MLS

Major League Soccer will resume the regular season with clubs playing in their home cities starting from Aug. 12 following the end of the single-site tournament in Florida that was designed to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the league said on Saturday.

The majority of matches will be played without fans in attendance and the regular season will lead into an expanded 18-team post-season, culminating with the MLS Cup on Dec. 12, MLS added in a news release.

With All-Star right back Romain Métanire nursing a hamstring injury, Minnesota United manager Adrian Heath had to turn to second-year jack of all trades Hassani Dotson during Thursday’s MLS is Back Tournament semifinal against Orlando City. 

Dotson has proven himself a commendable professional despite having just turned 23, but a rare cameo on the defensive flank was always going to be a tough ask — especially so when the man he’s tasked with marking has made over 100 appearances for both Manchester United and Portugal: Mr. Nani. 

Major League Soccer, following the lead of the NWSL, has had a mostly successful return from the novel coronavirus pandemic. Playing matches in a bubble in Orlando, Florida, MLS has helped show it is possible to resume sports, so long as a long list of necessary precautions are taken.

Perhaps then it’s no surprise the players association of MLS — and those from four other major sports leagues — has taken issue with a key aspect of Sen. Mitch McConnell’s latest stimulus legislation proposal. 

After a two-year spell at Liga MX side Tijuana recently came to an end, Erick "Cubo" Torres has returned to MLS.

Atlanta United announced the signing of Torres on Friday as a Season-Ending Injury Replacement Player. Atlanta was in desperate need of a forward to replace talisman Josef Martinez, who suffered  an ACL injury in the first match of the club's 2020 season. 

Meet “Cubo”... “El Cubo” Torres

Longtime Chelsea winger Willian looks set to leave after seven seasons with the London club. Willian will turn 32 in two weeks and could play his final match for Chelsea in the FA Cup final against Arsenal on Saturday. His current contract expires in August and he has a handful of options for where he could play next, including MLS. 

Willian’s agent, Kia Joorabchian, said in an interview with Talksport that he has two offers from Premier League clubs, two offers from Europe and a large offer from an unannounced MLS club.

Diego Rossi scored his competition-leading sixth and seventh goals of the MLS is Back Tournament, and Los Angeles FC defeated the Seattle Sounders 4-1 on Monday night in the round of 16 near Orlando.

Latif Blessing added a goal before halftime for LAFC, which avenged a 3-1 defeat to Seattle in last year's Western Conference final. Los Angeles' Brian Rodriguez added his second goal of the tournament to seal the team's meeting with Orlando City in a quarterfinal on Friday.

Forward Bradley Wright-Phillips left the game at halftime for Los Angeles due to an apparent injury.

The Seattle Sounders face Los Angeles FC for the first time since knocking them out of last year's playoffs when they meet in the MLS is Back Tournament Round of 16 on Monday night at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando.

After winning the 2019 Supporters' Shield by earning the most points in MLS history, LAFC were eliminated from the postseason in a 3-1 defeat to eventual MLS Cup champions Seattle in the Western Conference final.

Atlanta United’s first three seasons set a new standard for an expansion team in MLS. So finishing as the worst team in the MLS Is Back Tournament in Orlando over the last month was clearly not good enough. Atlanta United coach Frank de Boer and the club “mutually agreed to part ways, effective immediately” on Friday, putting an end to a tumultuous 18 months in charge.

Atlanta United, Frank de Boer mutually agree to part ways.https://t.co/NYkeoA4kjk

The MLS expansion team in Charlotte received disappointing news on July 18 that the club’s inaugural season was pushed back due to the coronavirus. The moping for the new Charlotte team only lasted a couple days as spirits are high once again. On Wednesday morning the name and logo were released and received mostly positive reviews.