Major League Soccer

PS Fire 1, United 0 at the half.

We've all totally lost interest because our glorious hero David Beckham is no longer involved. Sorry.

Yeah, that's right, my team kicked his broke ass out on Sunday.

Any excuse to watch this again.

is blanco playing? soccernet isn't working for me right now

Golaso de De Rosario

Blanco started, but he hasn't had much of a game thus far.

i'm marginally interested. when my town, seattle, gets a team in '09 i'm sure i'll be way more into it

Some friends of mine saw (the US) Chivas this last weekend. Said it was straight bollocks.

Welcome, shit-talking British people.

The game ended 1-0. DC put in their goal-scorers in the second half but they didn't do much of anything either. Leg 2 is in a week in DC.

Also, it occured to me that Brits ought to know "bollocks" football when they see it, considering their national team.

Yeah, the British National Football Team has a long and varied history.

"Brits" = the English. No Scots would call themselves "Brits".

Sorry, you're right.

First round:

Chivas over KC
Revs over NY
Houston over Dallas
Fire over DC

After that, I don't know.

Any excuse to watch this again.

Great free kick, not sure about this "upper 90" term instead of the traditional "postage stamp" or even "top corner".

Is that Tim Lovejoy MLS show still on?

Conference finals are set:

✧✧✧@✧.✧.
K.C.@Houston

NE looked assy in their 1-0 win over New York. Aside from the fact that the Fire have to play in their huge, empty stadium, on turf, I think they have a great shot of breaking the playoff curse vs. the Revs. Houston should roll over KC.

Stupid ILX, those aren't email addresses

Chi AT N.E.

So the season starts tomorrow, does anyone care?

Yes, I'm going to New Jersey to watch like 7 hours of MLS tomorrow, since our first game isn't until Apr 5.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/powerranking?cc=5901

lol: Riquelme to MLS?

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-spw-soccer9apr09,1,6870991.story

Similarly, if Riquelme plays for Argentina in its June 8 friendly against the U.S. at Giants Stadium, all it will take for him to reject any move is one look at the dreadful, patched-up, threadbare, NFL-logoed carpet that passes for a soccer field at the Meadowlands.

ahahahahaha

Seattle Alliance, Seattle Republic and Seattle FC beaten out by popular opinion. New Team:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/ABPub/2008/04/07/2004333628.jpg

meet the new team
same as the old team

with an FC!

Dan kind of sold me on Emerald City FC, I don't think it got a fair chance...but good for them, anyway. Nice work chucking the proverbial monkey wrench in the league's plans.

Although I did read a decent rejoinder from a Seattle fan somewhere who said they were happy that E.C.F.C. didn't get picked b/c they'd be spared all the teasing and the stupid jokes (especially when KC came to town).

even though i voted for just seattle fc, i'm happy with the name.

pretty uncringeworthy as far as u.s. professional soccer team names go, historically speaking, anyhow

Didn't Chicago almost get called something really lame?

Oh god, I'm not sure since I haven't followed the team for that long, but I remember reading a reference somewhere online to calling the team the "Rhythm"? GAG

YES, that's what I was thinking of. Can you imagine? SO MANY JOEKS, I CANNOT DECIDE

The K.C. Wiz has to be stupidest ever, even taking the NASL into account.

Dallas Burn & Tampa Bay Mutiny pretty close behind

still, i don't sneeze at their rhythm method-inspired offsides trap

all football strategies should take cues from dodgy birth control methods

like the d.c. united 7-up douche corner kick formation

worst logo
http://web.mlsnet.com/imgs/logos/t102_md.gif
it looks like the label on some weird 90s era mirco brewed soda.

DC are douches, that is for sure.

i first read that as "micc10 brewed soda"

step away from computer, dell

but yeah, that's a fitting description

either that, or the failed irish-amer hip hop band that lost it to house of pain

best NASL team logo

ESPN talking heads going off on streamers being tossed at games:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8pgexephJM&eurl=http://theoffsiderules.blogspot.com/

i was watching that game on the telly. i thought the streamers fiasco was pretty funny. Actually it was a pretty decent game, although I'm perfectly aware that the "open" style of play was down to no defending on either side whatsoever.

Whoever the guy in that video was ranting is a total fuckwit.

My girlfriend and I were thinking about going to a Revolution match this season. Any suggestions on which? Neither of us follow the MLS closely. LA is out as its sold out.

HAI GUISE I M GOING TO DC TOMORROW. Wish ush luck.

LOL:

In a pair of sweeping changes brought about by a Major League Soccer season in meltdown, the Los Angeles Galaxy today removed Alexi Lalas as team president and general manager and Ruud Gullit as coach.

In its official statement on the changes, AEG, which owns the team, said that Gullit had resigned "for personal reasons" and that Lalas' contract was up at the end of the year and that the team decided to part company now rather than wait.

that's what you get for spending all your salary cap (plus some lol) on three players

I'm so happy, really. They deserved the boot.

WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
LOVE YOU
WE LOVE YOU
WE LOVE YOU
AND WHERE YOU PLAY WE'LL FOLLOW
WE'LL FOLLOW
WE'LL FOLLOW

Congrats to NY for completely stuffing DC yesterday and making a lot of people very happy.

Lalas is such a tool, really. I remember hearing him say, in all earnestness, that the Gals would be the first MLS "superclub".

unrelated but lolzy imo

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3280/2747960611_1768d99d5e.jpg

Ned we've got the Gals on Thursday night next week, should be a good one.

unrelated but lolzy imo

Hahah.

I remember hearing him say, in all earnestness, that the Gals would be the first MLS "superclub".

headinhands.gif

Please, by all means, do what needs doing next Thursday.

Do you follow the league, Ned? That brings us to what, 3-4 ilxor MLS fans? 5 next year when jergins has a team to cheer for in Seattle!

Lalas has been a tool since at least 1998, when he was briefly a MetroStar. Then he came back nearly a decade later to sell us out to Red Bull, uh I mean, help the team "transition".

Lalas has been a tool since at least 1998

Oh I'd take it back four years. I remember when I first saw him I was all "Who IS this Spin Doctors-looking MFer?" (Hardly an original sentiment, of course.)

The B|gS0cc3r dorks have been speculating that Gullit, at least, was going to leave since he put his house up for sale a couple of weeks ago. Really, though, it's not his fault. Lalas spent stupidly, and even though the league looks the other way at their salary cap issues, they still can't defend worth a shit (in a league known for lousy D to begin with).

major, major Beckham/LA lolz to be had here

And I'm going to say the same thing: the only flaw in this glorious quilt of hilarity is that Hitler is obviously a DC United fan.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaand we're back! With a surprise goal...FROM OUR KEEPER.

keeper goals are teh best :)

he actually scored in his first match ever haha wow.

Yeah, Cepero was the hero of the day even though honestly that's a pretty ungraceful goal compared to, say, any of JPA's.

I watched the youtube of that last night, pretty amazing. Who says playing on turf over concrete doesn't pay off once in a while?

I'm dragging ass after a weekend of MLSing myself after traveling to Toronto with Chicago supporters this weekend. Despite only spending about 24hrs there, it's a nice city and has a notch higher intensity atmosphere at game time than what I'm used to. Pretty amazing swing on the extremes of behavior there, from being presented with a banner by a TFC fan group to having small objects thrown at us from outside the stadium.

Also some people decided taunting us by chanting "we have healthcare" would be pretty funny.

In their defense, that is actually pretty funny.

See you on Thursday! Not really. But y'know metaphorically.

Is JPA still running things? I love that guy

Playoffs start tonight! FUCK NEW ENGLAND

Chicago Fire best goals 2008

I can't bring myself to watch that. I'll be sitting in the cold on Saturday, though, to watch us get slaughtered by You're Just A Street in Manhattan.

Hey didn't NJRB beat them like 3-1 at home though? That turf's got to be good for something.

It's good for bad bounces, just ask Cepero!

No, okay, I'm just priming myself for the worst. It's not like I'm going to the next leg in TX, or probably even the resulting road trips if we go through.

woah, blanco scores some screamers there

Sounders sign Swedish star Ljungberg
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/soccer/385427_sounders29.html

people that know more than i can say whether this is a good or bad move, but i'm heartened to see them trying

Those blue and green uniforms are the colors of a Nerf toy.

XBOX yech

a cliche by now (you can do it in FIFA) but still my fave blanco moment

Seattle sounds like it's going to be for real next year, or at least the second coming of TFC in terms of popularity. They've already had like 16-some thousand season tickets sold, plus their own underwear model star player, plus Casey Keller in goal. Freddy Ljungberg could be a good thing, but they're playing on field turf at Quest, so his knees could take a beating.

xpost I saw him do the Cuauhtemina against Columbus, always a treat.

The best Blanco moments are all from the Mexican League. The greatest of all time is at 3:17 of this video, but they're all hilarious.

glol@banderillero, temo arana & 3:17! he's a real innovator!

at 2:41 is that guy doing a nazi salute (replete w/hitler mustache)?!

3:17 echoes:

Signing Ljungberg will most likely prove to be a terrible move considering he's the most injury prone player ever and hasn't been decent since like 03/04

at 2:41 is that guy doing a nazi salute (replete w/hitler mustache)?!

You mean the goalkeeper? He's mocking Blanco's usual goal celebration pose.

http://www.mediotiempo.com/images/noticias/36193.jpg

oh, slightly less awesomeoffensive

I'm going to Columbus on Thursday. Fuck Columbus!

