Tag: U.S. soccer

How to buy U.S. vs. Panama Copa América tickets

The USMNT defeated Bolivia 2-0 on Sunday evening. Catch the next U.S. in person, limited tickets remain for Thursday’s matchup against Panama in Atlanta.

The U.S. men’s national team started off its Copa América tournament with a dominant 2-0 win against Bolivia.

Captain America Christian Pulisic kicked things off with a goal in just the third minute of the game.

WATCH: Christian Pulisic’s beautiful opening goal against Bolivia

Pulisic wasn’t done, earning an assist on the only other goal in the game, and leading the team to the top of Group C.

Next up, the Stars and Stripes head to Atlanta to take on Panama at 6:00 p.m. EDT on Thursday, June 27.

SHOP: USMNT vs. Panama Copa América tickets

Limited tickets still remain for Thursday’s showdown at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. As of publication, the cheapest ticket available was $83, while the cheapest available suite ticket was $359.

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop U.S. vs Panam Copa América tickets” link=”https://stubhub.prf.hn/l/JpXbRWD”]

How to buy U.S. vs. Panama Copa América tickets

The USMNT defeated Bolivia 2-0 on Sunday evening. Catch the next U.S. in person, limited tickets remain for Thursday’s matchup against Panama in Atlanta.

The U.S. men’s national team started off its Copa América tournament with a dominant 2-0 win against Bolivia.

Captain America Christian Pulisic kicked things off with a goal in just the third minute of the game.

WATCH: Christian Pulisic’s beautiful opening goal against Bolivia

Pulisic wasn’t done, earning an assist on the only other goal in the game, and leading the team to the top of Group C.

Next up, the Stars and Stripes head to Atlanta to take on Panama at 6:00 p.m. EDT on Thursday, June 27.

SHOP: USMNT vs. Panama Copa América tickets

Limited tickets still remain for Thursday’s showdown at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. As of publication, the cheapest ticket available was $83, while the cheapest available suite ticket was $359.

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop U.S. vs Panam Copa América tickets” link=”https://stubhub.prf.hn/l/JpXbRWD”]

Apple TV to broadcast final three rounds of 2024 U.S. Open Cup

The seven games will be available for free

U.S. Soccer has announced an agreement with Apple TV to broadcast the final three rounds of the 2024 U.S. Open Cup on MLS Season Pass.

The seven games will be available free to any user with an Apple ID.

MLS Season Pass will broadcast the quarterfinals (July 9-10), semifinals (August 27-28), and the final (September 25), with the last-eight pairings determined on Wednesday night after the conclusion of the round of 16.

The deal is only through the remainder of the 2024 tournament, with broadcast details — and indeed, the fate of the Open Cup itself — unknown beyond this season.

After initially trying to pull all of its clubs out of the Open Cup, MLS eventually agreed to field eight of its 26 American teams in this year’s competition.

That agreement is only good through the 2024 edition, with further discussions yet to take place on the format moving forward.

Of those eight teams in the Open Cup this year, five have reached the quarterfinal stage. The other three remaining clubs are from the second-tier USL Championship.

Below are the quarterfinal pairings, with the final schedule and venues for all matches still to be confirmed. The home side is listed first in each pairing.

2024 U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals

  • Sporting Kansas City (MLS) vs. FC Dallas (MLS)
  • Atlanta United (MLS) vs. Indy Eleven (USL-C)
  • Sacramento Republic (USL-C) vs. Seattle Sounders FC (MLS)
  • Los Angeles FC (MLS) vs. New Mexico United (USL-C)

[lawrence-related id=72822,49775,67608]

Marsch fires shot at U.S. Soccer after accepting Canada job

The new Canada boss said he wasn’t treated well by U.S. Soccer last summer

Canada head coach Jesse Marsch has accused U.S. Soccer of not treating him well when he interviewed for the U.S. men’s national team job last summer.

Marsch was named Canada men’s national team head coach earlier this week, taking charge of one of the USMNT’s biggest rivals just a month before the Copa América kicks off.

Things could have been different, though, had U.S. Soccer opted to hire the Wisconsin native last year when the federation had a vacancy in its men’s program.

In the midst of the interview process, Marsch’s agent went public to declare that his client would not be getting the job. The following day, U.S. Soccer announced that Gregg Berhalter had been rehired for another cycle as USMNT head coach.

