2017 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup action resumes today and tomorrow with the fourth round, and I'll forgive you for not knowing that, but I'll never forget. Founded in 1914, the competition has overcome some turbulent times in American soccer, as evidenced by the fact that the tournament’s two most successful sides, Bethlehem Steel FC and Maccabi Los Angeles, no longer really exist.
Michael Bradley grabbed the headlines with his sensational strike against Mexico on Sunday, but for many, the United States Man of the Match was Geoff Cameron, the 31-year-old defender placed at the heart of the USA's three-man back line.
With Mexico controlling nearly 75 percent of possession in the match, completing 177 passes in the final third (as compared to 75 for the U.S.) and launching 25 crosses, you immediately get an idea of how important Cameron was in repelling Mexico’s frequent forays forward and completely disrupting their attacking rhythm.
A lot of people like to moan about international football, but it can be really fun if you approach it with a no f**ks given attitude — just follow the example set by San Marino’s social media team during their qualifier against Germany. If you didn’t follow any of Saturday’s UEFA qualifying, here’s what you missed.
#1. Norway And Martin Odegaard Won’t Be At The 2018 World Cup
With the 2016-17 Premier League season in the books, we now know what the league will look like next year. Relegated to the English Championship are Hull City, Middlesbrough and Sunderland. The three promoted sides include newcomers Brighton and Huddersfield and established EPL side Newcastle United.
We've reached the final match of the 2016/2017 Champions League, which means it's the end of The18's UCL Pick 'Em.
It's been a long and daunting season, but our lively bunch has done a decent job of giving you, the readers, an idea of who will win each Tuesday and Wednesday. Below are some simple answers that you can totally steal and use as your own to make your friends think you know it all. If you need to know how to watch the match, check out this story.
When it comes to the heart-stopping, heartfelt and hilarious moments we love about soccer, we tend to focus on what unfolds on the pitch. It follows logic that a substitution -- an activity occurring on the periphery -- would not warrant much more attention than the obligatory clap that comes with one player's exit, another's entrance and some extra time tacked on to the end of the match.
In anticipation of Sunday night’s Liga MX final second leg at Estadio Chivas, we spoke with Jose Maria Aldrete Gonzalez, Facility and Turf Manager for the building and a member of the Sports Turf Managers Association.
Originally employed as an architect during the construction of the stadium, which opened in 2010, Aldrete has continued in his new role since that time, including overseeing the transition from an artificial playing surface to natural grass at the behest of Johan Cruyff in 2012.
With the 2016-17 Premier League season in the books, we wanted to take a deep dive into how each team performed based on its payroll.
The final table reflected the spending gap between the top six teams and the rest. In fact, the eight teams that spent over $100 million in wages this season all finished in the top 8 of the table.
Although that might seem entirely too predictable, there was significant performance variance among those teams. Also, ninth place Bournemouth had one of the lowest payrolls, suggesting that they found some good players at a discount.
The premeditated pomp and choreographed farewell that John Terry bid Chelsea supporters at Stamford Bridge on Sunday stood in stark contrast to Luis Enrique’s final match at the Camp Nou. While the feel-good factor in the southwest of London as compared to the tension-riddled atmosphere at the Camp Nou could go someway towards explaining these divergent going away parties, the real variation was really only in the respective men of honor.
Losing a World Cup final in extra time is brutal and tough to come back from. Losing a Copa America final on penalties the subsequent year is a kick to the teeth. Losing yet another Copa America final the following year, to the same team and in the same manner, is practically a kill shot to any footballer’s professional hopes and dreams.