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3195/3017637361_19a027db71_o.jpg

We all hate the yellow football team
The yellow football team
The yellow football team

Anyway, I didn't see if but I heard good things about our win over You're-just-a-street-in-Manhattan on Sunday. Staving off crushing defeat for one more week, eh Metro?

I came home from the grocery store, turned on Telefutura, and couldn't believe my eyes. And it was still 1-0!

I mean, more power to them, Houston is tough, but it really does bring to light how weird the playoff system is.

Some blame also due to the NY team itself for ridic inconsistency. Because like the little girl of the poem: when they're good, they play tolerable football, but when they're bad, they're horrid.

BRAD GUZAN

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/45184000/jpg/_45184946_45184841.jpg

BRAD GUZAN

http://img.skysports.com/08/01/218x298/Brad_Guzan_624838.jpg

BRAD GUZAN

I read he played well in the UEFA cup last week! He hasn't balded enough to be a starting American goalie in England yet, though.

He was a man possessed, basically won the game himself

He's only 24, he has plenty of time to lose his hair and learn Brad Senior's secrets

Then Brad Senior has his farewell season at Houston before being ceremonially cast in bronze ("Tipping Over 25-Yard Bullard Thunderbolt") and launched into space so that the Martians may gaze in wonder...

Both Brads are members of the "not good enough to sign for Celtic" club (think Jr was a work permit issue, but Sr was knocked back in favour of, er, Gordon Marshall - we had Shay Given on trial at the same time, and sent him packing as well).

I would just like to point out that I was (mostly) otm in this other thread:

Joey Barton accepts arrest as an occupational hazard and presumably accepts imprisonment in the same casual manner: 2008 football off-season thread
Joey Barton accepts arrest as an occupational hazard and presumably accepts imprisonment in the same casual manner: 2008 football off-season thread

Columbus ends up winning it all in the final against Laurel's RBNY. Personally, I think the best thing about MLS cup this year is this picture of Alexi Lalas.

http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n119/bahns82/PB231045.jpg

Hel-LOOOOOO, Seattle!

See you in March, ya bastards.

Jergins, that means you. Are you going to go out for the Sounders?

The main reason I'll watch a sport on TV is to see the best in the world do what they do. Hence, NBA fan, not NCAA bball. I'd watch Euro leagues stuff but fuck a "major league" soccer.

Hey thanks for that insightful commentary!

Clearly a team player at heart.

Tottenham won't ever put 4 past Arsenal: A rolling Carling Cup thread
Liverpool won't be on dis ting 2008/09

"a sport" = the red red litmus of "no sport in soul"

you're welcome, dan m.

i only watch all-star games

I only watch games if there's beer-drinking involved somehow.

Cuauhtemoc was MVP of the MLS all-star game.

I only watch games if there's beerBudweiser-drinking involved somehow.

fixed?

The main reason I'll listen to a music on my iTunes shuffle is to hear the best of the best do what they do. Hence, dubstep fan, but not freak-folk. I'd listen to Euro house stuff but fuck an "acid rave" reunion.

rong bord

yeah, i'm even thinking about getting season tickets for the sounders. excit3ed!!

I only watch Spain and Barcelona on TV!

Depending on the schedule, I will probably be in Seattle for Fire/Sounders.

The main reason I'll eat food is to taste the best flavors in the world. If my reservations at Babbo fall through, fuck cooking a noodle.

It's a hungry life sometimes, but my greatness purifies my soul.

wow you guys are so owning me. i can't even hold that opinion anymore. great parallels being drawn here. A++ work, pats on backs all around.

*eat A food, please.

y'all love iranian league baseball too, dontchya

No, rly, thank YOU for enlivening the post-5 o'clock slump. Perfectly timed, I was in danger of falling asleep at my desk.

above all we love sanctimonious pronouncements on which sport one deigns to watch

granny u in dainger of sounding like a granny!!

yes i was totally sanctimonious. great reading.

Mmmmm, Budweiser.

just think one day soon you may be able to have it all, granny dainger:

http://goal.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/14/barcelona-to-bid-for-mls-team/

i only watch curvy Colombian players

guys there's some 8yr olds playing at the local indoor arena. should i save you seats?

bad compariso. i'd way rather watch that than mls on tv.

http://www.supersoccerstars.com/

Those 8-yr-olds are the future of American soccer, plus totally adorable. Would spectate again.

USA u-20 women are in the semis of their world cup.

They beat the hell out of England the other night, I watched it on Galavision.

I like watching MLS in person. I don't like drinking Budweiser in person. Has to be over the phone.

i only watch curvly Colombian players

http://idata.over-blog.com/1/97/88/51/football-1/img_11-1-.jpg

^^^is up for US Soccer hall of fame induction

along with escobar

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i238/Saeyddthe2/sounderslogoofdeath.png

i heard it as 'ziggy' before i read it but now that i've gotten over that he seems like a good choice
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/othersports/392212_sounders16.html

Sigi Piggy is just following the $. Oh and I guess his brother lives in Seattle. Media accounts I have read say that the Seattle ownership are top class, however.

BTW jergins, I don't know how closely you follow the league but Seattle took Fire mid Stephen "The Author" King in the expansion draft -- a good choice.

Finally, front/back of the New England hate scarf I got at tonight's S8 board meeting: "ANTI-REVS"/"PAUL REVERE WAS A SNITCH".

rumors of damarcus beasley returning to the fire oh please please please please PLEASE be true

it's not a draft it's a SUPERDRAFT

OHOHOHOHOHO ZING FROM ALEXI LALAS

"Eddie Vedder has a better chance of making an impact in Seattle than Freddie Ljungberg"

no matter how hard they try this will just never be like the drafts in the other sports

alexi lolus, ljungberg is a good looking man. get your priorities in order and help GROW THE GAME

who won the last MLS league? houston?

cowlumbus

the league is never going to grow if they keep pre-signing college kids to contracts with the express intent of making money on selling them to mid-table european clubs

what's a good mls blog

http://www.soccerbyives.com
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/soccerinsider/

both don't focus exclusively on MLS but do a really good job of covering the USMNT and the league

er, shit, http://www.soccerbyives.net, not .com

thanks, perfect

http://www.goal.com/en-US/ has good articles and blogs, too.

OK I'm happy, the Fire traded up and snagged local boy Baggio Husidic.

Please tell me his parents named him after Il Divin Codino.

yup

Husidic was born in northwest Bosnia and grew up idolizing Italian soccer legend Roberto Baggio. His father began calling him Baggio instead of his given name, Adis, and the new moniker stuck. Zarif Husidic, a former professional soccer player, owned a nearby mall and called it Baggio for his son.

lololololol

http://www.soccerbyives.net/soccer_by_ives/2009/01/amway-to-be-san-jose-jersey-sponsor.html

That sponsor sounds like a good idea, until all the players realize they won't make money until they sign other players. Then those players sign other players, and those players sign other players..,

Posted by: Squard | January 27, 2009 at 10:50 AM

haha http://crewonespot.blogspot.com/2009/02/22509-anti-sounders.html

Oh good christ, I saw some shit about that. The author of that blog is a class A moron. He's a self-styled "hooligan" and I'm not even kidding. His supporter group is called "Huds0n Str33t H00ligans", like after the shitty shitty Elijah Wood movie... He also got his nose bloodied by some S8ers when he and some of his punk friends tried to start a fight. Then they ran away.

It's a pointless, stupid waste of energy, but I really hate Crew fans.

unrelated:

http://img520.imageshack.us/img520/5749/128806024689745170.jpg

It starts this week!

East preview:

http://goal.com/en-us/news/1110/major-league-soccer/2009/3/9/1146635/monday-mls-breakdown-eastern-conference-preview

West preview:

http://goal.com/en-us/news/1110/major-league-soccer/2009/03/16/1158698/monday-mls-breakdown-western-conference-preview

Re: the Fire -- "There won't be any excuses in Bridgeview." = OTM

getting v excited except that drew carey's been ubiquitous around town this week

I confess I hope the Sounders put a hurt on NY.

(sry Laurel)

jergins, do you have season tickets? It's surprising how many have been sold. I hope that the majority are not just seeking a novelty, but stick with the team. The league needs fans like that.

Got my Chivas USA season tickets this year :)

According to the internet, this afternoon Vancouver will be announced as the next expansion city.

The more I care about my team's results, the less fun it is to be a fan of this sport. Now I understand why Ben used to try and dissuade people instead of encouraging them to come to games. This is a lifetime of hurt, isn't it.

Gleefully anticipating/dreading tomorrow night.

This is a lifetime of hurt, isn't it.

:D

Hey, at least they can't be relegated.

is it at all difficult to get new york tickets if they're home to DC united the weekend i'm in town?

lol dan, was that aimed at me and my beloved Addicks by any chance...

xxp No and, to be honest, after 1998 and '99, every way is "up" for the Metros. I'm secretly pleased just to CARE about whether we win or lose because there's actually some chance of either.

xp Ahahahahah NO. Although if you want some fun, email me about getting a ticket in the supporters' end.

xp yup, well, that and MLS clubs really can't be relegated

Section 101, where all the supporters' clubs are concentrated, seats about 1000 (not that anyone ever sits) and it's never full except for Beckham games because the stadium mgmt seats non-club people in there after a certain window.

Oh yeah, it's also the only section in the ground where standing is allowed.

