Analysis

The Milwaukee Wave: A beacon of consistency amid the chaos of American soccer

In the heart of downtown Milwaukee, just a mile from the shores of Lake Michigan lies American soccer’s oldest success story that deals not in grass and touchlines but turf and boards. 

The Milwaukee Wave has operated for nearly forty consecutive years and is the oldest continuously operating professional soccer team in the United States. That remarkable feat is not achieved through sheer luck, but rather, meticulous attention to detail. It's an entire organization that has bought into doing things the right way because for the Wave, success is not an option, it's an obligation.

Mallory Swanson is in invincible form as she finishes SheBelieves Cup with FOUR goals

The USWNT defeated Brazil 2-1 in the SheBelieves Cup on Wednesday to win the tournament going a perfect three wins from three games.

Questions were raised when the news broke that 2022 U.S. Female Player of the Year Sophia Smith would miss the 2023 SheBelieves Cup. Would the USWNT attack still be as lethal? Who will step up?

“Hold my beer,” Mallory Swanson says.

The United States qualifies for U-17 Men's World Cup with win over Guatemala

The United States have earned a spot at this year's U-17 Men’s World Cup with a hard-fought 5-3 win against Guatemala in the quarterfinals of the CONCACAF U-17 Championship. It took four goals to defeat the tournament’s hosts in an extremely hostile home atmosphere. 

Top 10 MLS games to look forward to in 2023

The 2023 MLS season kicks off this Saturday and we couldn't be more excited. A full slate of matchups greets fans on Feb. 25, beginning when Nashville SC hosts NYCFC at 4:30 p.m. ET and ending with Real Salt Lake traveling north to take on the Vancouver Whitecaps at 10:30 p.m. ET. All 12 matches will be available to stream on Apple TV via the MLS Season Pass. 

Looking ahead to the new campaign on the horizon, several games jump out from the page. So as you plan your weekends and months around following Major League Soccer, here are ten games you’re not going to want to miss. 

‘Stop trying to be a hard a** and pass the ball’ — Alexi Lalas tears into Adams and McKennie

Polarizing soccer pundit Alexi Lalas ruffled feathers in the USMNT sphere after sharing his opinion about the midfield duo of Tyler Adams and Weston McKennie. Lalas doesn’t seem to be a fan of their physical approach in the Premier League.

Adams and McKennie have only played four EPL games together at Leeds United and have already earned a name for themselves. We at The18 refer to them as the ‘Premier League Bad Boys’ due to their hard tackles and how they never back down from a fight.

The year's best story? Karius out for redemption in EFL Cup final on his Newcastle debut

Sunday's EFL Cup final is a tale of two clubs desperate to herald the beginning of a new era with silverware. For Manchester United, ending a six-year wait for a major trophy would affirm Erik ten Hag's revolution. For Newcastle United, a 68-year drought would be remedied by the wealth of the Saudi PIF and the tinkerings of Eddie Howe. 

MLS expansion fee enters the stratosphere — who can afford it?

Major League Soccer's ambition of being a true player in the world's club game by the 2026 World Cup is slowly being realized. 

The league's 28th season kicks off Saturday with a new team (St. Louis City SC), a new 10-year partnership with Apple TV (worth $250M per season) that's available in over 100 countries and Tuesday's announcement of a three-year extension with Audi that pays a multimillion-dollar fee annually.

Liverpool vs. Real Madrid preview: Klopp says rewatching UCL final was ‘proper torture’

LIVERPOOL, England - Liverpool coach Jürgen Klopp conceded that he had not been able to bring himself to rewatch last season's Champions League final defeat by Real Madrid until this past weekend, insisting reliving the experience was "torture."

The Reds won their first three matches against Real in European competition, between 1981 and 2009. Since then, however, they are winless in six games against them, with five of those ending in defeat.

Jordan Pefok’s Union Berlin are serious contenders for the Bundesliga title

After Bayern Munich’s loss against Mönchengladbach on Saturday, a win for second-place Union Berlin against Schalke on Sunday could make Jordan Pefok's team league-leaders with a two-point gap.

If you’ve lived under a rock for the first half of the European season — or just completely disregard anything happening in the Bundesliga (rightfully so after 10 straight league titles for Bayern) — you’re probably not aware that Union Berlin actually has a shot at the title this season.

Preview: Women's World Cup playoffs begin with final 3 spots up for grabs

Portugal and Chile start with a slight advantage as 10 teams battle it out for the remaining three berths at this year's Women's World Cup in the final qualifying playoffs over the next week in New Zealand.

Cameroon, Haiti, Panama, Paraguay, Senegal, Thailand, Taiwan and Papua New Guinea are also involved in the tournament, which will complete the field for the first 32-team Women's World Cup in New Zealand and Australia later this year.

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