Speaking on CBS’s Call It What You Want podcast on Thursday, Marsch didn’t get into the specifics of what went down last summer, but made it clear that he came away from the process with a bad taste in his mouth.

“My respect for U.S. Soccer is big, but I went through a process with them, right? And I’m not going to go into it, but I wasn’t treated very well in the process,” he said.

“And so whatever, that’s in the past now. The minute it was done I was like, ‘OK, I’m moving forward, and I’m going to figure out what’s right for me.’

“It motivated me again to find the right people. And so now I just want to talk about Canada, because I’m excited. I feel like it’s a fan base and a player pool and a nation that resonates with me.”

Before starting his head coaching career, Marsch worked for U.S. Soccer as an assistant with the USMNT on Bob Bradley’s staff.

Prior to being hired by Canada, Marsch had been out of work since being sacked by Leeds in February 2023. Since then, he has been working as a pundit and has not been shy about offering criticism of Berhalter.

Marsch has a contract with Canada Soccer through the 2026 World Cup, but said he could see himself staying even longer if things go well.

“I know my task is to get us to 2026 and have an incredible performance,” the 50-year-old said. “But you know, I think I’m going to love this job. I think I’m going to love the experience and the people that are working here, and I don’t think it’ll be out of the question for us to consider what it could look like long term.”

[lawrence-related id=70218,70019,55469]

U.S. women’s deaf national team set for historic doubleheader with USWNT

The U.S. women’s deaf national team will face Australia ahead of the USWNT’s friendly vs. South Korea

The U.S. women’s national team’s June 1 friendly against South Korea will now be part of a double bill.

U.S. Soccer announced on Friday that the U.S. women’s deaf national team will join the USWNT at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park to play a friendly against Australia as part of a doubleheader.

Tickets for the USWNT’s match in Colorado will be valid for both matches, with the deaf national team’s match set for a 2 p.m. ET start. In a first for one of the federation’s extended national teams, the match will be broadcast on TruTV and Max.

That will be followed by the USWNT’s match against South Korea, which is scheduled for a 5 p.m. ET start. That game will be broadcast on TNT, TruTV, Universo, Max, and Peacock.

“The U.S. women’s deaf national team is honored to take part in this historic doubleheader with the U.S. women’s national team and I know all the players are excited to participate in this unique event,” said deaf WNT head coach Amy Griffin, who was part of the USWNT side that won the 1991 World Cup.

“Along with a legacy of international success, our team serves as an inspiration for deaf and hard of hearing players and is a catalyst for growth in those communities. This doubleheader and the broadcast of our game marks a huge step forward for the extended national teams program and will magnify what success looks like when more opportunities and access are provided to everyone.”

The deaf WNT has won a whopping 37 of its 38 games since getting started in 2005, claiming three DIFA World Deaf Football Championship titles and four Deaflympics gold medals in that time.

The friendly against Australia will wrap up the team’s first training camp since winning the World Deaf Football Championship in October. The camp is planned as part of the preparations for the 2024 Deaf Pan American Games, which will be held in Brazil from November 7-18.

[lawrence-related id=68138,68037,65195]

U.S. Soccer and Mexico withdraw joint bid for 2027 Women’s World Cup

The federations said they will instead focus on securing the tournament in 2031

U.S. Soccer and the Mexican Football Federation announced that they have withdrawn their joint bid to host the 2027 Women’s World Cup.

The two federations said that they would instead shift their focus to securing the 2031 World Cup, with the bid calling for equal investment to the men’s tournament.

“Hosting a World Cup tournament is a huge undertaking – and having additional time to prepare allows us to maximize its impact across the globe,” U.S. Soccer president Cindy Parlow Cone said in a statement.

“I’m proud of our commitment to provide equitable experiences for the players, fans and all our stakeholders. Shifting our bid will enable us to host a record-breaking Women’s World Cup in 2031 that will help to grow and raise the level of the women’s game both here at home as well as across the globe.”

The USA-Mexico bid was one of three finalists for the tournament, which means the 2027 World Cup will come down to two remaining bids: a three-country proposal from Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands, and a bid from Brazil.

The host of the 2027 tournament will be announced after a vote at the FIFA Congress on May 17 in Bangkok, Thailand.

The United States will still have plenty of major events coming even without the World Cup in 2027. The country will host the Copa América this summer, the expanded Club World Cup in 2025, the men’s World Cup in 2026 alongside Mexico and Canada, and the 2028 Olympics will be in Los Angeles.

