The World's Most Iconic Soccer Stadiums (Part 3)

England

The New Wembley Stadium (London, England)

Capacity: 90,000

Inauguration: 2007

Cost: $1.25 billion

The New Wembley Stadium now stands at the site of the original Wembley Stadium which was opened in 1923. The original Wembley, while not quite one of the oldest stadiums in England, certainly does not lack in its history. This was the venue that hosted the annual FA Cup, five European Cup Finals, and the Three Lions’ World Cup triumph on home soil in 1966. This stadium is so iconic, that the legend that is Pele admits that the biggest regret of his career was never having played there; the “cathedral of football” as he described it. In 2003, Wembley was demolished for redevelopment.

Four years later, The New Wembley Stadium was opened. Wembley is now the world’s most expensive soccer stadium, and has established itself as one of the premier sporting venues in the world. The English National Team moved back to the site of their original home shortly after its reopening. Since it reopened in 2007, Wembley is once again the site of the annual FA Cup Final as well as the FA Community Shield. While its modernization makes it lose a bit of its charm, after all, part of the mystique of a cathedral is its antiquity, the New Wembley Stadium will likely be home to some of this generation’s most memorable soccer moments.

Be sure to check out part 2 in this series.

Manchester United vs. Inter Milan Match Review

So last night I was able to find a stream of the Manchester United v. Inter game that was played in DC.  First off I had to laugh at ESPN’s coverage of the game, it was an English squad and an Italian squad, playing in America, and yet the only commentary that I could get was Spanish… nevertheless, the game showed good promise for the Red Devils.  Not exactly an exciting game from an attacking standpoint, with only 2 shots on goal for Manchester and 1 for Inter, but as the score line would lead you to believe, a great defensive battle.  LVG was very pleased speaking with the media after the game, praising his defense for a stellar showing, however, not much was said of the offense.  This, unfortunately, can be a side effect of the 3-5-2 (5-3-2 depending on how you look at it) that van Gaal is running this year, and set the Dutch team up with at the World Cup.  A strong centralized defense keeps the ball to the wings where it gets knocked around for a while trying to find a way to break through the wall that you’ve created in the middle.  If neither team is willing to push to hard on the attack, the game can grind to a halt.

Luckily we did see some flashes of attack, primarily after the 80^th minute from Manchester United, a period which saw a beautiful bit of skill by Ashley Young down the wing to create an opportunity off the head of one of his strikers.  But the game went to a draw at full time and this being the ICC, we went to penalties.  Manchester was perfect from the penalty spot.  All 5 shots were struck in a textbook position, Inter GK Carrizio truly had no chance to save any, despite trying to play some mind games on the 4^th shot with Shinji Kagawa, daring the midfielder to score to the right side of the goal (which he did).  De Gea (who came in as a substitution for Lindgaard at half) got a hand to Inter Milan’s third shot before it went bar down for the goal, and then guessed correctly on the 4^th shot, which saw the ball blasted off the crossbar for the only miss of the shootout.

After the game, van Gaal hailed this as the best game of the three that have been played under his new reign, and as far as fundamentals go I’d have to agree.  United seem well put together, communicating and crisp with their passes.  If they are able to keep this up, and hopefully pick up a few weapons during this trade window, we could absolutely see a year in which Manchester makes a run at the league title.




Be sure to check out our previous post here.
(Photos from BleacherReport and Twitter)

Why the USMNT Needs Gedion Zelalem

This weekend gave most American soccer fans their first look at the next potential star of the US National Team, Gedion Zelalem.  Zelalem got the start for the Arsenal senior team against the NY Red Bull on Saturday, and while he remained mainly quiet on the field, the promise for the young star couldn't help but shine through.

If you haven't heard of Gedion Zelalem before, he is a 17-year-old midfielder who is currently playing for Arsenal.  Zelalem was born in Germany, but has the potential to hold citizenship in two other countries, Ethiopia and the United States.  Zelalem moved to the States in 2006 with his father and had been playing in the Maryland youth circuit before being recruited to play for Arsenal.  He made his debut in 2013 for the Arsenal U-16 before quickly being promoted to the U-21 side.  He debuted for the senior team in January this year, coming in as a substitute for the Ox.
So what makes this young midfielder so desirable(other than the fact that Arsene Wenger saw fit to put him into an Arsenal game at the age of 16)?  Zelalem is a playmaker, a skill becoming more rare in today's stars.  Everyone is trying to become the next #10, someone who's going to dance around the defense and score by them selves, whereas what we've seen from Gedion so far is a player comfortable enough in their own skill to hold centrally and make the connecting passes downfield, "he makes the pass before the assist" writes Travis Clark of Top Drawer Soccer.  Even though he played in a right midfielder role this past Saturday, you could still see what Clark is talking about.  It doesn't seem much to write about but Zelalem showed some very crisp and intelligent passes, clean turns and great field awareness during the game.  The kid definitely showed great soccer IQ, and composure, something very rare for a player his age.
As far as what he can add immediately to the US Mens National Team, this is where it can get interesting.  At the 2014 World Cup, Jurgen Klinsmann brought 4 players capable of playing the holding mid spot that Zelalem has become accustomed to playing, Bradley, Jones, Beckerman and Cameron, with Bradley starting the center mid position.  But with Cameron playing center-back and the two others filling various midfielder roles in Klinsmann's 4-2-3-1, there was no one left on the bench to relieve the exhausted Bradley late in games, such as the Portugal game which saw Bradley make a crucial late error resulting in a goal.  Zelalem can provide that support now.  He has already proven that he can compete at the senior level, with the only consistent complaint about his playing being his size.