I was gonna say: NY play in a stadium that can hold what, 80,000? And they're lucky to draw 20?

thanks laurel, i will talk to friends and get back to you.

20 people? just how lame is it? aren't DC a draw these days (i am out of the loop)

also, lol standing! i will wear my casual gear that i can't get away with in the uk because it is the equivalent of the confederate flag in the usa.

Haha sorry, I meant 20,000. Yeah, it's not quite *that* bad. DC v. NY is a big rivalry.

NY v DC will be a crazy game to see, actually. Can't guarantee anything about the PLAY, but the Empire End will be interesting. And I think we're allowed flags this year, altho sadly any pyro is still out.

caek, let me know how many people you're talking about, total -- we have limits for guests so I'd have to get extras through other people.

dan, i bought a half-season, every other game. i am still scratching my head that they managed to sell 20,000 season tickets. the USL team drew what, 2000 disinterested spectators, maybe? the economy's better here than most places, but still. maybe fredy montero has a secret society.

oh yeah also pics here of how they 'soccerfied' the stadium. i'm going to take pictures tomorrow, too.

Relegation keeps it lively.

Good job, Jergs. I shd get a half-seas pass too, I'm just slightly leery of taking that leap from buying tix every week as needed.

total i'm talking about 2-4 ppl, but if they all want to go we'd be happy to make our own arrangements. if it's just me + 1 then help with tix with the cool kids would be awesome! but we're in town for other stuff and not all of them are into sport, so i don't know. when do you need to know by? and thanks!

Those numbers should be fine -- season ticketholders have some additional options for getting blocks of seats so I'm sure I can buy from someone. Prices will be around $20 ea.

We'll talk about transport and details closer to the date, eh?

for reals. thanks! don't buy any yet, but i just sent the email and should have a better idea by next week. is that ok?

ah you're gonna have fun, laurel's people know how to have a good time it sounds like

Oh god yeah, no rush. I don't plan any of these things til like a week before.

There'll be like a 6-hour tailgate in the parking lot, too -- I'm going to recommend you find a way to come to that, just for sheer quantities of beer & food. There'll be one cook, one menu, and a flat price for all-day eating (if it's like last year). TBD.

cool! i'm just over for a long weekend for party times and a columbia visit so i'm definitely down for a great many beers.

ny people should come to see our film, btw. i will take that to the other thread.

The activity on the thread today has led me to get off my ass and pay for my season tix. So excited you guys!

Amazingness-to-be: Mike Petke's blog for ESPN.

Also I am in this Red Bulls promo video for about half a second!

http://vimeo.com/3723817

Wow. I'm really surprised that Montero guy isn't like playing for Arsenal instead of Seattle.

srsly. what a joy he is to watch

Did you get my text, Jergs? You are the lucky second recipient, after Dan, of my drunken game-day messages to fans in other cities. Nice work last night even tho I feel clobbered.

Which is partly cos I went out after the game.

I've never seen so many people at Nevada's for an MLS game as I did last night (outside of the '09 cup semi- and final). That place was full. And there were two fights! Classic.

haha that was you! in my (drunken) postgame stupor i wasn't sure.

did the confetti glitter on the field on tv or did it just look like bits of garbage?

I assumed it was glossy promo cards and/or torn programs, actually.

I watched it because the Hoops Tourney was so bad. Great crowd (I'm really happy for Seattle after the Sonics debacle), but not really good soccer. I'm hoping it is just first game rust and all, but outside of Montero both sides looked pretty sloppy and tentative, with the worst aerial work I've seen in ages. Guys looked happy just to get a head on it and then look around to see where it went.

NY looked terrible, the desperate long aerial passes HAVE GOT TO GO. That was a problem all last year too, though. I can't diagnose the problem in any more detail because I don't really understand where everyone is supposed to be on the field and whose responsibility it is to be in certain places.

I can say that we would have probably scored two goals with no extra effort last night if there had just been ANYONE in place to catch rebounds off of Keller.

The game was crazy in part because of the hype surrounding the new team and the start of the year. I've never seen an MLS game be so frantic as it was in the first 15 minutes or so.

I'm no fan of the long aerial game either, but unfortunately that's the nature of the league sometimes. It would be great for New York if Dane Richards could use his left foot once in a while, but since he can't it's off to the races. Seattle's defense really seemed to know where to hold the line to stop New York, which has got to be a coaching thing.

It's definitely a coaching thing that we played a 4-5-1 with no one who could get the job done in the midfield.

Our Chicago, we love you so! Like heroin, Fire a drug for Chicago! Just like hashish, or LSD, for the Fire it's complete insanity!

I'm going to a watch party at a bar this evening that is hosted by a bunch of Polish skinhead guys. $2 Okocim drafts. It's going to be great.

looooove the old Okocim graphics, need to be posted all the time, every thread
http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd118/embarchie/b-okocim3.jpg

http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd118/embarchie/Photo0055.jpg

I hate how all the teams have foreign sounding names. Just call yourself the goddamn Pasadena Bobcats or something.

http://media.timeoutchicago.com/resizeImage/htdocs/export_images/209/209.x600.feat.polish.bars.zimneP.jpg?

Excellent. So THAT'S why you were sending drunk texts on Saturday. Sorry it wasn't under better circumstances.

First tailgate of the year, coming right up....

maybe tilt-shift is starting to feel a little played, but still, this is cool, from the sounders/nyrb game
http://seattlest.com/attachments/seattle_seth/sounders_tilt.jpg

makes the turf look like it's made of plastic or something! oh wait

lol

Alexi LOLas has his own snarky vid-blog feature on MLS's website.

facepalm

http://www.mlsnet.com/imgs/about/MLS_world_players_09_15_08.jpg

nice. need more africans imo.
and le toux is from france, time to color that one in

imo one of the great things about soccer/futbol in general is how your interest can spread because of players you like. Because of Bakary Soumare and Gonzalo Segares from the Fire's back line, I'm going to be looking out for the scores of Mali and Costa Rica's qualifiers this weekend in addition to the Fire and USA games.

That being said, the fact that the league does not take all international dates off is pretty hilariously stupid.

shit got real in Columbus over the weekend

http://www.mls-rumors.net/2009/03/report-trillium-cup-tear-gas-and-tasers.html (scroll down past the ads)

personally I blame the Crew, people were shitheads when we went there in the fall and we had 10% of the numbers that came for TFC

TP was looking sort of shiny today.

http://img258.imageshack.us/img258/1456/sspx0014.jpg

Note benches w/o seatbacks at the bottom -- it's almost a terrace!

so bummed i never got to a Fire game in Chi

lol @ toronto's 'best in mls' fans streaming out of there

1-0 feels pretty good after 35 degrees, windy, pissing rain, and a red card.

is there any explanation why Real Salt Lake would use Barcelona's colors?

is there any explanation for why they would put Real in their team name???

well copying successful team names has a long and proud history throughout world soccer, and i think they have some sort of relationship with Madrid

do mls teams have prominent shirt sponsorship?

some do.
wait what do you mean by prominent?

http://www.subsidesports.com/uk/images/product/large/SheffUtdHSS0607.gif

yes, all but new england, dallas, kansas city, and colorado i think.

Real Salt Lake: Xango
LA Galaxy: Herbalife
San Jose Earthquakes: Amway

there is a trend here

HOUSTON: ARE YOU READY?

loooooooooooooooool

"the next Darren Huckerby"?

zomg I met Brian McBride 2nite

"the next Darren Huckerby"?

Not likely - Akinbiyi's built like a tank; I vaguely remember him having an OK turn of pace, and he's a solid worker, but his confidence as a finisher got badly knocked when he moved to Leicester for £5million and flopped hard. Still, MLS is a much less pressured environment, and Ade's played a lot of football between the Leicester catastrophe and now - there's a decent chance he might end up doing a job for Houston.

Before Huckerby went San Jose, he'd been basically the key player in Norwich's attack - up til his move there, Darren's career had been characterised by brief purple patches followed by very long periods where he looked disinterested and frequently seemed to not really be trying. When he went to Norwich, he basically grew up very quickly and became a bit of a hero. I gather he's been a bit of a star for San Jose too?

He was awful at Sheffield United.

Oh gosh, was Sheffield United the place where he had a dressing room scuffle with someone then announced "I won't confirm or deny whether a razor was involved", despite no-one having asked him?

Ah yes, him and Claude Davis:

It was reported that Davis approached his team-mate while holding a razor but Akinbiyi said: "I'm not saying he did or didn't pull out a razor. There was a row that lasted about two minutes."

i'm guessing claude davis's parents don't let him use a cut-throat. this was probably a butter knife.

I gather he's been a bit of a star for San Jose too?

Yeah, he came in when they were having a really rough time. The team just re-started play last year due to the vagaries of MLS franchising and had a very inexperienced roster. They didn't make the play-offs, but he started helping them score some goals. This year things look a little better for them, though I'm still ready for Chicago to beat the piss out of them this weekend.

It's not so surprising that aging lower-division English players are trickling over here. A lot of people say that the level of play in MLS is comparable to the Championship. San Jose picked up one-time USNT midfielder Bobby Convey from Reading over the winter.

btw: flags? we got yer fuckin' flags right here.

http://i43.tinypic.com/2j5kz6h.jpg

hey laurel, my week in nyc has disappeared into a world of work stuff. new york city takes the international year of astronomy way too seriously. anyway, i am going to be working on sunday now, so no mls for me :( thanks anyway!

