By J Hutcherson (Dec 3, 2019) US Soccer Players - I spent 22 of the first 23 years of my life living just outside of Charlotte, North Carolina. I went to college there. My first paid job in soccer was there. I'd like to think I know the area, but the last time I visited my family it was another rendition of a not all that interesting game of "that used to be here." A lot can change in a couple of . . .
Once again, MLS gets creative with the calendar
The soccer news starts with MLS not content to try and copy an old idea in professional soccer. Teams play each other home and away, and that's the extent of the season. Instead, MLS is going with a new system in 2020 that will see some teams not play each other at all. In a league with 26 teams and 34 games, MLS is favoring its conferences. Inter Miami officially joined the Eastern Conference . . .
Inter Miami in Fort Lauderdale
The soccer news starts with a familiar MLS story. The league expands to Miami and ends up playing in Fort Lauderdale. Stop us if you've heard this one before, but the old Fusion scenario is now playing out again with David Beckham's Inter Miami. We already knew that the team would start life in a rebuilt version of the Fusion's old home Lockhart Stadium. Now, the team is talking about their . . .
Sacramento FC joins MLS
The soccer news starts with the official announcement that Sacramento FC will join MLS in 2022. The league's 29th team leaves one spot open in the current round of expansion. Whether MLS stops at 30 teams is an open question, but that's the same number of teams in Major League Baseball and the National Basketball Association. The NHL will be at 32 teams when Seattle begins play in the 2021-22 . . .
The render version of MLS
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Sep 25, 2019) US Soccer Players - If you subscribe to the right news feeds, you're probably aware of the plans to build a new stadium for the Columbus Crew in the Arena District of Ohio's capital city. New renderings of the building hit the internet on Tuesday to coincide with the team taking season-ticket deposits for the stadium's planned 2021 opening. The . . .
Another step forward for Austin FC
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Sep 11, 2019) US Soccer Players - On Monday in Austin, Texas, a group of luminaries from local government, soccer, and even Hollywood gathered for the groundbreaking ceremony of Austin FC's future home. The event marks the beginning of the construction process on a venue that seemed impossible as recently as 18 months ago. Back then, Austin FC didn't exist beyond a . . .
Nashville’s DP move
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Aug 28, 2019) US Soccer Players - FC Cincinnati is currently suffering through a painful MLS expansion season. They're dead last in the combined league table with a -37 goal differential. FCC has already changed course in year one, firing coach Alan Koch 11 games into the season. The club also hired a new general manager midseason to replace club president Jeff . . .
St Louis and MLS expectations
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Aug 21, 2019) US Soccer Players - Don Garber's whistle-stop expansion tour was in St Louis on Tuesday. The MLS commissioner announced that the city will be home to the newest addition to the ever-growing list of teams. If you're counting at home, this is lucky number 28. The as-yet-unnamed club begins play in 2022. That launch date that gives the ownership in St . . .
The stadium game hasn’t changed in MLS
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Aug 2, 2019) US Soccer Players - MLS commissioner Don Garber's talking points around the 2019 MLS All-Star Game mostly gleamed with positivity. Major League Soccer is growing by leaps and bounds, adding two teams in 2020 and another in 2021. An announcement of two new teams appears to be in the works. By the time the next World Cup rolls around, the top division . . .
Raising the price of MLS expansion
The soccer news starts with MLS floating a new number for the all-in approach to MLS expansion. It's not just the expansion fee. It's making sure a new club can afford the stadium and whatever else is necessary to get a team up and running. According to MLS commissioner Don Garber in an interview with ESPN's Jeff Carlisle, the full cost for the next two expansion teams is "between $550 million and . . .