The most exciting aspect of Zelalem however, has to be what he can offer to the US long term.  As Zelalem himself said when discussing the international decision he will have to make (most likely before the 2016 Olympics), "The US is on the rise, Germany is already a great team".  If Zelalem goes with the US he could join the ranks of great young players, such as another German-born American player Julian Green, to whom he has been both compared and said to have even greater potential given his age when he broke out.  He could become the new face of the steadily rising team, as opposed to just yet another player on an already strong German team.  As Ollie has already written, the USA has the formula to finally break through and stop just being relevant on the international stage, and become a powerhouse.  Zelalem could be another (major) piece to that puzzle, should he opt to invoke his right to gain US citizenship.
My final bit is a sincere plea to Gedion (yeah I know...it's a pipe dream that he ever gets this in front of him).  You've spent time in America, and you've played in the youth programs here.  You know that theres still a long way to go before we can be consistently defined as premiere nation on the international stage.  And one of the things that American soccer needs to accomplish that goal, is increased awareness and participation in this fantastic sport.  And one of the elements that is needed to drive this change in social perception, is popularity (success) at the international level.  You, Gedion, have the potential to help lead our team to a level of success it has yet to realize, both immediately and then continuing our growth in the future.  Don't become just another player in a soccer centric nation.  Become the face of a nation who's fans are the most enthusiastic and dedicated in the world, and spread the good word to the rest of the nation.  And hopefully, finally, push soccer to it's rightful place among main stream sports in this amazing country of ours.

Be sure to check out our previous post here.

Pitch Invaders

At the end of Manchester City’s 5-1 thrashing of AC Milan in the International Champions Cup match in Pittsburgh, two fans ran onto the field to take a selfie with Mario Balotelli. This became the most recent occurrence of what seems to be a growing trend in soccer now. At Real Madrid’s unveiling of their new £60 million signing James Rodriguez (which may have been a bit much), a fan wearing a Colombian jersey found his way past security to hug the World Cup star. This past World Cup had no shortage of pitch invaders running onto the field for various reasons. Perhaps most memorably however, was a couple months ago, when one fan #DaredToZlatan by running onto the field to give Ibrahimovic a hug and was rewarded with his jersey.

In most of these events, the fans were bold enough to break through the boundaries and were compensated with a special moment with their soccer idols. I think it’s great that some of the biggest names in soccer had enough sense to not overreact in these situations, though I wouldn't blame them for losing their cool. It’s become worryingly easy to run onto the field past security, and interact with the players directly. I’d like to believe that in all cases, these fans have good intentions, but it’s really impossible to make that distinction. I’m glad that we’re not overreacting to most of these situations, some of which can even be adorable, but at some point security has to be stepped up. I mean, it shouldn't be up to other fans to deal with these guys.

Russia: The War Torn World Cup Hosts...

As the announcement came out this weekend that FIFA is standing by Russia for the 2018 World Cup nomination, the soccer community watched in...well let's call it mild disgust.  Because honestly, this can't come as a shock to most fans out there.  Since when has FIFA ever cared about, their image in the international community, or player safety, or even just doing the morally right thing?  This is an organization so entrenched in scandal and corruption, that the movie they funded about their own history should be listed as a satirical comedy for the amount of romanticization about FIFA that it includes.

But this weekend's announcement just continues to highlight the horrifying damage that FIFA can do.  This organization, in the last year alone, has left a country billions of dollars in debt, not only through stadium construction fees, but also through taxes not paid.  Brazil was in civil unrest for months before the games, and what did FIFA do to help? They pushed a bill through the Brazilian government allowing Budweiser to sell beer at the games.  Oh you thought I meant what did FIFA do to help the Brazilians? No, they didn't do anything to help them, they're not a corporate sponsor, and why would a non-profit organization care about anyone other than their corporate sponsors?  But in fairness, all they wanted from Brazil was for them to host, pay for and police the entire tournament so that FIFA could make all of the money, that's not to much to ask right?
Allowing Russia to continue to hold the World Cup in 2018 if the Ukrainian crisis continues takes the issue to a new level.  This past week, a passenger jet was shot down over the pro-Russian area of Ukraine.  A passenger jet... I get there is still debate over who actually is responsible so I won't go into that here, but can we all agree that regardless of who shot the plane down, IT'S A DAMN WAR ZONE!! How can we even be considering holding an international sporting event in a country with a war going on?  This is now 100% a matter of player safety and how if this fighting continues, there is absolutely no way to guarantee player safety.  FIFA responded to the decision releasing the statement,

"FIFA deplores any form of violence and will continue to use its tournaments to promote dialogue, understanding and peace among peoples." (So we're going to allow a country actively funding and arming a war to continue to host) "The hosting of the FIFA World Cup with the global attention it attracts can be a powerful catalyst for constructive dialogue between people and governments,(and demonstrating the merits of bribery) helping to bring positive social developments (because that's our job?)"

I may have read between the lines a little there...

But we all know this already, hell I've written about this already, and life for FIFA continues on, nothing changes, nobody can do anything.  This is because this is an organization with zero accountability and zero supervision.  They have a monopoly on the sport we love, so the only way to boycott FIFA is to boycott soccer.  No competing organization has the funds to match FIFA, their resources are endless (especially if they keep giving the World Cup to the highest bidder).  So truly the only thing we can do, is to continue to bring to light the scandals that seem to perpetually follow this corrupt organization where ever it goes.  And with any luck, this organization may someday been run by someone who's doing it purely for the love of soccer, and not for whatever Dr. Evil-esque reasons our favorite Captain Slime has.

