Last year, May 20 to be exact, I wrote an article sharing how much I loved USL League Two side Vermont Green FC’s new kits. Fast forward a year and those brilliant minds over in the Green Mountains have one-upped their work.
The semi-pro club revealed their 2023 home kit this week. Created by top designer and Vermont Green co-founder Matthew Wolff, “The Wildflower Kit” is magnificent.
In a word, forgettable. Following one of the most exciting matchdays of the MLS season, the league’s first foray into midweek play definitely did not live up to the billing, but there were still a few moments that caught our attention. Despite MLS Matchday 13 being promoted as a continuation of Rivalry Week, there were few games that truly fit that description, and it showed both on the field and in the scorelines.
Winning is great, but it’s even better when it’s against a rival. Goals mean more, away games are more demanding and everything is personal. Though the matches count just as much in the table, it's a day the fans circled on their calendars as soon as the schedules dropped. MLS Matchday 12 featured red cards aplenty, late winners and fans who went home filled with an anger that can only be felt after a loss in Rivalry Week.
Paris Saint-Germain fans proved once again why they are the most miserable and spoiled group in all of sports. During PSG’s Ligue 1 game vs. Ajaccio at the Parc des Princes Parisian fans booed Lionel Messi every time the ball was at his feet.
PSG fans booing Messi reminds me of that one spoiled kid who gets upset when their parents buy them a fancy new car but it’s the wrong color.
The loudest of the whistles and jeers came on corner kicks that Messi took. Fans also booed before the game when he was announced in the starting lineup.
One of the more iconic goals in World Cup history came during the final between Brazil and Italy in 1970. In the 86th minute Pelé assisted Carlos Alberto who lasered the ball into the bottom corner to put the cherry on top of a triumphant 4-1 victory.
As someone who wouldn’t be born until over two decades later, I had only ever seen this goal in shoddy quality on YouTube.
The culmination of this week’s midweek U.S. Open Cup matches ensured that 14 of the teams in the tournament’s Round of 16 will be from Major League Soccer, equalling a record set in 2015, 2016 and 2019 for the most MLS representatives at this stage of the competition. The two non-MLS representatives are USL Championship sides Birmingham Legion FC, who beat fellow USLC side Memphis 901 FC 3-0, and Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC, who pulled off the round’s only “cupset” as they knocked off Bruce Arena’s New England Revolution 1-0.
The summer transfer window must be approaching because the Christian Pulisic transfer rumors are back. A week after Olivier Giroud said that AC Milan would love to have Pulisic, Napoli and Juventus are also showing interest.
Shock results rocked the boat in MLS Matchweek 11, with upsets happening from Seattle to Miami and San Jose to Charlotte. Frontrunners have emerged in both the league standings and the MVP race as several big names set the scoresheets alight and dazzled in front of packed crowds.
No one envies the job that U.S. women’s national team head coach Vlatko Andonovski has right now in trying to whittle down his roster to 23 for the World Cup. He will have many tough decisions to make, however one choice that shouldn’t be hard is including Lynn Williams.
The 29-year-old missed nearly all the last NWSL season with a hamstring injury she picked up in March 2022. In the offseason she made a move to Gotham FC and she’s off to an electric start to the 2023 campaign.