With such a crowded schedule, the two federations made the determination to shift their focus to 2031.

“After careful analysis we feel that moving our bid back to 2031 will allow us to promote and build up to the most successful Women’s World Cup ever,” said Mexican Football Federation president Ivar Sisniega.

“The strength and universality of our professional women’s leagues, coupled with our experience from organizing the 2026 World Cup, means that we will be able to provide the best infrastructure as well as an enthusiastic fan base that will make all the participating teams feel at home and to put together a World Cup that will contribute to the continued growth of women’s football.”

[lawrence-related id=35265,63665,35822]

La Liga president predicts matches in the U.S. by 2025-26 season

Javier Tebas believes U.S. Soccer is set to lose an antitrust lawsuit

La Liga president Javier Tebas has stated his belief that his league will stage official matches in the U.S. as soon as the 2025-26 season.

Tebas appears to believe that FIFA and U.S. Soccer will ultimately lose an ongoing lawsuit that challenges a ban on teams from staging league matches abroad.

“I think it could be in the 2025-26 season, but La Liga will play official matches abroad,” Tebas told Spanish newspaper Expansion.

“An official match in the U.S. will strengthen our position in the North American market, which is the second market for La Liga after Spain.”

Tebas said he expects La Liga will not be the only league to try and hold matches abroad.

“Other very competitive leagues are coming so we cannot always do the same thing, but we cannot allow them to overtake us,” Tebas said.

The La Liga president conducted the interview the same week that the U.S. Supreme Court said it would allow an antitrust lawsuit from soccer promoter Relevent Sports to move forward.

Relevent originally filed the lawsuit in 2019 after U.S. Soccer refused to sanction a regular-season match between Girona and Barcelona that was set to take place in Miami.

Earlier this month, Relevent and FIFA reached an agreement to drop FIFA from the lawsuit, leaving U.S. Soccer as the lone defendant. Though the agreement hasn’t been approved by a judge, it appears to be another step toward FIFA ending its global ban on teams playing official league matches abroad.

“FIFA and Relevent have agreed to resolve this matter as it concerns FIFA, pending FIFA’s consideration of changes to existing FIFA policies with respect to playing official season games outside of a league’s home territory,” FIFA said in a statement. “FIFA has not admitted any liability and continues to deny the legal claims alleged in Relevent’s complaint.”

[lawrence-related id=29589,55179,55173]

The USWNT and USMNT general manager positions are likely dead

The roles, which were first filled in 2018 and 2019, won’t be returning

The general manager positions for both the U.S. men’s and women’s national team are likely no more.

In an interview with reporters on Sunday, U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker confirmed that the positions, which have both become vacant in 2023, would probably not be filled.

“I’m just still in the process of finalizing the high-level supporting structure, but if you look at the GM role, my thinking is one of the big priorities for me is to make sure the senior men’s coach and the senior women’s coach report into the sporting director,” Crocker said in quotes published by ESPN. “I was pretty insistent on that. I feel like I’ll be the one that will be recruiting those coaches.

“I’ll be the one that will be making sure they’ve got robust development plans sitting with them or outlying the strategy. So it’s my job to hold those guys accountable for what has been agreed.”

Earnie Stewart became the first USMNT general manager when he was hired in 2018. One year later, he was promoted to sporting director and replaced by Brian McBride. Stewart and McBride both departed U.S. Soccer this January.

On the women’s side, Kate Markgraf — the only person to fill the USWNT general manager role — stepped down last month after she was hired in 2019.

The women’s GM position also included overseeing youth national teams, with those responsibilities set to be “split into other roles,” according to Crocker.

Crocker’s decision streamlines the U.S. Soccer organization chart. The two general manager positions were in charge of overseeing their respective senior national teams and their operations, including making head coaching decisions.

Those decisions will now fall to Crocker, who was brought on this April to replace Stewart.

Crocker’s role oversees the entire U.S. Soccer sporting department, which includes senior and youth national teams for both men and women, as well as extended national teams.

[lawrence-related id=29105,29007,29024]

U.S. Soccer to build training center, headquarters in Atlanta

U.S. Soccer is relocating to Georgia after a massive contribution from Atlanta United owner Arthur Blank

U.S. Soccer is heading to Atlanta, where it plans to build a training center and headquarters after a $50 million contribution from Atlanta United and Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank.