Be sure to check out our previous blog here.

The Diving Dilemma

The World Cup extended it's reach to everyone regardless of their opinions towards soccer. From the casual fan to the fanatic, everywhere you turned you were surrounded by an developing story about Tim Howard or the Ghana players having their bonuses flown to Brazil, to name a few. As a result I found myself watching quite a few games with people who had some strong opinions about the beautiful game and let themselves be heard. Everything from, "this team is so soft" to "this isn't a real sport" was all attributed to the same thing: diving.

Embellishment, flopping, exaggerating, whatever you want to call it, it played a role in nearly every game, some more than others. I would always have to brace myself when Neymar or Arjen Robben went down screaming while their teammates bolted towards the referee. The rants that followed weren't annoying or unbearable until they got to one point: "I don't get how you like this sport".

I don't mind anyone complaining about diving because I despise it just as much as the next person. But when it starts seeping into overarching opinions about soccer it becomes difficult to deal with in more ways than one. There will always be players who spend more time rolling around on the field than others. Some teams are even notorious for diving to the point where it may even be stressed in training. If you don't believe look up "Italians practice flopping", it will be worth your time.

My point is that this has become a part of soccer culture and there's no foreseeable end to it. Gradually referees became more strict with their calls in an effort to protect players. It's not uncommon that you'll hear a commentator say "when we were playing that would've been a fair tackle" after a questionable slide challenge. Players are aware of this and will go to extreme measures in an attempt to force the refs hand.

So the next logical argument is that FIFA has to start instituting fines for these players to erase it from the game. The problem is that we have to remember this is FIFA we're talking about who are so corrupt themselves, what reason would they have to eliminate corruption in this area of the game? If you need further evidence you don't even have to leave this blog, just scroll down to the FIFA article. It's still possible to get a yellow card by taking a noticeable dive but this is uncommon. Mainly because it has to be exaggerated to the point where it's comical because the referee can't produce a card every time someone goes down a little too easy.

What I'm trying to say is that we can all hate diving together. If you're okay with it that's fine as well but it will always be the worst part of any game for me. All I'm asking is for casual fans to not associate loving soccer with the love of diving.

Be sure to check out our previous post here.

Zla∙ta∙ner∙a

verb

to dominate (this is a real word in Swedish)

Following his twitter Q&A in which he answered fans’ questions on the act of Zlataning, many had a greater understanding of what it takes to #DaretoZlatan. If ever there was a word to make a part of your daily vocabulary, this is it. Forget your daily word of the day or your SAT vocab, Zlatan is the only word you’ll ever need to impress. Above I gave you the Swedish definition of the word, but, in reality, Zlatan means all things awesome. It is not limited to being a verb (that would be very un-Zlatanlike), it is every part of speech you can think of. In fact, the more you say Zlatan, the more you become one with the way of Zlatan. This is the key to successfully Zlatan. If you are not one with the way of Zlatan, attempting to Zlatan can become dangerous. When you embrace your inner Zlatan and successfully Zlatan, nothing in the world is __________. Sorry about that blank space, the word that was supposed to go there was impossible. Having Zlatan and this word in the same sentence is so unbelievably not Zlatan that I am afraid of finding out what Zlatan-level punishment the universe would send the unfortunate soul who dared to utter such a sentence. Only Zlatan could save you then.

Here’s to you Zlatan, Zlataning the world since 1977.

Be sure to check out our previous post here.

The World's Most Iconic Soccer Stadiums (Part 2)

Mexico

Estadio Azteca (Mexico City, Mexico)

Capacity: 105,000

Inauguration: 1966

Cost: MXN$260 million

Notable Fixtures: Italy vs. West Germany 1970 World Cup Semifinal, Argentina vs. West Germany 1986 World Cup Final

Unlike my previous post in this series, where you can argue for several stadiums across the USA being the most “iconic,” Mexico has a clear winner. Even though it isn’t a relatively old or expensive stadium, it certainly is among the richest in its history. This is the third largest soccer stadium in the world in terms of capacity, and is one of the most hostile environments to play in. Home to El Tri and Club América, this place is constantly packed with fans that bleed their team’s colors. The Estadio Azteca has been host to some of the best soccer moments in the 20^th century and stands among the most iconic sporting venues in the world.

The Azteca was the final triumph for soccer legends Pele and Diego Maradona. Their World Cup victories in 1970 and 1986 respectively, marked the pinnacle of their international careers. In Maradona’s 1986 World Cup campaign, he produced two of the most memorable moments of his career, and in the history of soccer as well, at the Azteca. In the quarterfinal matchup between Argentina and England, Maradona scored both goals to send Argentina through in that game. One of them would go down as the goal of the century, the other, one of the most controversial World Cup goals ever scored. This was also the venue that hosted the epic battle between Italy and West Germany in the semifinal of the 1970 World Cup. This game was the only time in FIFA World Cup history where five extra time goals were scored, and would go down as the match of the century.

Keep checking in to see what we choose to be the next stadium we feature in this series.

