Lionel Messi was introduced as an Inter Miami player in front of a raucous sellout crowd of over 20,000 at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale on Sunday night. Messi was welcomed in the driving rain with an impressive display of pyrotechnics and star-studded video messages (Tom Brady! Steph Curry! Gregg!), and he thanked the crowd for making his family feel so welcome in the city.
I'll have you know that I consider myself the MLS All-Star Skills Challenge-meister.
No one appointed me this position, I wasn't voted into it and I've only just recently thought of the title, but I think about the All-Star Skills Challenge a lot: the contests, the strategies, the techniques and the storied three-event history of the competition.
What is it with the youth of Japan and unforgettable set piece routines? Every year we're visiting the All Japan High School Soccer Tournament to watch some team perform Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake before scoring, so it comes as no surprise that when all the finest young Samurai Blue minds come together to represent Japan at the U-17 level, magic happens.
It's probably for the best that Lionel Messi was way too busy to watch Inter Miami play on Saturday night. While the Herons were getting smacked 4-1 by Philadelphia for a seventh consecutive defeat in MLS, Messi was celebrating his 36th birthday in his hometown of Rosario and playing in a testimonial match for Newell's Old Boys legend Maxi Rodríguez.
The San Jose Earthquakes and Portland Timbers played to a 0-0 result on Saturday night at PayPal Park, and news agency Reuters went with the headline "Goalkeepers steal show as Earthquakes, Timbers play to draw" ... Reuters wasn't telling the whole truth.
This is the summer that dreams come true. Do you want to watch Wrexham, the club you've supported your entire life (since 2020)? The MLS All-Stars against Arsenal? Any interest in El Clásico?
Manchester City took a massive step on its journey to a third straight Premier League title by beating relegation-threatened Everton 3-0 at Goodison Park on Sunday afternoon.
City midfielder İlkay Gündoğan was man of the match after scoring a stunning opener in the 37th-minute before setting up Erling Haaland for a header just two minutes later. Then, six minutes into the second half, Gündoğan curled home a right-footed free kick beyond the despairing dive of Jordan Pickford to secure all three points for City.
With only the two finalists qualifying for the 2023 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in Dubai, Saturday's two semifinals at the Concacaf Beach Soccer Championship in Nassau were do-or-die clashes pitting four-time champion Mexico against host nation the Bahamas while the United States played El Salvador in a rematch of the 2021 final (won by La Selecta).
After 90 minutes of thrilling action at the Bernabéu on Tuesday night, it sure would be nice if we could just immediately go to the Etihad and scratch the itch for more of Real Madrid vs. Manchester City. This is highly addictive stuff.
The first leg saw Vinícius Júnior and Kevin De Bruyne exchange thunderously rifled efforts for a 1-1 draw, while the rhythm of the match mirrored this give and take with the individual battles turning into a series of brutal punches followed by staggering counters.
I think this CBS tweet is a pretty accurate summary of it all.
We're witnessing greatness.
Days after being named the March/April NWSL Rookie of the Month, 18-year-old Alyssa Thompson scored another outrageous goal during Angel City's 3-2 win over the Kansas City Current on Sunday night.
The No. 1 overall pick now has three goals in seven appearances, and each has been a showcase of her otherworldly talent.