What an enormous bummer! That's too bad, especially as we won (FINALLY) on Saturday so spirits have lifted a bit.

Too bad you'll be missing NY v. DC, that's quite the rivalry game as far as I've heard.

The Fire played the best 75 minutes I've seen this year on Saturday, unfortunately they then decided they didn't need to try to control the ball any more and ended up with a 2-2 draw 15 minutes later. We did get to see one of these, though:

Okay that was fun.

I got distracted (read: drunk) right after the half and accidentally called Conway an asshole (not having adjusted to the switch). Now that I'm sober, I'm probably more embarrassed than I need to be -- but it's hard to pay attention with tall people holding scarves in front of you, and while you're signing and listening to the drums & capos. Eeep.

I can basically never see at home games so I just kind of zone out and try to follow along.

Just start standing on the seats!

yeah, i am bummed. i would arrive in town the week this circus comes through: http://www7.nationalacademies.org/bpa/Astro2010.html

is there a good bar in chelsea to watch it, or is that a silly question?

It might be on at Nevada's, actually. Dunno about Chelsea specific.

That game is going to be on Telefutura, which means 2 things in my experience: 1. the commentary will be in Spanish, 2. it'll be a a national broadcast, thus raising the number of places you'll likely be able to watch it due to greater availability of the channel. Whether you'll actually be able to get someone to change the channel to it is way, way up in the air.

Lots of familiar names on the Astro2010 page.

I hate how all the teams have foreign sounding names. Just call yourself the goddamn Pasadena Bobcats or something.

Agree. One of my least favorite things about international soccer is the lack of standardization w/r/t team names, especially how some teams have official nicknames and others don't. What was wrong with the Dallas Burn, for instance? Australian rules football is like this, too, IIRC.

What was wrong with the Dallas Burn, for instance?

seriously?

i mean i'm a believer that all sports names are silly and that they only become cool with some time and history, but the dallas burn is really pushing it.

I think conceptual names are probably a terrible idea.

It's not unique to soccer. Look at the newer NHL franchises, like the Atlanta Thrashers. Are the people of Atlanta known for their thrashing abilities? American sports marketing taken to its logical end. I mean even my favorite team of all time, the Detroit Red Wings, has a comical name but they've been around a long time. In England you've got Bolton Wanderers and Blackburn Rovers and all kinds of shit like that, and they've been around for more than a hundred years. What is a Rover? Who cares?

Anyway none of these nicknames are anywhere near as bad-ass as some South American or African teams, like The Strongest or The Indomitable Lions.

The Burn, the Fury -- hell, wasn't Chicago almost called something completely embarrassing?

xp are you KIDDING? How much would you love to be the Indomitable Lions???

For some reason this is reminding me of the Budweiser ad that goofed on "Americanizing" the Premier league and had "Team Manchester" in purple jerseys.

All I'm saying is I like the American formula of LOCATION-NICKNAME. None of this "FC" bullshit -- half the teams emphasize the FC (or SV, AC, etc.) in their official logos, the other half don't. Half of them put it at the front of the team name, half put it at the end. Some are known by their city ("Liverpool FC"), others by their nickname ("Rangers FC"), still others use both (Japan's "Kashima Antlers").

I don't care how stupid "Dallas Burn" sounds, it obeys the rule of LOCATION-NICKNAME. Thirty years ago, I might've looked askance at "Burn" as a singular collective noun, but the Utah Jazz (and later the Orlando Magic and Miami Heat) made that OK.

30 years ago you were a newborn baby, you were probably looking askance at lots of things due to lack of ocular control

Don't get me started on sponsorship, although without it, I guess we wouldn't have the Nippon Ham Fighters of Japanese baseball.

30 years ago you were a newborn baby, you were probably looking askance at lots of things due to lack of ocular control

^^t-bomb

I mostly just hung out on this awesome baby-blue blanket upon which was stitched "Magic Cunningham."

do u see
http://www.prosportsmemorabilia.com/Images/Product/33-70/33-70457-F.jpg

Ideally I like sports team names that have something to do with their locale or its people -- the Dodgers, the old NASL team the (Washington DC) Diplomats, the Seattle Sounders -- or old trade-derived names like the Steelers, the Packers, (the) Arsenal, the Cleveland Stokers, and so on.

With new teams always being created, though, and other teams being moved across the country by new owners, I guess it doesn't pay to have a team to attached to its roots, huh? So much for fan base.

I feel like we should be having this discussion on BigSoccer.com.

Clubs names like Liverpool, AC Milan, Inter, Barcelona, Madrid... they're basically just brand names now. Like, I bet not one person on ILX who even tangentially follows the international game would think I was talking about Internacional of Porto Alegre, Brazil instead of Milan, or Atletico Madrid instead of Real Madrid. Their history and marketing power have overtaken the need for any other identification of what they are. Smaller teams in Europe do have the nickname/city or city/nickname combo, like Wisla Krakow, Locomotiv Moscow, etc.

Some MLS team names are good, some are terrible. "The Columbus Crew" makes me laugh almost every time. I'm honestly glad for Dallas that they're not called "Burn" any more, even if it does mean the Brimstone Cup (the supporter's trophy for the winner of the regular season series with the Fire) doesn't really mean quite as much any more.

xpost to Laurel: Yeah, I mean, speaking of Utah Jazz, it's always been this massive joke that the team kept the nickname upon their relocation from New Orleans to one of the states least evocative of jazz in the nation.

Also, quite frankly, the wide variety of club names, city identities, nicknames both complimentary and un-, and all other identifying characteristics of teams and their fans just add to the rich tapestry of sport. And to the various ILX rolling threads, most of which I can't make heads of tails of without googling the history of half a dozen Londontown clubs.

All I'm saying is I like the American formula of LOCATION-NICKNAME. None of this "FC" bullshit -- half the teams emphasize the FC (or SV, AC, etc.) in their official logos, the other half don't. Half of them put it at the front of the team name, half put it at the end. Some are known by their city ("Liverpool FC"), others by their nickname ("Rangers FC"), still others use both (Japan's "Kashima Antlers").

I don't care how stupid "Dallas Burn" sounds, it obeys the rule of LOCATION-NICKNAME. Thirty years ago, I might've looked askance at "Burn" as a singular collective noun, but the Utah Jazz (and later the Orlando Magic and Miami Heat) made that OK.

― Bianca Jagger (jaymc), Monday, April 20, 2009 4:45 PM (37 minutes ago) Bookmark

are you fucking joking

like srsly dude we're pals but i couldn't disagree with you more on this issue

laurel OTM

i'm all in favor of MLS teams just being NAME OF CITY and they can put FC (or SC) or whatever anymore. let the people pick the nickname instead of a committee

actually, mostly i just have a problem with the NEW YORK RED BULLS and REAL SALT LAKE like are you joking, let's make the american game even more laughable

NYRB is a special, sad case. Nobody wanted that except Red Bull and whatever entity was selling the team.

I mean, I hate DC, NY, Columbus, and the rest but the league is too fragile and small for what harms one team not to harm others.

Ironically, though, while Liverpool may be called Liverpool F.C. officially, to most people they're the Reds or 'Pool or just 'damn scousers'

Real Salt Lake, otoh, just befuddles me. The Royal Football Club of SLC?! Really?!

I can't talk about RB, it's too complicated and long and annoying. But if you think the battle for the team name isn't still fought every day by supporters on message boards, go back to college and earn one fucking clue credit.

Also, sometime check out these wikipedia entries to learn a bit more about the actions of, and reactions to, the soccer marketing ploys of Red Bull

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FC_Red_Bull_Salzburg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SV_Austria_Salzburg

Ironically, though, while Liverpool may be called Liverpool F.C. officially, to most people they're the Reds or 'Pool or just 'damn scousers'

this is sorta what i mean, tho! i mean, i guess america doesn't have a tradition of "athletic clubs" like everywhere else, but i still think it'd be better (in the MLS) to just name the team after the town and let the nickname get chosen by popular opinion. does anyone know: is this how it happened with baseball? like, were the yankees the yankees from the outset, or what?

xp whoah fucking chillout, lady, geez

also don't get me started on the fact that the Crew have a supporters group with the word "Hooligans" IN THE NAME

http://www.kumb.com/gallery/news/hsh.jpg

good luck usa

still bummed that MPLS will never have a MLS team :(

let the people pick the nickname instead of a committee

Lots of times the people do pick the nickname, though. When the Seattle MLS franchise was to be named, the owners initially put forth three names for the public to vote on, none of which were the Sounders, but the public demanded that the Sounders be included and they ended up winning.

gbx, the extra heat was for "Don't get me started on sponsorship" which, like, don't get ANYONE started on it, okay? Especially not anyone who cares about the NY/NJ team in the first place.

It just isn't going to happen the way it once did, though, gbx. You can call baseball an 'exhibition' until you're blue in the face, it won't chnage the fact that these are all more or less big businesses and with our modern penchant for commdifying everything and squeezing ever cent out of the value of a team and its name, the furure will undoubtedly contain more teams named after sports drinks or stadia named after airlines, etc... Ironically, all those 'organically' determined nicknames in England are for teams that run around adorned in corporate logos many of whome play in a stadium named after a famous sponsor. If anything, it can be argued that w/o the stupid sponsor names and deals, the MLS might have gone the way of prior U.S. soccer leagues.