Manchester City Youth Team Amid Racism Scandal

This Tuesday, Manchester City’s U-21 side stormed off the pitch during an international friendly against Croatian team HNK Rijeka.  A Man City player, Seko Fofana claimed that he had been racially abused by an opponent, prompting Man City skipper Patrick Vieira to pull his side from the match.  The Croatian club immediately denied the racial abuse however the Croatian Football Federation has launched an investigation into the claims.  The allegations occurred immediately after Fofana was sent off for a late challenge, which Rijeka claim is the real reason that the team withdrew.

“It looks like a move which is trying to hide a very ugly foul by the Manchester City player that resulted in exclusion, followed by a hasty and illogical decision of the coaching staff…” said Rijeka manager Ranko Buketa.  However, if these allegations prove to be true, Rijeka could be facing some serious sanctions from soccer’s governing body.  And not in an unprecedented manner…

Unfortunately, racism in soccer has been a growing problem in recent years especially for Manchester City.  In October of last year, forward Yaya Toure claimed that he was racially abused during a CSKA Moscow game, an allegation later found to be true.  The Toure and Fofana claim are 2 of 4 claims of racism that have turned out to be true in the past 4 years.  Former City striker Mario Balotelli is another player that has been the target of racial abuse in his career; sometimes at the hands of fans of his own fans.

The incidents continue to highlight a worrying trend in soccer.  Despite UEFA and other governing bodies doing their best with anti-racism campaigns and advertisements, people with deep seated biases continue to grow more vocal. The graphs below show two worrying statistics for racism in soccer fans. 

In the study, published by MyGov.com, 91% of English soccer fans believe that racism exists in soccer in their country, but of those same fans polled, only 43% said that they felt racism was a serious problem. Not to pick on the English fans specifically, make sure to look at the above polls and see the shocking numbers of major European nations. This just starts to demonstrate the uphill battle that soccer’s governing body is facing with fans, this ingrained racism that unfortunately has trickled down even to the youth teams, illustrated by this latest incident if it proves to be true.  The question now becomes what more can be done to fight this problem, because obviously, what we’ve been doing so far isn’t enough.

Find the entire YouGov article here.

Be sure to check out our previous post here.

Is Dunga the Answer?

After ending the World Cup it was hosting by conceding 10 goals in their last two games, Brazil was left scrambling for answers. Luiz “Felipão” Scolari had promised another title for Brazil, this time in their own country. After the Maracanazo in 1950, it seemed like this would be a chance for redemption. Putting another star on the already very decorated crest Brazilians display with pride would have been all the more satisfying if it came at home. It took just 30 minutes against Germany to turn Brazil’s World Cup into a tragedy much worse than the one they had suffered in 1950.

It’s not like there weren't any warning signs either. Brazil relied on two set-piece goals to advance against Colombia following a narrow escape on penalties out of the round of 16 against Chile. Even on the play Brazil conceded a penalty to Colombia there were glaring issues with their organization. As the play developed, you could see there was no shape, no connectivity between the midfield and defense, midfielders walking back on defense, and Marcelo dove into a challenge and got beat. This effectively created a 3 vs. 2 in favor of Colombia and put Carlos Bacca in on goal against Julio Cesar who had no choice but to foul (watch the play develop in the highlights here). This scene looks eerily similar to that of Germany’s 5^th goal in their onslaught.

Brazil vs. Colombia

Brazil vs. Germany

For comparison look at Costa Rica’s shape against the Dutch. Costa Rica was one of the best defensive teams in the tournament and only conceded two goals in their five games. The back forms a very structured line, and the midfield occupies the space in front of that line. They have numbers around the ball and there was nowhere to go but backwards for the Dutch. This is what good organization on defense looks like. That is how a team like Costa Rica could win a group featuring Italy, England, and Uruguay.

Costa Rica vs. Netherlands

Any good coach would have made adjustments for the next game after watching the penalty in the Brazil vs. Colombia game develop; especially considering that Thiago Silva wouldn’t be available after getting one of the stupidest yellow cards ever. Felipão did nothing. What followed was utter humiliation and left the CBF with a predicament, who would be his successor to bring Brazil back from the depths?

Just over a week later, we have learned that Dunga is the next head coach of the selecão. Is the former captain of the 1994 World Cup Champions the man to breathe life back into a side that exited this year’s tournament in a state of complete decay? The answer to this question obviously isn’t simple. I believe that he is a decent starting point. Let’s not forget, this is the guy who had 42 wins and 12 draws in his 59 games during his previous tenure as manager of Brazil. At the current state of the national team, I believe that he is a safe choice. Using his regimented approach, he will bring Brazil back to the modern age where you do need a level of structure to win. However, if he proved anything in his first stint, it’s that the Jogo Bonito is not his thing. Choosing not to name Neymar or Ronaldinho to the squad in South Africa he made his intentions very clear. Let’s face it though, after how they departed the World Cup this time around, I will gladly take winning without flair… For the short-term that is. Brazilians have too much pride in the joy and creativity they bring to the game. In order to bring back the Jogo Bonito that embodies the Brazilian spirit, Dunga must be removed after laying a basic foundation.


Be sure to check out our previous post here.

The World's Most Iconic Soccer Stadiums (Part 1)

USA

CenturyLink Field (Seattle, WA)

Capacity: 67,000

Inauguration: July 28, 2002

Cost: $430 million

Figured I’d begin this series here at home. It’s hard to call any stadium in the USA iconic as we are definitely a country in the process of writing our soccer history. You could make an argument for the Rose Bowl since it was the home of the 1994 World Cup Final and is one of the most recognizable stadiums in the country. It was the venue where Roberto Baggio skied his penalty over the bar to give Brazil the title (one of the most memorable moments in recent World Cup history). However, it is only occasionally used for soccer and its primary affiliation is obviously with college football. For that reason, I opted against it.

