Designated Players
Soccer Potpourri
MLS
- Will Parchman: A statistical look at MLS Week 1
- MLSSoccer.com: MLS announces partnership with French Football Federation
- Kyle McCarthy: Buying or selling? MLS seeks the best of both worlds
- SI.com: MLS fills spring training void left by MLB teams in Tucson
- Earl Reed: The Designated Player Rule: How Is It Working?
- Steve Goff: Major League Soccer’s second generation
- Matthew Doyle: Why we often miss the point when we talk formations
- Alex Labidou: Five observations from MLS Commissioner Don Garber’s press conference
- Tropics of Meta: An MLS Moment: What the Chivas USA Controversy Tells US About the State of US Soccer
Interesting Reads
Soccer Potpourri
MLS
- Nick Green: DP’s – MLS teams get money’s worth
Scotland
- Rangers: US stars set to depart lowly Rangers
- SPL: SPL clubs warned of solvency fallout with Third Division newco Rangers
- David Conn: Rangers drop puts SPL in grave danger of financial collapse
The Oh My Section
- BBC Sports: Sepp Blatter knew of ‘bribes’ to Fifa officials
- Spiegel Online: Germany Furious at World Cup Corruption Claims
- Tragedy: Three soccer players in Houston struck by lightning – 2 dead
Tournaments
- Olympics: Olympic Disinterest In Football
- UCL: UEFA Champions League financial distribution 2011-2012
Soccer Potpourri
Starters
- Arizona: Can Soccer Heal Tucson’s Wounds?
- NASA: Soccer Balls in Space
MLS
- World Soccer Reader: 2012 MLS Team Previews
- WV Hooligan: 2012 MLS Roster Rule Changes
- US Soccer Players: Putting A Value On The Designated Player – A very interesting idea.
- Free Beer Movement: Soccer Marketing 101 – Turning Around the Chivas USA Brand
- Jason Davis: Major League Soccer’s Player Search
- Brian Quarstad: MLS Reserve League Possibility of Integration into America’s Lower Divisions; Continuing the Discussion
- US Soccer Players: Simplifying MLS
- Chicago Fire: Chicago Fire cuts ties with and sues youth soccer league
Interesting Reads
Read the rest of this entry »
Soccer Potpourri
MLS
- Kyle McCarthy: Shalrie Joseph’s new deal reflects the continued evolution of the Designated Player model
- Steve Davis: Re-calibrating the DP rules in Major League Soccer
Interesting Reads
- Bill Archer: Goodbye New York: CONCACAF Heading South
- FIFA: Transparency International cuts ties with FIFA
- FMF: Mexican Playoffs: Too Hot to Handle?
- David Hills: Said and Done
- Americanize Soccer: Orlando City Causing Shakeup in US Soccer’s Minor Leagues
Around the World
- Brasil: Corinthians win title on emotional day
- Argentina: Boca Juniors claim Apertura title
- Japan: Kashiwa wins J-League title
- Central America: A roundup of Central American playoff action
The Business of Soccer
- Graham Ruthven: Beckham, Branding and a Player’s True Value
- Alex Miller: Average Premier League player picks up £1.1m a year
Tournaments
Soccer Potpourri
MLS
- Tactics: Talking Tactics from MLSSoccer.com
- Sounder at Heart: A Closer Look at Designated Player Strategies (Eastern Conference)
- Full list of MLS players called for September FIFA dates(8/26)
- Chicago Fire, Seattle Sounders FC advance to 2011 U.S. Open Cup final
Around the World
- EPL: Team by Team Transfers
- Turkey: Fenerbahce relegation request rejected
- Barca: One defender, nine midfielders: Barça’s thrilling formation
Interesting Reads
- David Hills: Said and Done
- Tom Marshall: Postcard from Mexico: Dark side of life South of the Border
The Business of Soccer
- SI.com: European football clubs facing financial problems
- Guardian: How football transfers have come to resemble big company acquisitions
- Guardian: Uefa president, Michel Platini, worries game is going pear-shaped
- J Hutcherson: The Shape Of European Soccer
- Owen Gibson: Premier League clubs take risks with new rules in rush for riches
Tourneys, Strikes, DP’s, Tevez and more
MLS
- Sounder at Heart: Rule Change and New DP Strategies
- Sounder at Heart: DP Strategies in the Western Conference
- Kyle McCarthy: On RBNY’s woes and other MLS items. – A good read.
- Steve Davis: Talking Tactics: True holding midfielder re-emerges in MLS. – A good read.
