrassed Los Angeles, 3-0, to cast the Galaxy’s playoff hopes deeper in doubt. David Beckham lasted the full 90 after going the distance the day before in England’s loss to Germany. It was Beckham’s third full game in a six days, a stretch that began with Saturday’s loss in New York, and he was limping by the game’s end.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
D.C. aims to add to Toronto woes
[MLS WEEKEND TV PREVIEW] Five intra-conference games are featured this weekend, with the only crossover game sending Columbus to Western leader Houston. In the East, D.C. heads north to Canada where FC Toronto could set a league record in scoring futility, first-place New England hosts New York, and Kansas City plays Chicago for the second time in four days. Chivas USA stays at HDC to play Real Salt Lake, and the Galaxy Futility Tour heads to Colorado.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
“If Chelsea is naive and pure then I’m Little Red Riding Hood.”
— Liverpool coach Rafa Benitez on Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho‘s comments that Chelsea players are “pure and they are clean. We don’t have divers, we don’t have violent people.” (BBC)
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Brazilian ball wizard Denilson joins FC Dallas
Denilson, who in 1998 set a transfer fee record with a $40 million move from Sao Paulo to Spanish club Real Betis, has been signed by FC Dallas. The 29-year-old, who played in 12 World Cup games for Brazil in its 1998 runner-up finish and its 2002 title win, arrives from Saudi Arabian club Al-Nasr. Denilson becomes the fourth World Cup winner in MLS. The other three all played for Red Bulls/Metros: Lothar Matthaeus (Germany 1990), Branco (Brazil 1994) and Youri Djorkaeff (France 1998).
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Ronaldinho, Robinho, Kaka named to U.S.-bound Brazil squad
[ROSTER] The Brazil roster named by Coach Dunga for its friendly against the USA in Chicago Sept. 9 includes Barcelona star Ronaldinho. More than 20,000 tickets have been sold for the game between this year’s Copa America and Gold Cup champions. Also in the squad are Kaka, who helped AC Milan lift the 2007 European Champions League crown, and Real Madrid’s Robinho, who scored six goals at the Copa America in July.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Kasey Keller’s career back on track
Kasey Keller, who has had the longest stint in European leagues for an American player, has signed with English Premier League club Fulham. The 37-year-old Keller, a member of the USA’s 1990, 1998, 2002 and 2006 World Cup squads, began his pro career with English second-tier club Millwall in 1991. He has played 364 league games in England for Millwall, Leicester, Tottenham and Southampton, had a two-year stint with Spanish La Liga club Rayo Vallecano, and spent the last two-and-half seasons German First Division club Borussia Moenchengladbach.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Brian McBride out for four months
Fulham’s American striker Brian McBride, who started the season as captain of the English Premier League club, is expected to be sidelined for up two four months. McBride, who retired from the U.S. national team after the 2006 World Cup, suffered a dislocated knee cap after scoring for Fulham on Saturday and has undergone surgery.