Seattle’s CenturyLink Field is my choice for the USA’s best soccer venue. Home to the Sounders as well as the Seahawks, CenturyLink Field is constantly reaching maximum capacity for events. There doesn’t seem to be a better atmosphere in the USA to experience a soccer game. The Emerald City Supporters certainly know how to be loud (much like the Seahawks’ 12^th Man) and Sounders fans are one of the few MLS fanbases that can rival some European counterparts. Seattle fans certainly know how to have a good time at sporting events and they definitely give their teams a significant home-field advantage. With USMNT stars Clint Dempsey and DeAndre Yedlin representing them, the Sounders offer a glimpse into the transition between the old and the new for American Soccer. If there is one place to showcase to the world what American Soccer can be, this is it.

Check in again tomorrow as we travel south to the Azteca.

And be sure to check out our previous post here.

Putting Their Money Where Their Mouth Is

If you've been following the transfer market this off season you've heard the news that James Rodriguez is now officially a part of Real Madrid. An exorbitant fee raised some eyebrows, but after a stellar World Cup campaign few can argue against Rodriguez's class. Madrid are notorious for shelling out cash for any hot name on the transfer market to the point where an 80 million dollar transfer fee seems like the standard after 116 million was spent on Gareth Bale. The size of their wallet is unbelievable, but what's even more shocking is that the sum spent on Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo and Rodriguez is more than AFC Ajax have spent on transfers...in their entire history.

This extends 114 years back to 1900 and is mind-blowing, even during an era with drastically inflated transfer fees. If you haven't heard of Ajax before you would probably assume that they're a mediocre club at best. Not exactly. They've won the UEFA Champions League four times (most recently in 1995) and were runners up twice. This makes them the sixth most successful team in Europe in that respect, on top of the fact that they've won thirty two league titles. I'm not saying they're on the level of Real Madrid who completed La Décima a few months ago winning their tenth Champions League title, but you have to respect Ajax for what they've been able to accomplish. Was it worth it for Madrid though?

Rodriguez had nine goals and twelve assists last year which is a good return especially at such a young age (23). When you put this in perspective though, Rickie Lambert had ten assists and thirteen goals for Southampton last season. His transfer fee to Liverpool was five million dollars.

Am I saying that Lambert is as good as Rodriguez? Not in the slightest. The transfer fees are also going to be skewed because Lambert is already 32 and plays in a more advanced position than Rodriguez. However, this takes nothing away from Madrid getting caught up in the moment and spending way to much for the Colombian. His technical ability is world class but he doesn't provide the speed or power Madrid acquired when they completed the Bale and Ronaldo deals. What's worse is that a few weeks before this deal was completed, Madrid got the signature of Toni Kroos who is also a world class player and operates in the same position as Rodriguez. He will be an excellent player for Madrid, but right now he's the most overpriced deal that's been completed this summer.

Be sure to check out our previous post here.

BREAKING: Luis Suarez not a murderer!

In a statement today, Sevilla striker Iago Aspas was critical of FIFA’s punishment placed on the wildly talented cannibal, Luis Suarez, following the biting of Italian Georgio Chiellini.  Speaking with Cadena Cope, Aspas claims that the 4 month ban from all Soccer activity is completely unjust and that FIFA is treating the Uruguayan like a criminal.  So let’s stop right there for a second, because just so we're all clear, the law does in fact say that you’re NOT allowed to bite people, for pretty much any reason... at all.  In fact, had this happened any where other than a pitch, he would indeed be a criminal.  He assaulted another player!  Now don’t get me wrong, I get the heat of the moment argument, he wasn't thinking, he’s a passionate footballer etc., but he’s done this three times now, this is starting to look not so much like passion, and much more like pre-meditation.  If you’ve bitten other players 3 times, that’s a disturbing trend and you need to be locked up.  I’m not trying to take anything away from Suarez as a footballer, he’s a great player and will probably go onto have a strong season at Barça after the ban lifts.  But if your go to angry maneuver is trying to take a chunk out of someone, you need to put soccer aside for a while and deal with that demon, until you are positive that it’s under control.
“They’re treating Luis like a murderer, and not a footballer” said Aspas to Cadena Cope.  Aside from being a slight over exaggeration, you know, Suarez getting a 4 month ban from soccer and murderers getting 20+ years in prison, I’m going to put it out there that as soon as you start biting people, even in a first offense, that’s not being a footballer, that’s being unstable.

(http://img.irtve.es/imagenes/mordisco-luis-suarez-desata-bromas-internet/1366664032159.jpg)

Be sure to check out our previous post here.

Germany Partied A Little Too Hard...

After retiring home victorious, the German national team started off their reign as world champions by throwing a massive 400,000 person bash in Berlin.  Fans had been waiting hours for the celebration (some even waiting since the day before) when the champions left their plane and headed for the city center.  After a two hour bus ride through the throngs of crowds, the team addressed the crowds gathered by the Brandenburg Gate, partied their asses off with the adoring fans... and promptly broke the world cup.  Now, I have to apologize for a bit of an oversell there, because first off, the Germans only broke a "small chip" off the cup, and secondly, it wasn't even the real cup!  Almost immediately after raising the actual cup in Brazil, FIFA whisks the solid gold cup away to a Swiss vault.  The cup the Germans damaged is only a gold plated replica, and they have already gotten someone to fix the damaged cup.  The German FA President Wolfgang Niersbach released a statement saying that they had conducted a full investigation as to who broke the cup but "the investigation was concluded without result", which you have to love because the phrasing seems to suggest that they know full well who broke it, but didn't want to kill the party by outing the clumsy lummox who actually did it.