There are plenty of people who don't like the Sounders name, either, and think it should have been left to history and a new name chosen. That was a rare case, though -- I don't think public opinion has been counted for a single other MLS team ever.

i need to start following CHI ball more closely. no cable and no soccer-friendly bars make things difficult

also fwiw i think the chicago fire name + logo is one of the best in the business....wish you could still get that chicago flag style jersey

i'm just going to make up my own nicknames for all the teams:
the ny bounders
the chicago special cats
the princeton collegiates
the santa fe davy crocketts
the cleveland soccers
n.c. f.c.
the washington bullets

also someone should shoot the person/people responsible for the revolution's logo. like, srsly???

xp nick u dummy i do not think davy crockett ever set foot in santa fe

LISTEN I AM MAKING UP THE NICKNAMES HERE

If anything, it can be argued that w/o the stupid sponsor names and deals, the MLS might have gone the way of prior U.S. soccer leagues.

on this note:

The sins of the NASL and how we're still paying for them

That was a rare case, though -- I don't think public opinion has been counted for a single other MLS team ever.

Maybe not for MLS -- I don't follow it -- but this is pretty standard for expansion franchises in other American sports leagues.

where was that thread with all the awesome old team names and logos?

and yeah gbx one of the best things about the Fire is the consistency in kit design, badge, and team philosophy as long as the club has been in existence

sorta surprised you know this much about expansion sports franchises, tbh! (not a zing!)

Hahahahaha! Nick, not only do I like all of those, but that's basically what the NASL did, as far as I can tell? See here.

xp see my link!

best NASL team logo

lol nasl

to be fair, the badge is kinda unfuckwithable

what's the portland team gonna be called? the stumps?

That opens up all kinds of opportunities for supporters' group logos, doesn't it.

"washington diplomats" is so awesome

If you really get into it, you realize quickly that MLS is totally unlike basically every other top-level national league in the world. It's single entity, so the players have a contract with the league, not individual teams. This takes away a lot of the bargaining power that players have overseas. Also, not unique to American sports but very unique on the world soccer scene is the salary cap. It goes on and on, like the league not honoring FIFA international dates, no promotion or relegation, etc. It's basically set up not to fail a la NASL, which is the point of the article I posted a minute ago.

xps Portland Timbers, they're just taking the USL-1 franchise and leveling up

gbx, here is a good overview of how baseball franchise nicknames developed.

Also, I think maybe to understand my point of view re standardization you have to realize that I am approaching this in part as the copy editor of an almanac.

I think we get that ;)

I am approaching this in part as the copy editor of an almanac.

― Bianca Jagger (jaymc), Monday, April 20, 2009 5:52 PM (44 minutes ago) Bookmark

wait what, yr brain??? i actually did not that you worked for an almanac!!

attn gbx

http://dunord.blogspot.com/2009/04/are-you-twin-citian-who-would-like-to.html

he dives, he bitches and moans, he's old and slow... but damn it I love this man sometimes

http://www.kenn.com/images/blanco_pizza.jpg

oh man that sounds awesome, dan, but i bet i can't make it

aw, too bad, it's shaping up to be a good couple of days

did you see the sidebar, at least?

In the Twin Cities, all your football watching should be done at:
The Sweetwater
At the Kelly Inn
I-94 & Marion
St Paul
651-224-6373

!!! good to know

Every bar called The Sweetwater is awesome, I think it's some kinda natural law.

I don't know about bars, but it's the name of a stellar donut mill in Kalamazoo.

This Sunday, Crazy Baldhead and the Empire Soul Club present the GOLASSO! Tailgate party, before and after Metro v DC Scum. 1PM-7PM, food provided by the fine Chef Leon for $5 a head. Music provided by Two-Dishes, Johnny Metro, Agent Jay, and someone I don't know named Hagler. See you there, ya slackers.

I heard about your loss, Laurel, I'm sorry :(

Here is me in Cbus with a few friends of mine

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v280/tooth_brush_cb/3474686727_3cc8cb9ba0.jpg

I haven't seen jergs around lately, but his team is coming to town this evening. Here's hoping for an RROD!

lol, already

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k82/nowak10/FILTHADEPHIA.jpg

haha the steam coming off the poo makes it

haha. wow. oh wait a minute. it's a joke. i thought this was supposed to be a real logo.

no, a dude I know shopped that one up

here's the real one

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_G_7IWmsaRmY/SgLx_Yb0ymI/AAAAAAAAAAw/ofQYgtOxYzw/s400/Philadelphia+Union.jpg

With that "Union of the Snake" logo I hope their stadium anthem is the Duran Duran song.

wait is that like a gadsden flag thing????

MLS needs more pandas, bushbabies and koalas.

well, portland is joining the league, so...

lol @ infographic

http://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/philly_union_narrative.jpg

also lol @ vampire-looking fan

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20090511/capt.f8c36a8bbb0241acb85fcd70efe8ba21.mls_philadelphia_union_soccer_px103.jpg

may as well bump all the American futbol threads today, for more lolz

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3403/3592746054_ee35d772e6_o.jpg

(he's got a video interview up on the MLS homepage that I can't get a link to)

I'm driving 6+ hours on a bus on Sunday to watch us (probably) lose in the (probably) rain. Huzzah!

good times, sounds like my trip to columbus late last year

i took my mom to a sounders game on saturday and whoa there were some bad vibes in my section. everybody was so drunk, people threw beer and the cops showed and three groups of people got kicked out. "so, this is what you like to do on the weekends, huh honey?"

Um. Jergs, what section were you sitting in? And were there a bunch of West Ham or ex-pat-seeming types near you?

I almost got in a fight with a guy who was throwing shit on the field last Sunday. I told him not to disrespect our home and that if he wanted to throw things he should go to Columbus (they're getting kind of notorious for this). He responded by getting in my face and calling me "pinche guero" and some other shit before leaving 15 minutes early. Quite the "supporter" there.

xp Let me put it this way: were you anywhere near where the away fans from Columbus were seated?

115, near the GA. it was actually the usual people around us, guys i see every game. it was just...different. drunker.

i think i did see some westham jerseys around though. people you know?

xpost ah i see. there were very few columbus jerseys around, didn't see them in the stadium

IT WAS THE HUDSON STREET HOOLIGANZ IN DISGUISE -- THE MILLWALL OF MLS

http://www.kumb.com/gallery/news/hsh.jpg

There were some ex-pat Hammers looking to settle a score from the West Ham friendly against Columbus last year. Someone I know who was there actually got thrown out by police, I wondered if that was one of the ejections you saw...he did say they were sitting in gen adm.

xp Hah I think that was the "crew" they were gunning for, actually?

Yeah, actually the first GIS result for hudson street hooligans is this:

http://i.usatoday.net/sports/_photos/2008/07/20/soccer-topper.jpg

I know I shouldn't laugh because this kind of bullshit could really hurt the league, but I can't help myself, it's so pathetic!

I think it's funny. I also think any US "firm" better have their shit awfully together before they start offering to throw down. It's one thing when you know the yellowshirts are going to stop you before it goes off. But if you actually have no intention of accepting the offer to meet in a park after the game, then really, do stop running at the mouth.

those guys look like such dorks

Speaking of MLS, I have to go watch a slaughter now.

Every time I've gone to Columbus, except for the last time, there were people waiting in the lot for our group to come outside the fences where the security guards' jurisdiction ends. They're all a bunch of punk OSU students.

lol I'm bored so I went to the Crew boards and in one of their Seattle threads they mention West Ham fans showing up in their section. Insanity.

cannot embed

http://s99.photobucket.com/albums/l293/Saeyddthe3/tifo-09/?action=view¤t=vHouston-60509.flv

this was so much fun

except the whole losing part :(

how does that work, with the flares? do you sneak them in? do they burn the stands? it looks fucking apocalyptic, i am kinda in awe

Flares? What flares? I think the story was that Houston fans came into our section with burning rubber dicks... ;)

I didn't bring anything in, personally, but I was standing next to one of the dudes who did. Baggy pants/shorts are all it really takes as far as I can tell. Security has been kind of lax lately, either that or they've been told to go easy on us since we're the only reliable fans the team seems to have at the moment.

Found another good pic:

http://i39.tinypic.com/md2ys2.jpg

for those that maybe don't read Ives, here's a link to an excerpt of Grant Wahl's upcoming book on the Becks in USA debacle

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/the_bonus/06/29/beckham.book/?eref=sircrc

pretty eye-opening stuff, I almost want to feel bad for the rest of the Gals, but fuck 'em anyway

Interesting blog piece a friend of mine wrote about MLS and supporter culture:

http://pitchinvasion.net/blog/2009/07/08/american-soccer-a-little-bit-dangerous/

In other news, Columbus is coming to town this weekend, and I really hate Columbus.

http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/594/bulldozer.gif

That is a very interesting article. You'd think that with NY having the oldest SG in the whole league, who have been British-style and sometimes 100% hooligan-eque since the beginning, that whatshisface MIGHT HAVE MENTIONED US. Because our front office secretly hates us, I'm convinced.

We had a speaker from the FO come to our season-opening group meeting, and he was pro-SGs and said the league has to realize that soccer moms aren't their current or future market, and I believe that when that statement got to the FO's ears, he was censured and fined out of pocket for his remarks.

interesting that the idea of an area or end for the hardcore is the reverse in the UK. in my lifetime, a lot of teams, including my own, have added "family enclosures", where norms of behaviour are of course a little different to the back of the home end. everywhere else in the ground you expect pretty appalling behaviour, even if it is done while sitting down.

one of my happiest memories of attending football matches is watching two of my friends get thrown out of the family enclosure at sheffield united for singing during the three minutes silence for princess diana in 1997. happy days.

it wasn't even a rude song!

