Wednesday's soccer news starts with the always questionable financial situations for the 92 clubs in English professional soccer. Start at the bottom or the top, and the stories are similar relative to scale. Too many businesses not set up particularly well and dependent on maintaining or increasing the level of incoming revenue. Any decrease destabilizes the business, a serious concern in leagues . . .
The 2018 and 2022 World Cup bids again at issue
Tuesday's soccer news starts with a trip back in time to December 2, 2010. That's when FIFA surprised many by naming Russia and Qatar as the hosts for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. As soon as then FIFA president Sepp Blatter read the names of the hosts, outrage ensued. That's continued over the years as multiple members of FIFA's executive committee ended up facing criminal charges and convictions . . .
6 MLS Cups worth rewatching
By Clemente Lisi – NEW YORK, NY (Apr 6, 2020) US Soccer Players – Major League Soccer has produced a number of memorable matches over its quarter of a century. That includes the playoffs, designed to increase the intensity and raise the level of play. If all goes as planned, that concludes in a competitive MLS Cup. Major League Soccer decided from the beginning to follow the North American norm of . . .
Soccer without fans
Monday's soccer news starts with the push to resume the club schedule in Europe. The likeliest way that would happen is playing games without fans, something that was already occurring before the suspension of the schedule. Perhaps the only thing stranger than playing games in empty stadiums is not playing at all, the reality for sports leagues around the world right now. Finding a way to get the . . .
The 2020 US Open Cup and a test of US Soccer’s will
By Charles Boehm – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 3, 2020) US Soccer Players - American soccer has experienced ample adversity, strife, and disruption over the years. Leagues have folded. The game's place in the nation's sporting culture has ebbed and flowed. Through it all, perhaps the only constant has been the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup, the longest-running competition in the nation and the second-oldest . . .
What American soccer is doing without games on the schedule
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 3, 2020) US Soccer Players - Soccer leagues are built to hold soccer competitions. Soccer clubs are meant to play in them. When there's no soccer due to a global pandemic that forces restrictions on large gatherings, it pushes leagues and clubs into an existential crisis. Off seasons are one thing. They're built into the calendar, serving as a chance to rest . . .
Belgium and the Champions League
Friday's soccer news starts with UEFA not at all happy that Belgium went ahead and canceled the rest of their season. The Pro League still has time to reconsider their decision to keep the table as it is, sacrificing the final game of the regular season and giving up on their convoluted playoffs. The Netherlands is also considering calling time on the Eredivisie, a league with two teams tied at . . .
The Premier League’s financial picture
Thursday's soccer news starts with Premier League players not exactly embracing the idea that the league's clubs are facing enough financial uncertainty to warrant reducing payments. A Wednesday meeting between England's leagues and the Professional Footballers Association ended with the PFA reportedly giving advice to players and agents not to agree to league plans to reduce wages. This comes . . .
Major League Soccer’s anniversaries
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 1, 2020) US Soccer Players - Year 25 of Major League Soccer isn't exactly going to plan. The outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic necessitated a shutdown of sports almost everywhere, forcing MLS to put a celebration of a quarter-century of top-flight professional soccer on hold. When the games return, the league can properly celebrate reaching the milestone . . .
UEFA tries to move forward
Wednesday's soccer news starts with UEFA meeting in part to try and determine a timescale for completing the 2019-20 European season. If this sounds like a topic on endless repeat these days, you're not alone. European soccer's attempt to chart a path through the uncertainty of a global pandemic carries with it the significant constraint of having no clear idea when it will be safe and in the . . .
