If we listed the ten biggest decisions that put soccer where it is today in the United States, somewhere in the middle would be televising the 1966 World Cup to American audiences. Television’s influence has not slowed down. The golden days of U.S. soccer had been killed before the Great Depression. The American Soccer League existed in 1966 but was no more than a regional semi-professional circuit. The governing body of U.S. soccer was called the United… Read more
If you weren’t aware, readers (Okay, Dan, Neil, and my mom), I’m 21 years old. I was born on April 16, 1989, the day after the Hillsborough disaster. Coincidentally, 1989 is the year to which a lot of people trace back the modern history of American Soccer. In November of that year, Paul Caligiuri scored his “shot heard round the world” against Trinidad and Tobago to put the US in the World Cup for the first time in forty years. It was a seminal moment for… Read more
: We received a free pair of cleats in the mail from Concave after agreeing to write a review about them. Anything Tim wrote below is his honest opinion and not reflective of the fact that he received the cleats for free. I would have taken them for myself, but I already look ridiculous enough without spaceman boots on my feet. I’ve written for The Yanks Are Coming for about five months now. I’m assuming the millions I was promised for each post is… Read more
We here at The Yanks Are Coming have gone on a bit of a bender for the past week or so. Tons of alcohol, sex (no, seriously!), sports watching and downright debauchery has consumed our lives. Hell, look at the Facebook event details for the party we threw on Friday: Word has it that when a man dies he evacuates his bowels and bladder, essentially expiring in a puddle of his own refuse. Come one, come all, and experience the death throes of The AFH with… Read more
Kyle Rote Jr. is headed to the hall of fame, but not the one his dad had hoped for. Kyle’s dad was an All-American half-back, playing American football for Southern Methodist University. He was the NFL’s first overall draft pick, chosen by the New York Giants, in 1951. He went on to play 11 seasons in the NFL, making appearances in four pro-bowls. Meanwhile his son was growing up in Texas excelling in football, baseball, and… Read more
Major League Soccer announced recently that roster sizes have been increased from 24 players per team to 26. The reason behind this move is to allow teams to sign more local “homegrown” talent. In addition to the roster increase, the MLS announced that teams will now be allowed to sign homegrown players to Generation Adidas contracts without the players having to enter the MLS draft. These players must come from youth teams from within the team’s… Read more
Aston Villa v. Everton 4/14/10 The duel between the current US keeper and his predecessor, ended a 2-2 draw after a 90th minute own goal by the Villans. Tim Howard made three saves and Brad Friedel had a pair. Howard had plenty of praise for his teammate, Tim Cahill, who scored both goals for Everton. Rangers @ Dundee United 4/14/10 Mo Edu started and played 90 minutes before limping off the pitch in extra time. Edu committed a pair of fouls and… Read more
Posted by Puck in April 2010
A few days ago, Major League Baseball celebrated Jackie Robinson Day. Each player on every team wore Robinson’s retired number 42 in honor of the baseball hero. This tribute sparked my thinking of other great American heroes. Hundreds of different people come to mind, George Washington, Lt. Winters, and Martin Luther King Jr. are just a few worth mentioning. This post is not about those well-documented heroes. This post is about one of the most important,… Read more
In our odd little soccer universe here in the States, we have this, ahem, little situation—the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup versus MLS. They’re like North and South Korea, Everton and Liverpool, Paul Gardner’s columns and logic. They co-exist while presenting challenges to the other. The challenges appear every year at this time when MLS teams debate the value of participating in the Open Cup. MLS executives act like it’s a burden; they say they… Read more
I want to act surprised after watching the Red Bulls go down to Chivas USA, but the turnaround from last year is obviously not perfect. New York still has a few problems, the likes of which the Goats revealed on Saturday. Macoumba Kandji was MIA for most of the match, miles away from his performance last weekend at Seattle. Lindpere continues to be a force in the midfield, but he’s receiving little support from teammates, especially Dane Richards. As for… Read more
With further adieu, here are the other 10 that made the list: Landon = Chipper Jones. One dude carrying the ship on his back. Phenomenal. Boca and Reyna = Jason Varitek. I know, I hate the Sox, but I do respect Varitek and the comparison’s perfect. All three of these guys are captains. Reyna was great in his prime, but the last WC was tragic to watch. Boca and Varitek were both OK in their primes, but their value was more as emotional leaders,… Read more
I started to write another mailbag column for this week, but then I got sidetracked by trying to solve the Darcy-Weisbach equation for steady flows in a rectangular duct where shear stresses are being measured. I mean… I find it interesting, but trying to explain what I’m doing to a lay person is about as successful as Tiger Woods’ attempt to save his marriage. And, yes, even though he played golf this weekend, the dude is still a petulant jackleg. If you… Read more
I was and remain a huge Smiths fan and like any wide-eyed zealot I would look to shoehorn in references to my idol’s lyrics and ideas where none already existed and to use any passing similarity, no matter how oblique, to justify the universality of their brilliance. Using any excuse to slip their lyrics into everyday conversation was seized with the brutality of a Middle Eastern dictator – “I wear black on the outside cos black is how I feel on the… Read more
Quite the weekend for sports, Yanks fans. Butler looks to complete their Cinderella story tonight on a high note against the Blue Devils of Duke for the 2010 Championship. The UConn women’s team won their 5739th straight came by a meager 20 points to advance to play Stanford for the title Tuesday night. The Sox – Yankees rivalry resumed, opening up this year’s season at Fenway, with the Evil Empire shaking their heads after blowing a late lead. Tiger… Read more