The league here is terrified of "soccer violence" and any kind of bad publicity, never mind that fan behavior at any major sporting event like, god forbid, AMERICAN football or basketball is some of the most horrendous anywhere. If the MLS is now starting to come around to the realization that season ticket holders are unlikely to be 12 year olds, it's only taken them 16 years to stop vilifying their strongest market.

I think he didn't mention New York, Laurel, because it really isn't an example of where a group has really helped drive or shape the team's approach to growth. If anything fans of Metro are probably the most shat-upon in the league.

The author of that article is English btw.

*the most shat-upon in the league by their own club

fans being at least pissed-upon was apparently a not uncommon experience here in ye golden age

There have been a couple of big ('big' lol MLS) stories this year about families/normals getting upset about cursing in the stands of a handful of different teams. I guess I can kind of understand not wanting to hear two thousand people shout "YOU SUCK, ASSHOLE" simultaneously at a goal kick, if only because it displays a real lack of creativity.

On the "soccer violence" end of things, people still go for that shit. After the national team beat Spain in the Confed Cup, Jim Rome had a piece where they showed all kinds of Greek and Italian ultras clashing with police, video from at least 5 years ago, and treated it as if it were all part of the same spectacle. That mentality is going to take a while to get over for a lot of the clueless masses out there.

Actually he probably didn't mention NY because that writer historically doesn't like NYC anyway and treats the supporters as if they're responsible for the team being named after a commercially available product.

Tis true, most people here don't like NY. Then again, most people here don't like anybody.

The match v. Columbus was a wash, 0-0 and both teams looked like crap. Really tough to watch. Scoreline aside, the Poles were at it again:

http://img3.imageshack.us/img3/8943/firehpr.jpg

(you can see me on the right margin, white shirt with my hand over my face. f'n smoke...)

I love flares. Any time someone manages to smuggle one in here it gets stamped out immediately.

I <3 that 2-Tone banner too btw.

Oh yeah, that's great. What's the significance?

The guys that made it are total ska-mod-soul-heads. It says "2nd City -- The Fire" or something like that, and has a bunch of other Chicago references in place of the various 2-Tone label markings.

found a better pic

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k82/nowak10/IMG_6475.jpg

So, The Beckham Experiment drops today. I'm very tempted to go get a copy.

"I can't believe I enjoyed a book about soccer."
—Rick Reilly, ESPN Columnist

good luck usa

Ex-Sinister Julie now living in Pineapple Upside-Down Land sent me an old ESC scarf from the Metro days!! I post it here for your adulation:

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e66/LimitedLiabilityGirl/Metro.jpg

I may wear it to my 2.30 status meeting.....

IT WAS THE HUDSON STREET HOOLIGANZ IN DISGUISE -- THE MILLWALL OF MLS

http://www.kumb.com/gallery/news/hsh.jpg

scarfers........

do like 2-tone banner and flares though.

lol Pavel Nedved to MLS?

this fucking league

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-c720nNtgI

who is the genius who came up with the idea of Beckham's first home game back with LA being vs. the team that he wants to leave them for?

http://www.latimes.com/media/photo/2009-07/48163082.gif

love these guys:

“I’m flabbergasted,” Martinous said later at a bar. “I’ve spent three years trying to get under the skin of players who are nobodies, and I got under David Beckham’s skin? Never in my wildest dreams did I think he’d lose his head like that.”

Paige, an independent film producer, was issued a $55 ticket for trespassing and released by the police.

“It was surreal,” he said. “When David Beckham calls you out, you get on the field. In hindsight, I wish I didn’t stoop to his level. I wish I was the bigger man.”

their official response to everything

•What/why were we booing?
We want to support our teams and our players, and we do that week after week. We were really torn between our desire to support the team and the need to register our disappointment with the entire Beckham circus. We don’t fault David for his desire to play for his country and for playing abroad during the off season, but we do find fault with his stated desire to play in Europe rather than the Galaxy. After going out on loan last winter to Milan, Beckham shortly made it clear that he no longer wanted to play for the Galaxy. He returned this month only because he and Milan were unwilling to meet AEG/MLS’ price for a transfer, yet his public comments don’t reflect this reality. Rather, he has rather unbelievably said he is “fully committed” to the Galaxy, as if repetition can make it so. He has been unable or unwilling to show any understanding of why the fans are disappointed with his actions and choices. We chose a friendly match, one arranged as part of the payment by Beckham and Milan to extend his loan, to let him know that if he was unhappy to be here, we were unhappy too.

•Did LARS ban anyone?
No. We do, however, have an actual meeting scheduled later this week with Galaxy officials to discuss the matter.

•Will we appeal the ban?
We have a meeting scheduled later this week with the Galaxy to discuss the events.

•Did we cross the line?
No. We questioned David’s loyalty to the club and we sang, made signs and chanted things that were bluntly dismissive. As far as we can determine, no one from LARS crossed over to referencing his family, as Beckham has claimed. In our discussions on our internet forums prior to the match, we agreed that David’s family expressly off limits. We know that Beckham has received very rough and deplorable treatment during his career, and that’s why we were genuinely shocked by his response to us on Sunday. We don’t believe questioning Beckham’s commitment to our team is over the line, but it’s clear that David feels otherwise.

•Explain the confrontation at halftime?
We have a meeting scheduled later this week with the Galaxy to discuss the events.

Addtional Question: Will we support Beckham in the future?
We want to support David - we want to support anyone that wears our team’s shirt. Had David responded differently on Sunday, the booing and chanting probably would have ended by halftime. We will almost certainly end the booing and chanting when Beckham plays in his first MLS match at our stadium, but it is ultimately up to David. If shows the evident disinterest he did at the end of last season, or if he provokes us further, we might have something more to say to him, but our ultimate desire is to support him.

Requests for further info should be directed to
i✧✧✧@lariotsq✧✧✧.o✧✧

This is all really entertaining btw. Finally some actual passion in US soccer.

OK that last bit is sarcastic but still, who the fuck is David Beckham?

The league fined Becks $1000.

related: http://theoffsiderules.blogspot.com/2009/07/one-of-greatest-personalized-kits-ever.html

ooooh, a grand. ouch for him.

i've enjoyed the back and forth between Sounders head Adrian Hanauer and whoever that guy is that runs DC United. dudes getting bitchy about siting the US Open Cup! loooove a pissy back and forth

found a quote. kevin payne. dcu head guy:

“I was surprised and disappointed and offended. Adrian uses the word ’skepticism’ to describe the process, which seems to be implying that it wasn’t on the up-and-up. Which is really an outrageous implication. He is implying that we somehow are receiving favorable treatment. We bid aggressively at every level this year and last year. We did so because we didn’t want to travel if we could possibly avoid it, given the demands of our schedule [Champions League]. Seattle doesn’t have those same demands because this is their first year. Adrian has no knowledge of what we bid or didn’t bid; my guess is that we bid more aggressively than they did.”

“I appreciate that Seattle’s fans are great. Our fans have been great for 14 seasons. It’s really unseemly for Seattle to suddenly show up in MLS and everything should be handed to them. Their crowds are wonderful, we had a great time out there in Seattle last month, but our crowds are pretty good too and we expect this year we will get far more people in the building than we did last year (8,200). Last year we played a USL team in the final and, the way our team was going in general at that point, our fans were disappointed and disillusioned. That’s not the case this year. We are going to promote the game very aggressively.”

actual full-on fire away supporters section. impressive!

how easy is it to hate Blanco? very

when he gets mad and curls his fat fists up to his head in fake shock at a call i want to jump on the field and slap him like the petulant chub-faced child he is

you mean Cauhetemoc?(have probably badly spelled the crap out of that) What's he doing now?

yeah him. he's whining and diving for the chicago fire.

(got to give him a little credit for inspiring some kid at the game to dress up in his jersey and a wrestling mask in 90 degree heat though)

he must be like, 40 by now?

He'll get a lot of leeway with me for the famous jump with the ball between his legs thing in the world cup, even if it is maximum fannydangle.

sigi scmidt is in this plane terminal!!! i might have to talk to him

wait what
http://www.mls-rumors.net/2009/07/report-chicago-fire-supporters-recruit.html

A bunch of PDX folks and S8 folks are friends. When the trip was in the planning stages last year, the PDX people were invited and ended getting really into it. Fire supporters are some of the best travelers in the league so it's not unusual for a group to be at away games, but this whole thing took on a life of its own. The beer festival happening in Portland over the weekend played a large role in it all, too. :) I'm pissed at being broke, otherwise I would have been there.

Oh and everyone loves to hate Cuauhtemoc, even fans of his own team. You guys got lucky with that no-call handball in the box in the first half. Also, Ljungberg flipping the fuck out and getting a red was one of the funniest things I have seen on the field yet this season.

Ooh, look what I missed!

The LARS guy who jumped down onto the field is the only person NOT in the ESC ever to win our Drunk of the Week award (and the specially designed scarf that is the silverware for this particular competition).

The guy who owns the "23 WHO" jersey is also ESC. :) We do get around, don't we.

I once asked dan m how to spell Cuauhtemoc, and he said, "B-L-A-N-C-O."