Interesting Reads
- Fascinating Read: Carlos Tevez: The billionaires’ fight over his ownership revealed
- David Hills: Said and Done
- Strategy: The Catenaccio Myth
The Business of Soccer
Tourneys
- CONCACAF Champions League: CCL Group Day 2 Update
- UEFA Champions League: UCL Preliminaries Leg 2 Update
- UEFA Champions League: Fenerbahce out of Champions League after Uefa steps in
- Copa Sudamericana: Botafogo through to round of 16
- Football Marketing: FA Cup Prize Money For Clubs
Around the World
- NASL: Is the $750,000 NASL Start-up Franchise Fee Priced Right?
- Guardian: The barra bravas: the violent Argentinian gangs controlling football
- Mexico: Mexican soccer match suspended due to gunfire
- Spain: In a game of two halves Spain’s haves and have-nots need to stand together
- Uzbekistan: Bunyodkor as good as seal fourth straight title
- Italy: Italian players stand firm with strike threat
- Spain: Still no deal to end Spanish league strike
- Spain: La Liga’s future at a crossroads
Young DP’s, Champions Leagues and other Stuff
MLS
- On first blush, I jumped on the new DP Rule Adjustment. That is, until I read the fine print whereby players currently in US leagues are excluded. So Brek Shea, for example, would not be eligible to be grouped with International ‘Young DP’s’. Am I missing something, or is this a lost opportunity to facilitate the growth of young US players while keeping them at home? Both Ridge Mahoney and Drew Epperley have similar thoughts. Read their pieces via the links below.
- DP Rule Adjustment: Simon Borg’s report on the change in the Designated Player Rule for 2012
- Ridge Mahoney: On the DP Rule Adjustment
- Drew Epperley: On the DP Rule Adjustment
- Stumptown Footy: The MLS USMNT Allocation Order is Dumb… Here’s Why
- Kyle McCarthy: Making the Robbie Keane transfer work or … seeing through the mud of MLS economics
Around North America
- Free Beer Movement: Time for ESPN To Get Serious
Interesting Reads
- David Hills: Said and Done
- Science of Soccer: Preventing Hamstring Injuries With Eccentric Training
Tourneys
- CONCACAF CL: CCL group stage gets underway. LA and Seattle take opening wins
- U20 World Cup: U-20 Final Four
- UEFA CL Cash Distribution: UEFA Distributes €754.1m To Participating Clubs
- Braga upstage Benfica & Porto in European earnings: Top 20 in Monies Earned in Euro Club Tourneys
The Business of Soccer
- David Conn: The Premier League has priced out fans, young and old
- Spain: La Liga set for delayed start as Spanish players’ union calls strike
Soccer Potpourri
Starter Fun
- Special 1 TV: Wayne’s Redemption
MLS
- Kyle Martino: MLS’s Strange Spending Practices
- Avery Raimondo: MLS Designated Player Dissection: Import Guti
- Steve Davis: Talking Tactics: Houston’s Set Pieces
- Kevin McCauley: MLS Tactics: FC Dallas Without David Ferreira
The Business of Soccer
- Guardian: Manchester United top Forbes List of World’s Richest Football Clubs
- Christopher Savino: Business Off The Pitch: Advantages of competition between kit suppliers and what MLS is missing out on
Around the World
- UnProfessional Foul: Sepp’s plan: Mo’ Money, Mo’ Money, Mo’ Money
- David Hills: Said and Done
- HexagonalBlog: A roundup of Central American Action
- Brotherly Game: A Lower Tier American League Player’s Story – Part 1 – Part 2
- Stephen Wade: Death and Violence Scar the Argentine Game
- Rob Hughes: Deep Reserves, Off the Field and on the Bench
- Independent: Wenger Failed to React When Chelsea Moved the Goalposts
- Keith Hickey: Where is America’s La Masia?
- Reuters: Relegation in Argentina – Is the System Fair?
Postscript
- Check out the attendance page and let me know if there are any improvements/additions that you’d like to see. Thanks.
On MLS Roster Expansion
With the recent announcement of the MLS schedule expanding to 34 matches next year, something I speculated about when the 17th and 18th teams were awarded, there has been a bit of chatter about enlarging the rosters. Jason Davis, over at Match Fit USA, has a recent post on the subject. We won’t even touch on what happens when the league expands to 20 teams.
Back during the CBA negotiations, I put forward the idea of unlimited home grown players on the roster with no salary cap hit. I also like the new English Premier roster rule that permits unlimited players age 21 or younger.
Other MLS Stuff
One Toronto fan’s rant about next year’s ticket prices.
How the DP’s performed last week.
Are DP’s good or bad for MLS.
Other Stuff
Miriti Murungi of Nutmeg Radio on why International Friendlies do matter.
Serie A: No strike, for now.