By J Hutcherson (Jun 15, 2017) US Soccer Players - The NBA finals came to a close this week with many people feeling that the league blew an entire season of games and four rounds of playoffs to get to the obvious conclusion. We all knew who the best team was in October. There's more to this than what we now expect in the era of hot take sports coverage. It's asking fundamental questions about a . . .
What did we learn from the 2016-17 Europa League season?
By J Hutcherson (Jun 13, 2017) US Soccer Players - The 2016-16 Premier League season lacked the drama, the underdog story, and the pressure. Instead, it was a season of pragmatism from several clubs. For Chelsea, that meant picking up enough points for the title without necessarily convincing anybody that they were the strongest team in the league. For Manchester United, it meant sacrificing the . . .
The situation for the USMNT
By J Hutcherson (Jun 8, 2017) US Soccer Players - For those of you that aren't into the stories of old bands, you might have skipped Amazon's new Grateful Dead documentary. There's a line in it that resonates for what's happening later tonight in Denver. In response to "who's in charge?", a Grateful Dead roadie came up with a great answer. "The situation is the boss." That's been true for the . . .
Soccer’s Super Bowl
By J Hutcherson (Jun 6, 2017) US Soccer Players - The FIFA Club World Cup final isn't fooling anybody. The game that determines the best team in world soccer for a given season is the Champions League final. UEFA reigns supreme in world club soccer for a reason. They pay more and they do a better job of exploiting that commodity. That's the polite way of looking at rosters by domestic origin and . . .
Once again, it’s San Diego telling an MLS story
By J Hutcherson (May 25, 2017) US Soccer Players - The MLS expansion process has never been what most would consider straightforward. The first round early in the league's existence was to answer a simple issue. Chicago missed the launch and Miami put a team in what most people assumed was a soccer hotbed. MLS addressed both of those for the 1998 season, quickly turning their attention to San . . .
The Premier League barely quits while it’s ahead
By J Hutcherson (May 23, 2017) US Soccer Players - There's an old line about any club sport staying away just long enough for you to remember how much you cared. Even the short run season in the National Football League has enough games and enough opportunities for fans to decide they have something else to do with their Sundays. Maybe not better, but also not suffering along with a 4 and 8 team . . .
Chelsea’s Championship
By J Hutcherson (May 16, 2017) US Soccer Players - Chelsea celebrated their 2016-17 Premier League title with a late winner against Watford on Monday. It was the kind of game that was entertaining if not exactly a validation of what Chelsea did this season. To their critics, and there are many, that was winning a title by beating teams like Watford. To their supporters, and again many, it was . . .
The Premier League map
By J Hutcherson (May 9, 2017) US Soccer Players - There's been plenty of talk about the pro sports footprint in North America. A league like MLS has spent considerable time trying to expand theirs, but even the bigger leagues with 30 teams have plenty to consider. The NFL opened the Jacksonville market and moved a team to Nashville and nobody followed. The National Hockey League moved to Raleigh . . .
Spending Premier League money
By J Hutcherson (Apr 20, 2017) US Soccer Players - There's a long tradition in professional sports in trying to figure out how the owners make their money. In America, the focus shifted from owners solely committed to their club to entrepreneurs and corporations with a variety of interests. Sometimes, that includes a variety of teams. The National Football League used to have strict rules about . . .
Foreign ownership in Europe
By J Hutcherson (Apr 11, 2017) US Soccer Players - The American ownership was in Swansea last week to see their investment in person. The club is currently struggling at the wrong end of the Premier League, potentially creating a different scenario for their owners. Instead of seeing what they can build in the topflight, they could be spending a season trying to regain that status. In 2017, . . .