I've typed it enough times to know how to spell it w/o checking now, I'm pretty proud of that.

also LOL

http://images.cheezburger.com/completestore/2009/7/26/128931206562034066.jpg

you know it was intentional and a protest, right?

riiiight ;)

"brash trash talker"

Hey, I read that it was supposed to be a protest (against security? funny it doesn't say anything about security even when you read it upside down) on the internet. But I read it on MLS-Rumors so it's most likely bullshit, just like their characterization of the S8/TA invasion.

It's OK, the flares from a few weeks ago nearly set our section on fire, this kind of shit happens.

We've had members repeatedly suggest that we turn things upside-down in protest, but the consensus seems to be that NO ONE IN AMERICA will understand that it is, in fact, a protest. So far the suggestion hasn't caught hold. Apparently that's more of a "thing" in other parts of el mundo.

Not that we can agree on anything anyway.

that handball was yeah...we got away with one. Ljunberg's dive. yeesh. i would hate him if he didn't play for us. (just read he's suspended for the next two games)

upside down, a ship in distress. c'mon you seafarers. it's...subtle!

remember when people used to put flag stamps upside-down on bill envelopes as protest? i think my mom used to do that. still ended up paying the bills tho

I was going to say, "Do I look like a seafarer to you?" but in fact I'm wearing a navy & white dress with a little life preserver-shaped Women's VFW Auxiliary pin on the lapel.

Emerald City Supporters forum posts confirm the banners were a mistake btw.

"As far as people bitching about the banner... we're in our first season. They've got to learn, the hard way, that shit's going to happen in the supporter section, PERIOD."

Who cares anyway? Those big banners are a serious pain in the ass.

I'm more worried about the lack of discipline the Fire showed. They were chasing the play for more than half the match. Don't even want to think about Thor's red card... his season has been the pits thus far.

http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd118/embarchie/photo-1.jpg

OK what? Is that an RSL shirt? That might explain it.

I didn't watch the all-star game. I have to wonder if the spotlight was big enought that Wilman Conde might finally get his wish and move on to a bigger league and more $.

Superliga final tonight here in the Chi. Fire v. Tigres UANL, gonna be rad. It's on Telefutura and streaming live on the web. If I'm not mistaken NY has Champions League tonight too, eh?

Yep. Not going. Just too much to do, plus costs (tix are, what, $30? bus $10, beer $$$).

/whois alien babby up there?

Holy shit that is $! We have 3 supporter buses from the Loop + 1 from the burbs -- match ticket and beer on the bus for $20. Got to love the midwest.

alien baby boy, the fun folks at espn kept their camera on him at the mls all star game. i had enough time to go WTF and get my camera and take a picture of the tv. weird kid.

http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/american-football/Content?oid=1973424

While I am pleased that SSFC has done so well because what's good for one team is pretty much good for the league as a whole, I do wish a lot of their fans/proponents would stop patting themselves on the back so much. A quick look at the history of MLS shows that when teams are new, they draw well. Keeping that trend going for the duration is not quite so easy. The Fire drew 30-some thousand during their first year or two when they were playing at Soldier Field, but when the novelty wore off a lot of the non-rabid fans left, and haven't really been back. Building a new stadium and bringing in players like Cuauhtemoc has helped a lot, but they haven't been back to those numbers since (and physically can't, as Toyota Park only holds 20k).

It's funny, when you posted that, jergs, I was just coming here to post a somewhat similar link:

http://www.footsmoke.com/2009/07/the-growth-of-european-soccer-in-the-u-s/

Obviously, the market exists for soccer in this country, even beyond fans only in it for the novelty aspect. The problem is putting together something sustainable long-term, that can begin to both produce and attract world class players.

BTW the Superliga final last night was one of the most exciting games I have been to since I started following the Fire, unfortunately it was 1-1 at the end of 90 and went directly to PKs in some bizarro-world bastardization of standard tournament rules. Two Fire players shanked their shots and we lost :(

Cool banner for the occasion, though:

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b124/spinelessfreak3/100_0759.jpg

Oh and on the note of developing a fanbase: last night I helped with another display that involved unfurling a bunch of table rolls over the section at the start of the second half. I had a group of 7 or 8 latino kids (9-10 year olds, I'd guess) and their enthusiasm for the team, the game, and just being a part of it all was was absolutely amazing. Those kids are the ones who will grow up and keep the league going in the future.

Also, they had really good aim when throwing streamers at the opposing team's goalie ;)

Dan, I am not enjoying Chicago's down-ish period right now at all (as relates to your woes the other day about the front office, the stadium, etc), I want soccer to be widely considered awesome in this country so I wish all the teams well (except DCU). But in terms of maintaining fanbase over the life of the club, NY/NJ has been stabbed in every major organ over the last decade-plus, and then mocked and dismissed for not having a more colorful or more influential or larger supporters group.

A lot of the lessons the league has learned in time for SSFC to benefit from them, were learned by practicing on clubs that got the shit end of the league's learning curve.

Dallas is last with 9,464.

It really says too much about North Texas that their grand plan for soccer was to move it as far away as possible from young urbanites and Latino population centers.

Yeah, that's a central complaint about a lot of the new stadia being built -- too far from the populations centers. The sad reality is that the ownership groups want things done on the taxpayer's dime, and are willing to go pretty much anywhere to make that happen.

Also I have read that Dallas actually makes a profit, somehow, at their location. There is a whole complex of soccer fields and hotels and shit out there, right?

Let me be the first to say, "get the fuck out, and good riddance".

^^^cosine

Houston (or any other team really) making signings like this guy frightens me. It's the same as Montero in Seattle -- the league is finally getting attractive enough that younger prospects who might fly under Europe's radar are starting to show up and they're going to have a big impact. I guess Pappa is that kind of player here in Chicago, but he's only on loan.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luis_%C3%81ngel_Land%C3%ADn

I know a little song
It isn't very long
FUCK DC UNITED
Now it's all gone!

i am sick of freddie ljungberg

I am sick of my team's awful inconsistency.

yesterday
PA Announcer: "If Seattle Sounders FC score 3 goals, everyone in attendance gets a free haircut from Supercuts."
guy near me: "I WANT A HAIRCUT"

I'm in a somewhat strange position this afternoon, hoping that NY can pull off a win at home v. Columbus just so the Fire can stay within a point of first in the standings. Lil' help here plz, Laurel?

thanking u

best part of yesterday's game

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7rsWT5Yimg

Always happy to help a friend. Especially when it means FUCK COLUMBUS.

damn it damn it damn it damn it

http://goal.com/en-us/news/66/united-states/2009/09/02/1477082/exclusive-chicagos-rolfe-to-join-danish-club-aalborg

this ended up being nice

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guOPljB18q4

http://butyoudidntwinthisone.com/

I wasn't able to see it all, but I saw the first SSFC goal. LOL @ Wicks, what a spaz. Seattle looked the better team from what I saw. The Sounders fans on BS are going to be insufferable now.

btw jergs, is your new display name an homage to suspended MLS (and FIFA) referee Jair Marrufo (aka the dude who accepted a free jersey from Blanco)? Perhaps a bit of a stretch but it'd be funny if that was the case. Dude was in line to be one of (the only?) CONCACAF referee at the World Cup, but not any more.

man i wish

but no
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jair_Jurrjens

DC United went to Rome to see the Pope and this is what he said FUCK OFF

Couldn't have happened to a nastier bunch of cunts. :D :D :D

<3ing this right now even though it's stupid

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1zwvsZrzvg

the fat guy is a treat

"U.S.A. Rodriguez"

united states of america rodriguez

if you didn't see it in the first of the series, he is revealed as Umberto Santiago Antonio Rodriguez

Radriguez

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1SG3EVT2bw

some lols, some good info if you don't follow the league and want to know more, plus a sweet Fire goal @ 1:20

(mostly about Beckham tho)

who has two fingers and announced his intentions to stay with the Fire?

this dude

http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/918/week10d.jpg

MLS to Break During Group Play of 2010 FIFA World Cup™
MLS clubs to play each opponent twice in balanced 2010 regular season

NEW YORK (September 16, 2009) – Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber announced today that for the first time in its history, MLS will not play League games during the group phase of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The group phase includes the first 48 games of the 64-game tournament that begins on June 11, 2010 in South Africa. The last MLS game prior to the World Cup will be played on June 10 and MLS will not schedule any additional League games until after the group phase concludes on June 25. MLS does not plan to schedule games on the days of either World Cup Semifinal nor the World Cup Final.

“The decision to stop League play during the group phase of the 2010 FIFA World Cup is part of MLS’ commitment to deepen its connection with the millions of soccer fans in the United States and Canada,” said MLS Commissioner Don Garber. “The World Cup will be a focal point for all MLS fans and several MLS players will compete with their national teams at the tournament.”

The 2010 MLS Regular Season will again see each team play a 30-game regular season, followed by playoffs among eight qualifying teams. The 2010 season will begin with a single game March 25 and will conclude Oct. 24. The MLS Cup Playoffs will culminate in the championship match, MLS Cup 2010, on Nov. 21.

MLS plans to announce each club’s 2010 home opener in the near future. The complete 2010 MLS schedule will be announced early next year.