                                     (Alex Grimm/EPA/Bongarts/Getty Images/DFB/DPA)

Be sure to check out our previous post here.

The USA: a Future Powerhouse?

It’s been a little over a week since the World Cup came to its exciting end; taking with it the soccer fever that swept the nation. While this four year cycle where the country suddenly takes an interest in the world’s game for the better part of a month isn’t exactly new, it took on a whole new level this time. One simply has to look at the ticket sales by country to see that the USA had the most fans at the event outside the hosts Brazil. This has many people optimistic about the growth of the sport here in the States, and the prospect of us being relevant at the international level. It only took a dominant performance by Belgium (who was knocked out in the subsequent round) despite Tim Howard’s heroics to show us that we have quite a ways to go. So, after bowing out in the round of 16 once again, we are left wondering: just how soon can we expect the US to be a contender in the World Cup?

I believe that the answer to this question is sooner than most think. One of the most common arguments is that Americans simply just aren’t focused on soccer. This article highlights the revenue distribution among the major sports in the USA and in Germany. The numbers provided show that the Bundesliga and other soccer leagues in Germany rake in over 90% of the sports-related revenue in the country. This figure

is only about 2% in the United States. Despite this major imbalance, I don’t think that the MLS has to rival the NFL or even the NHL for the USA to compete at the international level. Realistically, it’s not feasible to expect the MLS to overtake the other major leagues with established markets anytime soon.

What the MLS has going for it is that its season does not overlap too significantly with three of the other major sports here. Therefore its only direct in-season competition is the MLB. The decline of baseball has been long overstated as its popularity is still very much relevant. However, with the current generation of soccer moms and youth soccer involvement second to only basketball in terms of participation, soccer will continue to grow its market. Franchises like the Seattle Sounders and the Portland Timbers have shown that it’s possible for MLS teams to develop significant fanbases. In addition, recent signings of players that are past their primes like David Villa to NYC FC and Xavi coming only help. They provide a big name to star for the team, and their knowledge and experience will only benefit young players emerging through the ranks. With an improved academy system, that gave rise to the talented DeAndre Yedlin, it can be expected that more homegrown players may get these opportunities to work alongside soccer legends.

This leads into another one of the most common arguments I’ve heard about soccer’s growth in the country: our best young athletes are opting for sports like basketball and football over soccer. This concept seems logical, I mean looking at Lebron James and Adrian Peterson, one can only wonder what may have been if they chose soccer. But this is America! I cannot agree with this argument when we have a population of 300 million and are consistently among the top countries in the Olympic Medal Count. If one country in the world does not have a shortage of talented, freakish athletes, it’s the USA. We just have to understand how to sift through these athletes and give them a chance in soccer. Up until recently with some teams in the US Soccer Development Academy, it has been the case that in order to play soccer at a high level, you had to invest quite a bit financially. Clint Dempsey has played his way into American folklore with his performance in Brazil this year. While now a USMNT legend, he was almost let slip through the cracks because of his family’s financial situation. In other countries, this is seldom the case. Talented players can find their way up the ranks regardless of financial circumstances.

Now we have a better system for identifying players, where do we go from here? Honestly, I can’t see us being competitors at the international level if we keep our players in the MLS past their early 20s. I think that the only way we quickly become a soccer powerhouse in the world is if we embrace a role like Brazil. For decades now, Brazil has been the best exporter of talented soccer players. While it’s no secret that their league has a large fanbase, young players continue to go overseas after their youth development as that is where the money is. I think we can get there if we allow our young players to climb the ranks and learn from these brilliant soccer minds that are ending their careers here. But then they must test themselves overseas. If we continue to produce quality young players, soon the European Market will be flocking to the USA and teams can collect the transfer fees that will come their way; further increasing their revenue.

So how long will it take before we can challenge for the World Cup? Who really knows, but I think that we are beginning to put into place a system that can bring us to be a powerhouse in the not too distant future.

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FIFA: The (Humble) Non-Profit With a History for Corruption

As an organization, I cannot stand FIFA.  Corruption runs rampant and often unchecked until some major news outlet gets a hold of and then FIFA just cuts loose one of their executives as a scapegoat, it doesn't matter to FIFA President Sepp Blatter (here after referred to as Captain Slime) as long as it's not his skin that's on the line.  The video below is old, but also one of the funniest (and most complete) overviews of the corruption in the FIFA organization.  Seriously, if I could ever convince you to watch a video, watch this one.



