Tag: Major League Soccer
Sounders Practice Notes [01-22-19]: Welcome Back
Welcome back everyone. After one of the longest offseason for the Seattle Sounders in recent memory, the team stepped out on the field at a chilly Starfire for the first practice of 2019. The obituaries for 2018 have been done Ad nauseam, so it's time to look forward. There were 40-some odd 1st team, draft ...
Seattle Sounders, Seattle Reign partner with Zulily
Big new partnership announcement, as the Sounders and Reign have a new kit partner in Zulily. Design looks simple and should compliment the jerseys well. I personally have no real opinion on the choice of sponsor; if they're happy with it, good. Had the chance to ask Sounders owner Adrian Hanauer a few questions. Of ...
My Latest for The Athletic: A Hot Time in Bridgeview
Check out my latest story for The Athletic: A Chicago Fire supporter has sued the Village of Bridgeview and a number of individuals including Chicago Fire President Nelson Rodriguez, alleging conspiracy, malicious prosecution and violation of civil rights related to an incident which occurred in May of 2018. It's a pretty wild story, so take ...
Transfer of Christian Pulisic Again Raises Specter of Solidarity Payments
Shortly after Borussia Dortmund confirmed the transfer of Christian Pulisic to Chelsea for a fee of €64 million, Will Parchman noted in a tweet that PA Classics, the youth development club that in part developed the starlet, stands to lose about $740k in solidarity payments. Setting aside the fact that there is just about no ...
UPDATE: With Sale Agreed to in Principle, and Dismissal of the Modell Lawsuit, SaveTheCrew Enters Final Stages
UPDATE: As expected, an agreement in principle to "sell" the Columbus Crew to the Haslam/Edwards group was announced today. The official "sale" is expected to be finalized in January, with the new owners taking control of the team at the beginning of the year. The end is almost here. The announced dismissal of the Modell ...
Finish Line
When the announcement came that MLS was negotiating with the Haslam/Edwards group, I reported that a source had told me that the deal was "largely done." And that was true, inasmuch as a buyer had been identified, and potential land located (and essentially approved by MLS). But with deals of this nature, it's the fine ...
Memorandum of Understanding Released in Advance of Pivotal Columbus City Council Vote
Tonight sometime between 5 p.m. and 11 p.m. local time, the Columbus City Council will take up a vote to ratify the proposal to renovate Mapfre Stadium. This is but one piece of the puzzle to ultimately Save The Crew. The final piece involves the construction of a new stadium to house the team. The prospective ...
SaveTheCrew Announcement Live-Blog
Might as well do it live (!) and cover the announcement! Reports are we'll see an announcement on new stadium plans and training facilities, among other things. As I reported last night, Austin looks to have the lease agreement to be done this week, with an announcement next week if all goes well. This isn't ...
Judge Brown Denies Motion to Dismiss; Stays Lawsuit Proceedings Until Further Notice [Updated]
Updates: I just did a Periscope talking about the ruling. Check it out! Read the entire ruling.Download Read MLS' reaction to the decision. The shoes continue to drop. Alongside the question of when there may be an announcement that the Crew have been sold to local ownership, there is still the question of how the ...
SaveDTheCrew Smoke Signals
Serious rumblings that we could get a formal SaveDTheCrew announcement this week. After the chaos on October 12, I reported the deal was "largely done." Of course, that didn't mean all of the signatures have been affixed to the proper documents, or that MLS was planning one of their customary events to announce the sale. ...
MLS Allowing More Charter Flights Seems Overdue, but Would Teams Actually Use Them?
Photo used with permission from Max Aquino Photography Eagle-eyed readers who read my story on the tentative changes to the MLS schedule, noticed a little tidbit related to the implications from additional midweek games. The long and short of it was: Additional mid-week games will put additional stresses on players, which may require MLS loosening ...
Seattle Sounders Wrap Up 2018; Look Ahead to 2019 Season
The Seattle Sounders held their end-of-the-year press conference to put a bow on the 2018 season, and look forward to 2019. It was a fairly casual affair, as Coach Brian Schmetzer, General Manager and President of Soccer Garth Lagerwey, and Sporting Director Chris Henderson held court for the assembled media. There were several notable bits ...
Ch-Ch-Changes
My next story is up at The Athletic, and it's a doozy. Big changes are in store for MLS as they prepare for the 2019 season. Per the story, we can expect that the date of MLS Cup is moved from December to October, and some additional midweek games. There is (way) more in the ...
Sure Looks Like the Columbus Crew are All But Official for 2019
H/t to DrDeckle on Reddit. Some people just can't keep secrets. The offseason planning for 2019 is well under way, with MLS releasing their offseason calendar, and teams who have been eliminated from the playoffs planning for next year. Part of the planning for the 2019 season includes preseason camps. These days, teams usually escape ...
Cat’s Out of the Bag: There Will Not be an MLS Team Playing in Austin in 2019
Forbes is out with their valuations for each Major League Soccer team, and buried in the story are some quotes from an interview with MLS Commissioner Don Garber. Aside from the usual platitudes, there was a discussion about expansion. With Cincinnati coming online in 2018, Garber was asked about the future of MLS expansion. That ...
2018 Seattle Sounders Business Meeting [Live Blog]
Hello from the Ninety! I'm down here covering the Sounders Business Meeting. Not sure what kind of news we'll get out this, but it's typically interesting. I'll come with any interesting tidbits that come out of the session. 7:05 P.M.: Meeting is under way. Interesting that Drew Carey is here in person. 7:16 P.M.: Adrian ...
Exclusive: With 2018 Season Over, What’s Next For the Columbus Crew?
The Columbus Crew suffered a tough defeat at the hands of the New York Red Bulls Sunday evening, ending their 2018 season after losing 3-1 on aggregate in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. But the good news for fans of the club is that the 2019 season is just around the corner, a fact that a ...
The Vote: SoccerSuffrage2018 [Live Blog]
Well, here we are. The votes that will decide the future...of MLS expansion/relocation. Sort of. Polls are already closing around the country, and for those of you who won't be hiding under your beds, or drinking yourselves silly. I'll be following the important votes impacting MLS expansion and/or relocation. A short summary: MIAMI: At stake ...
Seattle Sounders @ Portland Timbers Western Conference Semi-Final [Leg 1]
Made the (surprisingly quick) drive down I5 for leg one of the Western Conference Semi-Final between the Sounders and the Timbers. Should be a hell of a game; the Sounders are at close to full strength, with only Jordan Morris and Felix Chenkam definitely out for the away side. Thanks to the Sounder At Heart ...
Sounders Practice Notes [11-03-18]
It was a quick practice for the Sounders today, as they prepare to head down I5 this afternoon ahead of tomorrow's game versus the Portland Timbers. With an early start tomorrow (2:30 p.m. PST), the team elected to stay overnight in Portland. That start time has been the source of some consternation, as this playoff ...
