Opinion

PSA: Please respect youth soccer referees this season, they don’t get paid enough for your nonsense

Fall is rapidly approaching, and youth soccer is already underway this season. The18 unfortunately reports on far too many instances of enraged parents going after youth soccer referees. We’re looking to change the narrative on those poor officials in yellow and give them some more respect.

Spain defeat England to win Women’s World Cup despite their turd of a head coach

Spain defeated England 1-0 in the Women’s World Cup final on Sunday in Sydney, Australia, and became world champions for the first time in their history.

Olga Carmona’s strike in the 29th minute proved to be the difference. The 23-year-old fullback had a perfect low effort into the bottom corner that Golden Glove winner Mary Earps couldn’t keep out.

Fans joke that the Leagues Cup is rigged for Messi and Inter Miami after questionable calls

Inter Miami and Lionel Messi advanced to the Leagues Cup Round of 16 on Tuesday after defeating Orlando City 3-1 at DRV PNK Stadium. Messi scored twice in the victory, but that’s not the big discussion this time.

Some fans are questioning calls from the referee and joking that the tournament is rigged for Messi and Miami.

The two major incidents that raised eyebrows were a soft penalty call in Miami’s favor in the second half and the lack of a foul called against Messi.

3 ways the USWNT can turn it around before facing doomsday vs. Sweden

The USWNT's 0-0 draw with Portugal was a cry for help. If there's one thing we can say with 100 percent certainty, it's that Vlatko Andonovski's previous call for patience and simply more of the same is entirely without warrant. Recurrent issues have been plaguing the team for almost two years and they aren't working themselves out — there's something wrong with the system.

Women's World Cup Power Rankings (Part II)

It's Sunday morning in the United States and every nation at the Women's World Cup has completed at least two matches. Group A, the Group of Life, went ahead and finished their third and final games in the early hours so that makes our Power Rankings a little clearer, but this is how things stand in our eyes with the knockout stages taking shape.

2023 Women's World Cup Power Rankings (Pt. II)

#32. Zambia (Change: 0)

Women's World Cup Power Rankings

It's Tuesday morning in the United States and every nation at the Women's World Cup has completed one match. Group A, the Group of Life, went ahead and completed their second games in the early hours so that makes our Power Rankings a little clearer, but this is how things stand in our eyes after just a taste of the tournament.  

2023 Women's World Cup Power Rankings

#32. Zambia 

Here’s an expected USWNT starting XI vs. Vietnam in their Women’s World Cup opener

United States women’s national team head coach Vlatko Andonovski is set to put out his first-ever World Cup starting XI on Friday against Vietnam. Here’s an idea of the expected USWNT starting XI vs Vietnam that Vlatko might field.

It’s no secret that the USWNT are heavy, and we repeat, HEAVY favorites against Vietnam. One Vietnamese reported even asked Vlatko if his team was going to do to Vietnam what they did to Thailand in the last Women’s World Cup (win 13-0).

The best and worst transfers of the summer window so far

We're roughly halfway through the 2023 summer transfer window with Europe's top five leagues all having to conclude their business by 11 p.m. GMT on Friday, September 1. Declan Rice has already become the most expensive English player ever after his $130 million switch from West Ham to Arsenal, and Jude Bellingham's $115 million transfer from Borussia Dortmund to Real Madrid is the window's other piece of gargantuan business.

Dogs predict the group stage for each women’s team this summer, here are the results

The18 and the National Peanut Board teamed up for a unique way to predict the results of the group stage this summer in Australia and New Zealand.

We called up some furry friends, Ozzy and Finn, to provide their soccer expertise. 

Peanut butter is a safe treat for dogs so long as it doesn’t contain Xylitol. The National Peanut Board has seven different peanut butter recipes for dogs listed on their website if you’re looking for inspiration.

Women's World Cup odds: Is there any hope outside of USA or England?

With an expanded 32-team tournament and matches across Australia and New Zealand, the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup (beginning with a crowd of over 100,000 for the Matildas opener against Ireland) is going to be the best in the competition's 32-year history.

The USWNT is favored for a three-peat but that's never been done before, and there will be fierce competition from European champions England, two-time world champs Germany and teams looking to take the next step like France and Spain. 

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