Philadelphia Union will play their inaugural season in 2010 as the 16th team in Major League Soccer, joining the Eastern Conference. The two eight-team conferences allow, for the first time in MLS history, clubs to play a balanced schedule – facing each of the other 15 teams twice, once at home, once away. As in previous years, the club with the best record at the end of the regular season will win the Supporters’ Shield, and the MLS Cup playoffs will determine the League’s champion.

good news imo

today:

acquired 600ft of PVC for flagpoles
ate 5 day-marinated sausages for oktoberfest tailgate
waved a gigantic flag for 1.5ish hours
the team had numerous chances to break the tie but couldn't finish, including a whiffed 6-yard sitter at the last second
hung out with visiting TFC people! (they were nice)

dueling flares at Toyota Park, TFC folks in the background

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2448/3966746068_5c288cff2b_b.jpg

rad

excellent article by o.g. Fire GM/Prez Peter Wilt on the genesis of the team, 12 years ago tomorrow:

http://pitchinvasion.net/blog/2009/10/07/happy-birthday-to-the-chicago-fire/

hamlett out

O, that this too too solid flesh would melt,
Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew.

sounders in, i guess. i've been out of the country but still managing to hate ljunberg while barely keeping up

Multi-tasking.

Our last game EVER in the cavernous coffin known as "Giants Stadium" takes place next Saturday. Then we hunker down for the winter to watch other leagues on the tv machine and wait for this:

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_jhmgrWpaaME/StjlL4ngBNI/AAAAAAAAAIA/1eHEs0kgfR8/s1600-h/Panorama.jpg

Okay, THIS:

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e66/LimitedLiabilityGirl/Panorama.jpg

^nice

this, on the other hand...

http://twitpic.com/m94h1

MLS goals of the year

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0m1rAGV0v6k

<3 the turn & volley from McBride at #4

guys when will MSP get a team is whati want to know

Next neversday?

I don't know, not very soon while there are big money groups from places like Montreal and St. Louis waiting to get approval, that's for sure.

BTW if you ever feel like going to a MN Thunder game I know a couple beer-drinkin' bike-ridin' bros 4 u 2 hang w/.

last round of expansion the bill was $40 million + a soccer-specific stadium fwiw

They could play at tcf IMO

The league are being dickish about the whole "having your own stadium" b/c of controlling revenue/parking/beer sales and all that. Seattle gets a pass because they're owned by some of the same people who own the Seahawks.

So, the obvious answer is for UM to start a team and then let them go pro, like UNAM and UAG in Mexico.

Is Portland still getting a team?

To get needlessly pedantic about it, Portland already has a team. But yeah, Philly is brand new next season, and Portland and Vancouver (both existing USL teams) will be in MLS in 2011. I'd say it's pretty even odds on Montreal (also USL) getting in by then too.

Sorry, jergs. Nothing gold can stay. But hey, you're in Champion's League next year.

Semifinals:

LA Galaxy v. Houston Dynamo
Chicago Fire v. Real Salt Lake

(go fire)
http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs088.snc3/15542_550756906647_6602426_32411280_4306020_n.jpg

I love the playoffs, I hate the playoffs. This semi between LA and Houston is like pulling teeth. So much fouling, ping-pong ball, and general not-attractive play.

So uh big game today, eh?

huuuge
um

lol

pks ugh

Donovan's miss = priceless

otherwise yes, f pks

shirts for next season leaked

http://tools.adidas-team.com/Soccer/Q110_MLS_Final_LR.pdf

Cool find. The facts for Chivas USA, Colorado, Dallas, and Toronto are so sad.

I really like the shoulder panels on most of the the teams home jerseys.

I don't like the weird gold(yellow?) piping in Kansas City's jersey, is that somehow a traditional color I've never come across? I also don't like the weird straight sleeve panels on the Red Bull jersey.

I quite like Dallas's new jersey, but I guess they aren't the "Hoops" anymore. Now they can be... the Red Bulls? the Toros? the Stripes? They should have kept the horse from the Burn logo when they changed their name.

http://www.soccerbyives.net/soccer_by_ives/2010/01/clint-dempseys-wonder-goal.html

guys i really like clint dempsey?

otm

I kinda want a DC home jersey so I can wear a gold chain and pretend I'm Mike D. circa 1986.

http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/chicago-fire-confidential/2010/01/cba-update.html

this potential work stoppage business would probably wreck the league, and it a world cup year no less

CBA Update
.Sam Stejskal
on 01.12.10 at 8:56 AM | 5 comments Share..

In the last 20+ years, every one of the so-called "major" sports leagues in America has gone through some sort of work stoppage. Whether it was the NFL in 1987, MLB in 1994, the NBA in 1998 or the NHL in 2004, every stoppage damaged the respective leagues. Attendance declined, playoffs were canceled, interest levels dropped and it took time (and in the case of baseball, two steroid-fueled power hitters) to get the leagues back to their pre-work stoppage levels of success.

But those leagues were all established successes at the time of their strikes/lockouts. They had a large, broad base of fans and -- ultimately -- could afford to sit out part of the season due to a labor spat. Unfortunately, MLS does not have that luxury. Sure, the league is growing. But it's not yet big enough so that it could quickly and successfully bounce back from a work stoppage. That -- along with the fact that 2010 is a World Cup year -- is why it's so imperative that the Players' Union and the league come to terms on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement by January 31st.

"I think a deal has got to get done for a number of reasons," said Fire midfielder -- and Union rep -- Logan Pause. "I think any sort of work stoppage will be extremely detrimental to this league. We want to play. That's not an issue. It's just about getting things worked out."

Surprisingly, financial issues haven't been a sticking point in negotiations -- which have been ongoing for months. What the sides can't agree on is the extent to which players will be granted simple, FIFA mandated rights.

Namely, players are demanding the following:

•Guaranteed contracts. Almost 80% of players in the league do not have guaranteed deals.

•To be able to enter contracts with their specific team. Currently, MLS owns all the player contracts in the league. This issue has led some to go as far as to call MLS a "cartel."

•To be able to freely negotiate with other teams once a player's contract has expired. Under the present system, clubs can hold a player's rights even if his contract with the team has ended.

•The right to consent to (or decline) a transfer. Under the current CBA, players can be transferred (traded) to another club within the league without his consent. This can occur even if the transfer is international.

oops, over-copied there

Oh shit those points of contention would change everything....

glad I haven't bought my tickets yet

draft is on, and even more importantly the Fire's away shirt has a special little addition

http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs216.snc3/22369_268883874788_20210009788_4498282_4121706_n.jpg

full season schedule announced

http://web.mlsnet.com/news/mls_news.jsp?ymd=20100203&content_id=8015936&vkey=pr_mls&fext=.jsp

hooray for the Fire having no Sunday midday games

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AucOzX9qqRA

^^^those guys rule, can't wait until they join the league

that is, *if* there's a league any more after all this labor dispute that's been going on

http://pitchinvasion.net/blog/2010/03/17/peter-wilts-proposed-solution-to-mls-labor-strife/

Best friend and former ILXor now NOT coming to our opening game in the new stadium because labor dispute making game too uncertain and no one likes to get fucked by an unneeded airline ticket for an inconvenient time & destination.

Aw, boooooooo. Although, that's why I didn't buy a plane ticket. That being said, if that game actually happens, I'll be there w/ 250 or so friends! Yay for 14 hour road trips.

i'm getting excited for the season. i don't think a strike will happen. fuck i hope not. this year i didn't buy season tickets (or a half-season like last year). i just can't watch freddy ljunberg play. i don't think i've ever hated a "home team" player as much as i hate him. what is it? his style, something.

what's getting me interested in the coming season are all the new young guys-the recent draft class and the central and s. americans. and i'm glad about philly. and i am in awe at how beautiful this stadium looks: http://vimeo.com/10207459 nice job red bulls. see, a strike can't happen. they just built that stadium!

That's what I keep telling myself.

http://www.earthcam.com/clients/redbullarena/ !!!!!!

Although since it's a really beautiful day today and there's no snow on the ground, I have to conclude that the cams have frozen and those are not the real current images. When it's updating correctly every minute, it IS a sight to behold.

<3ed watching Ljungberg flip out at the ref over a (correct) non-call v. the Fire last year, get his second yellow, and sulk off the field.

Is Montero back this season? Amazing he hasn't been bought by some European side.

I'm exicted for new players as well: Collins John (ex-Fulham and several Dutch/Belgian clubs, apparently a bit of a basket case but loads of potential) and Julio Martinez from El Salvador, scorer of big goals in WCQs including this screamer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioE470BdWK8

wowza, and that looks like it was scored @ azteca.

Montero to Turkey seemed like a possibility earlier in the offseason. don't know what happened with that.

i went to the Seattle-Portland preseason game last week in the rain. check out this tifo from the emerald city supporters:

http://i40.tinypic.com/rm66ms.jpg

awesome, right, pointing that at the portland fans (couple hundred came up for a 6pm weeknight start, very impressive), pointing out the sounders' dominance.

then portland beat us 1-0. lol.

for a second there i thought they were holding up banners with mathematical equasions on 'em

MOAR ILX MLS FANS PLZ

is it worth it? i'm already missing too much proper football as evidenced by jibe showing us how awesome ligue 1 is last week.

Yeah I don't think anything in MLS is going to be more awesome that Ligue 1. Well, maybe not, who knows. I do think more Americans who are fans of the game should pay attention.

would be a superfan if mpls had a team :(

you have the new team, NSC Minnesota or whatever they're called!

huh!

I support the Wizards, especially this year as they have a Colombian defender named Pablo Escobar.