Some of the points in there (for those of you to strapped for time to watch the video) are utterly shocking.  A non-profit organization with over $1 billion in their rainy day fund... and on top of all that cash, they will walk away with nearly all directly soccer related profits from Brazil, Brazil the country that poured $11 billion into preparations for the World Cup, faced civil unrest for months over the spending and eventually suffered an embarrassing defeat the likes of which Brazil has never suffered at a World Cup final.  I would call FIFA parasites, but that would be greatly underselling the damage that FIFA and Captain Slime can do.
In 2022, FIFA selected Qatar to host the World Cup, a nation that not only reaches upwards of 120 degrees Fahrenheit but is, to quote Jon Oliver, "a modern day slave state"(I won't go into detail here, but watch the video and prepare to be disgusted).  Now rumors have begun to swirl that Qatar will not, in fact, be hosting the World Cup, a midst yet another corruption scandal.  So what does Captain Slime do to quell these rumblings?  He hires former US Attorney Michael Garcia to lead an independent investigation into the corruption surrounding the 2018 and 2022 bidding process.  Hey, that's great right??  They finally want to work on the public opinion and put the charges of corruption... Wait what? Oh FIFA isn't going to release the results of the investigation?  They're just going to receive it, pass judgement on themselves and then decide what their punishment should be.  It's the equivalent of having a student take a test, and then grade the test themselves.  And, no one else will ever see the test so there's no chance of the student getting caught cheating.
The craziest part of this whole thing, is that I watched almost every game of this year's world cup.  I just discussed for a couple hundred words, how corrupt FIFA and Captain Slime are, and how disgusted I am by it, and yet I won't stop watching the games or talking about the sport.  And that is because, soccer is a drug, and FIFA is our dealer.

American Outlaws

I can't take any credit for discovering this or anything that has to do with the original post but it definitely belongs here:

A rant on an English soccer podcast after the group stages of the World Cup:

One of the panelists was joking about the "I Believe That We Will Win" chant, doing it in a stereotypical American accent, and one of the others stopped him:

"No, I'm not having that. We love to make fun of Americans and their 'soccerball', and how they don't know anything about the sport, and everyone gets a good laugh at them. But they beat us in the group four years ago, and now they've gotten through a group with Germany, Portugal and Ghana. We got one point in our group. One. The US is still playing, and right now, the English need to shut up and maybe try to figure out why they are better at this sport than we are.

"And not only that, everyone mocks the Americans for being stupid about 'soccer', but if you talk to anyone in Brazil, they will tell you that no one has more fans there than the States, and no one chants louder than the American Outlaws. They've got Teddy Roosevelt down there, leading cheers.

"So I don't want to hear this crap about the US anymore. They are a part of the World Cup furniture right now, and we all better accept it"

Is it too early to start the countdown to 2018? Hopefully the excitement from this World Cup will last long enough for fans to pack the stadiums for friendlies and the eventual qualifying campaign for Russia. Americans have shown that we're fully behind our team and they gave us everything in return for four games. Not only that, but we've proven that we appreciate quality soccer as well. Every time a big club makes its way the States there's not an empty seat in the stadium. Quality aside, I had more fun watching this USA team than any European club team.

USA! USA! USA!

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Country Over Club, The World Cup's Effect on the Title Contenders

The anticipation leading up to the World Cup is unlike any sporting spectacle in the world. The only comparison that can offer any resistance is the Summer Olympics when it comes to overall scale and grandeur. There's a multitude of statistics that could be brought up in regards to tourism and viewership around the world, however it would be entirely too subjective to start comparing the two.

That being said, the buildup to the World Cup is unparalleled to even the most anticipated Olympics. This is because years before the first whistle was blown in the Brazil vs. Croatia opener, nations across the globe were battling for 31 slots which are anything but a guarantee. Winning the trophy is hard enough but qualifying for the tournament is an entirely different monster. France and Mexico, two regulars in any World Cup, both gained entry by the skin of their teeth in a tense play-in game, and some help from the USA respectively. In Brazil both teams more than proved their worth in stellar campaigns, but it goes to show that the pressure this tournament brings can result in some of the best teams in the world watching group-stage matches from their couch.

Teams are constantly battling for entry into this prestigious event but the internal war is often just as strenuous. A place in the final traveling party of twenty three players isn't determined until a few weeks before teams fly out to the host nation. Nothing is guaranteed to even the best players on an international squad as Franck Ribery and Marco Rues would both attest too. Although this was entirely out of their control, it's still a prime example of just how stressful this process can be.

José Mourinho accused the Brazilian players on his Chelsea squad of becoming too distracted by the imminent World Cup towards the end of the club season. You can hardly blame him though as the Brazilian team poured their heart and soul into nearly every moment of the tournament (I only say nearly due to "Big Phil" Scolari drawing up a game-plan for a high school JV team because no one told him they were playing the best team in the world). Anyone can speculate over what's really happening with clubs such as Chelsea, with no shortage of international talent, but if the coach announces something like this publicly, then it's clearly become a significant distraction.

The country over club argument has gained quite some steam over the past few years as more and more players continue to forgo international friendlies during the heart of their club seasons. However, it can be assumed that any player in the world would rather have a World Cup title than any trophy he could win at the club level. So while the tournament serves as a major distraction in the months leading up, what does it imply for the start of the new Premier League campaign in a few weeks? The top dogs had much more players in action down in Brazil which typically goes without saying but it's even more noticeable when you see what teams had players who ran the furthest. Internationals on Arsenal ran a total of 199 miles, Manchester City 196 mi, Manchester United 202 mi, Tottenham 126 mi and Liverpool 103 mi. No team ran further than Chelsea who's players racked up a total distance of 271 mi.

If the World Cup is influential enough that players may have not been at their best in the weeks leading up, it could be assumed that it will be just as much of a problem afterwards. There's going to be the wear and tear of all that extra running, German players may be complacent now that they've reached the pinnacle of their sport, and Brazilian players may be suffering from a lack of confidence. It would be easy to say that managers have to be wary of this when they're integrating these players back in the team. However, the aftershock of the World Cup won't cause problems with this club campaign. Other than delaying some of the transfer window, players will have recovered by the time August 16th rolls around.