The announcement came following a U.S. Soccer board of directors meeting on Friday, as the federation said it would be departing its longtime home, Chicago. U.S. Soccer sold its former “Soccer House” headquarters in August.

“This national training center will accelerate the growth of soccer in this country and will represent a commitment to developing elite soccer players for decades to come,” U.S. Soccer president Cindy Parlow Cone said in a press release announcing the move.

“Investing in youth and adult programs as well as our extended national teams reflects our commitment to ensuring that players of all ages and backgrounds can find a home and thrive in this sport. These investments are a signal to our players, coaches, referees, members and fans that the future of U.S. Soccer is bright.”

Federation CEO and secretary general JT Batson has been tapped to select a final site in the metro Atlanta region, with U.S. Soccer saying that feasibility studies are being conducted on several locations already. The federation says it will make a final choice in January 2024.

The new facility will serve as federation headquarters and the training center for all 27 national team programs. That’s a massive change from the previous set-up, which saw U.S. Soccer’s business and operations set up in Chicago while training camps took place either near the venue for upcoming friendlies or, for winter camps, in California.

The federation noted that part of Blank’s funding of the project is earmarked for facilities designed specifically for the nine extended national teams, “particularly in support of the cerebral palsy (CP), deaf, and power soccer national teams.”

Blank’s hefty financial contribution does not foot the entire bill, with the federation saying that the project is “funded in part” by the Home Depot co-founder. U.S. Soccer did not note further outside contributions, but did mention that longtime FIFA sponsor Coca-Cola “played an important role” in the federation moving to Georgia. The beverage maker and U.S. Soccer announced a long-term sponsorship deal in July.

“America’s top athletes deserve the best when it comes to preparing them for competition on the global stage and I’m thrilled U.S. Soccer has chosen metro Atlanta as its new home,” said Blank.

“Atlanta’s incredible passion for soccer, corporate community and unmatched infrastructure make this a natural home for the national training center and I’m very confident our community will help America’s finest soccer players compete on a global level like never before.”

[lawrence-related id=28040,26905,26155]

Crocker: Kilgore to coach USWNT in October, U.S. Soccer aiming for December permanent hire

The USWNT should be rolling into 2024 with a new, permanent head coach

U.S. Soccer’s very busy 2023 is showing no signs of slowing down, with a U.S. women’s national team head coach now the federation’s top priority.

That hunt is ongoing, with U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker saying that interim head coach Twila Kilgore — who on Tuesday named her first squad ahead of a pair of upcoming friendlies against South Africa — would remain in her post for October’s set of contests against Colombia.

Speaking on TNT’s post-game show following the U.S. men’s national team’s 4-0 thumping of Oman, Crocker said that he’d be right back at work pursuing Vlatko Andonovski’s successor on Wednesday.

“I fly out tomorrow morning back to Chicago at 6 a.m., and we’re straight back into the search for the women’s head coach’s role,” said Crocker. “My job at the moment is split 50/50. So obviously, the men’s head coach hire was really important, and a key part of the job to start with, and now obviously, my focus turns to the to the women’s [team] and the women’s head coach search, and obviously helping Twila and the staff prepare for their event, which is just around the corner in Cincinnati.”

U.S. Soccer targets December USWNT hire

Asked for a timeline on U.S. Soccer’s pursuit of a coach, Crocker revealed that Kilgore and the current USWNT staff would be in place for October’s matches against Colombia in Utah and San Diego.

“Twila will pick up the September and the October camps with the staff,” said Crocker. “And you know, in an ideal world, we’d like to be in a position for the December camp to have the new head coach in place.”

That is a quicker turnaround than the men’s coaching hire, after the post-World Cup evaluation process was massively complicated by a controversy surrounding head coach Gregg Berhalter, midfielder Gio Reyna, and his parents. The USMNT were eliminated in Qatar on December 3, and did not end up announcing Berhalter’s return until mid-June.

The USWNT situation is different: the team’s performance was well below expectations (unlike the USMNT), and Andonovski unsurprisingly stepped down from the job shortly after the tournament.

Another major difference: The 2024 Olympics kick off in just 10 months, giving the USWNT another major tournament to grapple with in short order. With U.S. Soccer looking to bounce back after a World Cup stumble, it’s no surprise to see some urgency in the hiring process.

[lawrence-related id=27920,27827,27581]