World Soccer XXX: We Have Men Too!

[Kepler]

Algeria, Ghana, and Tunisia all are eliminated in the group stage of AFCON.

And Palestine made the Round of 16 at the Asian Cup.

Is You Know Who there too?

 

[Jimjamesak]

Is You Know Who there too?

Israel plays in Europe/UEFA.

Israel’s Confederation affiliation was an ongoing saga for 30 years involving boycotts, forfeits, Israel eventually being kicked out of the Asian Confederation and having no Confederation at all, playing in the Oceania Confederation before finally joining UEFA in 1994.

 

[Jimjamesak]

Here’s a weird one:

Jesus Ferreira of the USMNT and FC Dallas had preliminarily agreed to a $13 million transfer with Spartak Moscow of Russia before MLS itself (remember, the league ultimately controls the players’ contracts and ITCs) put the kibosh on the deal because “there are risks for American business entities doing business with Russian business entities”.

Spartak Moscow is owned by Lukoil, a Russian company that has been on the sanctions list since 2014.

Like, WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot to both Ferreira for pursuing the deal (to the point that he was negotiating his personal terms) and FC Dallas for going along with the deal.

 

[Spartanforlife4]

Maidstone United is now onto the Round of 16 in the FA Cup after a 2-1 win over Ipswich from the Championship. Ipswich made ten changes from their regular lineup, but shots were 38-2, shots on target 13-2. Maidstone had 200 passes with just 49% accuracy. They're the first team from Level 6 into the R16 since 1978.

They'd have some good luck in draws, playing a Level 7 in the first round when they could've played a Level 3 and avoiding the Premier League the last two rounds, but you know what? That doesn't really matter. A semi-pro team is still going to be two games from playing at Wembley.

 

[Kepler]

Maidstone United is now onto the Round of 16 in the FA Cup after a 2-1 win over Ipswich from the Championship. Ipswich made ten changes from their regular lineup, but shots were 38-2, shots on target 13-2. Maidstone had 200 passes with just 49% accuracy. They're the first team from Level 6 into the R16 since 1978.

They'd have some good luck in draws, playing a Level 7 in the first round when they could've played a Level 3 and avoiding the Premier League the last two rounds, but you know what? That doesn't really matter. A semi-pro team is still going to be two games from playing at Wembley.

That's wonderful.

 

[Jimjamesak]

TIL the Dutch only have 34 professional soccer clubs, 18 in the Eredivisie and 16 in the Eerste Divisie. The Eerste Divisie is filled out by the reserve teams of Ajax, PSV, AZ Alkmaar and FC Utretch to bring it to 20. Promotion and Relegation between it and the third division has been “suspended for five to ten years” due to the pandemic but previously the only way a team could be promoted was if they declared before the season and won the third division. Previous to that, from the 70’s to 2008, a team only got promoted if another team went bankrupt and lost their professional license.

 

[Kepler]

This is so wildly convoluted.

The Dutch professional structure began as Honors, 1 (Eeerste), and 2 (Dweede). Then 2 was abolished.

The Dutch amateur structure, separate and with no pro/rel to/from the professionals, began as Headclass. Then they added Topclass above that -- a hybrid where the team was amateur but players could still have have contracts.

Then they recreated 2 as the hybrid league, below 1 and above Topclass. Topclass became 3 (Derde), but now completely amateur.

For a while they even had a system where half a league played Saturday and half played Sunday, and then the champions played a title game at the end of the season.

Oh, and below the national amateur pyramid the regional amateurs start all over again with 1 (Eerste).

 

[RaceBoarder]

The US will play their 2026 group stage games in LA, Seattle, then back to LA.

Balls.... $Texas just became ($Texas + 1) >=(

 

[Jimjamesak]

The US will play their 2026 group stage games in LA, Seattle, then back to LA.

Balls.... $Texas just became ($Texas + 1) >=(

Final not in Dallas but will be in the Meadowlands instead.

I really want to go to that game in Seattle though...

 

[bronconick]

....waits for the ACL curse to hit FIFA

 

[Spartanforlife4]

....waits for the ACL curse to hit FIFA

Hopefully natural grass helps with that.

 

[Jimjamesak]

South Korean fans: How can Jurgen Klinsmann lead us to a loss against a team like Jordan in our Continental Championship?

USMNT fans: First time?

 

[Spartanforlife4]

IFAB to introduce blue cards for ten minute misconducts.

https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/39485753/blue-cards-introduced-football-sin-bin-trials-soccer

I kept wondering why they’re called sin bins and not penalty boxes, and then it dawned on me they already have a penalty (area) box as an official part of the field.

 

[Jimjamesak]

IFAB to introduce blue cards for ten minute misconducts.

https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/39485753/blue-cards-introduced-football-sin-bin-trials-soccer

I kept wondering why they’re called sin bins and not penalty boxes, and then it dawned on me they already have a penalty (area) box as an official part of the field.

Yup, and “penalty” also has a different connotation in British English as it means “penalty kick” whereas we use the full “penalty kick” or “PK” in the US (and Canada).

Seems like Blue cards will be trialed at lower levels before it makes an appearance anywhere on TV. I know sin bins (or “temporary dismissals” to use the official term) are used in amateur leagues in England, wonder if they’ll start using them in the US.

 

[Spartanforlife4]

Reading through some of the FA Cup prelims there was a team that lost their game, won an appeal and then won the replay because an official used the sin bin rule when the FA Cup doesn’t.

 

[Jimjamesak]

Reading through some of the FA Cup prelims there was a team that lost their game, won an appeal and then won the replay because an official used the sin bin rule when the FA Cup doesn’t.

Ah, the old "I forgot what ruleset we were using" mistake. Common in the US where we have three different rulesets (FIFA/IFAB/Club, High School, College) but a rarity in England.

 

[Jimjamesak]

Things are changing so therefore it must be bad.

tl;dw Englishman mad that other, non-European countries will be at the World Cup so therefore the games will be terrible and qualifying is losing all meaning. Also, America big and am big mad travel will be harder.

 

[Jimjamesak]

MLS season starting tonight with Miami (of course) vs Real Salt Lake.

Season starting with replacement referees because the league err PRO locked out the regular referees after they voted down (by 95+%) a contract offer last week. Tonight's replacement ref, the obvious best choice among the replacements, is a guy from Spain who moved to the US and has refereed mostly in USL League One (that's the third division) with a couple of USL Championship assignments. But! He has professional experience in Spain! In the third division. As an AR.

And that's their top choice.

 

[Jimjamesak]

For the first time in 13 years Mexico has beaten the USWNT tonight at the CONCACAF W Gold Cup. Thankfully for the USWNT it was just a group stage match.

Final score: 2-0.

Edit: Also the first time the USWNT has lost at home to a CONCACAF team since 2000.

 

[Russell Jaslow]

For the first time in 13 years Mexico has beaten the USWNT tonight at the CONCACAF W Gold Cup. Thankfully for the USWNT it was just a group stage match.

Final score: 2-0.

Edit: Also the first time the USWNT has lost at home to a CONCACAF team since 2000.

It's also the first time the USWNT gave up a goal to Mexico since 2010.