While on the topic of Chelsea they're an excellent example of how the World Cup won't have a sustained effect. In South Africa, Chelsea had fifteen players taking part in the 2010 tournament. These players had varying degrees of success, however in the month of August they racked up a goal differential of fourteen bagging six goals against both West Bromwich Albion and Blackpool. If anyone thought German complacency would be a problem they only have to look as far as Barcelona's 2010/11 season. Barca had eight players that were a part of the World Cup winning squad. These players then led the team to Spanish Super Cup and La Liga trophies, before demolishing Manchester United in the Champions League final. That team will go down as one of the greatest of all time, and there wasn't a hint of complacency after winning the biggest prize the previous summer. Not being satisfied with what you've won is a mark of any good team in the first place.

If the World Cup has any effect on the title contenders it will be so minimal that it probably won't even reach the press or be evident while watching a game. The past few months have produced some of the most exiting matches in recent memory, but I'm confident that we won't be seeing a significant dip in form from anyone who was a part of the battles in Brazil.

-Patrick Kerrigan



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Get Soccer Scores Subtly On Your Wrist

Picture this, you're in a meeting with the big wigs right as your team is hitting the pitch.  You want to know how the game is going but you can't be pulling your phone out every 5 minutes to check the score. If only there was a way to subtly check on your team... Well hopefully there soon will be. Thanks to renowned watch designer Richard Hoptroff of Hoptroff London, and helped by his recent kickstarter campaign, we may soon see a luxury watch on the market with more functionality than we are used to.

The watch shown above, uses dials to tell you the score of your favorite team as well as the match time, all on the face of a suave luxury watch.  The project has since evolved to give backers the option of what data they wish to be displayed on the face of their timepiece, but as it started as a soccer related idea, I felt it merited a mention on here.

Now the only drawback to getting in on the ground floor of this project is the price tag.  £400 gets you one of the first 20 models of the new watch which is out of the range of possibility for most poor college kids like myself.  But the price tag is more than justified for not only the functionality of the watch, but also the design and make.  Hoptroff of London has a reputation for creating beautiful luxury watches, and with this new advance in technology, surely the project merits a look from our more financially gifted readers.

You can find the project here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1087611122/hotblack-the-premium-watch-with-live-football-scor

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Adidas signs $1.3b deal with Man Utd.

Well its official, Man U and Adidas have signed a $1.3 billion deal as Adidas takes over from Nike after the '14-'15 season, and in spectacular fashion I might add.  The new deal has completely dwarfed the market, more than doubling the expense of the nearest supplier contract (also Adidas at $49 million a year to Real Madrid).  The deal, apart from being mind-numbingly large, is not the only new source of revenue that Man U is picking up in the coming years.  Apart from the Adidas deal, Man U has also (earlier this summer) inked their deal with sponsor Chevrolet, which reportedly pays out 80 million a year paying out over half a billion over the course of the seven year contract.  For those of you who follow the financial sector, you'll know that Chevy actually fired CEO shortly after striking the deal with Man U.  While there was much speculation that the termination was due to the financials of the deal, the real reason is that the Chevrolet board needed to purge themselves of the evil that would allow this abomination of a jersey to be released on the world.

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Speculation: Mysteries of the Off Season

The theme of any off season for major clubs around the world can be summed up in one word: speculation.  After every player gets as far away from soccer as they possibly can (following either the end to their club seasons or their exit from the world cup) entertainment and excitement is few and far between. For the big clubs there's often a trip to a developing soccer nation in the hopes of increasing brand awareness and jersey sales. Their will be friendlies mainly consisting of the reserve squad sprinkled with a few stars. Last but not least, Jack Wilshere will smoke a cigarette and everyone loses their minds. As exiting as this all sounds there's one thing that has everyone stuck in a cubicle refreshing there browsers as often as possible. The transfer window is here in all it's inflated extravagant glory.

A high profile team will typically play 5,000 minutes of competitive soccer if they're playing against Europe's finest and advancing through Cup play. While this seems like a considerable amount it only means that watching our favorite team play only takes up less than 1% of our lives, and that's if we're fortunate enough to watch every game. While the 99% is a huge void to be filled we do our best to make the time between matches shorter by doing what we do best, debating and speculating.

The States have been in a frenzy the past few weeks trying to decipher where Lebron will land. But while this was happening Europe has been coping with the end of a fabulous World Cup by shifting their attention to headlines such as Yaya Toure's bipolar disorder, or just how high James Rodriguez's price-tag can go, or the fact that Barcelona have purchased the most expensive cannibal in the world. Sami Khedira was in the middle of a photo shoot in one Arsenal's new Puma kits when his agent backed out and Khedira covered for him by saying that talks were never held. Oddly enough no part of that last sentence was true. But then again neither are half the stories on the web at this point. 

As much as the next person I'm completely immersed in all the rumors circling around this time of year. But as much as I love the developing story that while on vacation Arturo Vidal's housekeeper told the waitress, who told the bartender who reviled in an interview that Vidal is 100% sure that he doesn't know where he'll be playing next season, I can't wait for it to end. While I'm sure there's considerable business that has yet to be done, the transfer window will be closed soon enough. Then we can all go on to speculate about more important matters, such as who is the biggest title contender after they've played three games.

--PK


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