The First Round of the US Open Cup is (mostly) in the books. Here is a recap and commentary of our pick'em picks, how certain teams fared, and certain pick'em teams fared.
The latest Levy Films video showcases the first match of the 2013 Cascadia Cup, following Sigi Schmid and the Sounders through the day and night of the game on March 16. The video features just under 6 minutes of footage.
Reddit decided to come up with some of the best worst names of the Cascadia Cup to come in the future. My personal favorite? "Cascadia Cup presented by New York Cosmos"
Reports have emerged that the Seattle is targeting Argentinian teenager Luciano Vietto, currently with Argentina's U-20's and Racing Club in Buenos Aries. Seattle may be in a bidding war with CSKA Moscow, and Vietto could be our first youth DP.
The Sounders FC have re-signed Jhon Kennedy Hurtado and Patrick Ianni, and have confirmed news regarding a few other players
How fun can a win be if it lacks drama? The Sounders have set themselves up for a game worthy of a Hollywood movie, now they have to go out and be Big Damn Heroes, and give us that Hollywood ending we've sought these past four years.
Since July, Seattle teams have done extraordinarily well at CenturyLink Field. Many have taken to calling this the Power of Tanzania. That Power may be key to a Seattle Sounders road playoff victory.
Zach Slaton, as a contributor to Forbes and blogger over at A Beautiful Numbers Game, has made his calculations, and his numbers indicate that the Sounders are the least likely team to reach the MLS Cup Finals, much less win it. Read here: http://www.forbes.com/sites/zachslaton/2012/10/30/mls-knockout-round-and-mls-cup-predictions In fact, if I'm reading it correctly, neither the Sounders nor the Whitecaps won the final in any of his 10,000 Monte Carlo simulations. Now, I question the robustness of a model that so heavily discounts random chance that results in a simulation where 10% of the participants never win, but there is some indication that it works, as it has done a pretty good job of giving the highest odds to the winner. But there's precedence for a team to "break" the model, as the model gave the 2005 LA Galaxy only a 0.0% chance to win it all, but they did indeed go on to win the whole kit and kaboodle. And NYRB made the finals in 2008 after having a 1.7% chance to win. I'd take it all with a grain of salt, as the playoffs are a notoriously small sample size, but is food for thought, even if that food makes you a bit queasy and upset.
There hasn't been an off topic thread in awhile, so why don't we chat about all the goings on that are not directly related to our beloved Sounders.First off, I had a wonderful beer last night, the...
You are a Sounder. You will bathe them in a thunderous storm of your noise. Be proud of who you are and let them hear you.
Sounders owners Joe Roth and Drew Carey gave interviews to Joshua Mayers of the Seattle Times recently about the upcoming GM vote.
While our own LikkitP has created some immortal Sounders gifs, I happen to be of the belief that the more gifs, the better. And browsing Tumblr this evening, I stumbled across a new source of gifs...
I am not sure how familiar Arsenal fans are of Steve Zakuani, former Arsenal youth, but he has recently returned from injury for the Seattle Sounders FC and just released this track, "Hometown Freestyle." On the track he raps about London City, "repping always." He's got an EP coming out Nov. 1st, with proceeds benefiting his charity, Kingdom Hope. His ultimate goal with Kingdom Hope is to establish soccer academies, beginning in London and eventually reaching the States and his home country, DR Congo. If you like the track, watch for the EP and consider donating to Kingdom Hope.
Adrian Hanauer is a fantastic GM. Arguably the best in MLS. But is that good enough for Seattle? Could we have someone better? Adrian has had his fair share of missteps, some which may have held Seattle back. This is the case for Hanauer Out.
Some stunning statistics here. 10% of Americans are avid soccer fans first and foremost (NFL: 25%, NBA: 14.4%, MLB: 19.9%). The researcher projects global soccer to grow 3-4 times bigger than it is now, and MLS's fanbase to triple, all within a generation. Most importantly? Soccer is the second biggest sport among kids. The future is bright.
Apparently soccer can be dangerous in Iran. Especially when someone throws an explosive device onto the pitch.
This week's The Designated Player, from Graham Parker, is a fantastic look at new general manager of the Professional Referees Association, Peter Walton. I definitely recommend the read, if North American refereeing is a topic of interest for you, especially if you enjoy witty digs at Ricardo Salazar.
The USMNT takes on Jamaica in a key 2014 World Cup qualifier, on a very significant date. Come discuss the game in our gamethread.
What makes Klinsmann’s set-up different is that he’s throttled back from the openness of the Bob Bradley years, and shied away from the balance of the Arena years. Defensive-minded players crowd the midfield, sending a simple message: "We dare you to beat us from the flanks." Mexico took that dare, attempting 39 crosses in the 1-0 loss; a year previous in the Gold Cup final against Bradley’s U.S., they’d attempted only 10. Yes, El Tri dominated possession both times, but against Klinsmann’s scheme they didn’t really trouble Tim Howard until the altitude took its toll in the final 10 minutes.
What is American Soccer?, from the new soccer magazine Howler by Matthew Doyle This fantastic article breaks down the story of the U.S.'s tactical development from 1990 to today, and really is a must-read ahead of tonight's match. Can Klinsmann get it together? Is the U.S. forever destined to be a defense-first, counter-attacking team?This featured article gets into the nitty gritty of WiFi and Cellular connections at sports stadiums around the country. Stadiums are working to keep cell phones online and WiFi available, but they might not be able to keep up with the demand. Gillette stadium offers an app to those in premium seats that gives streaming video from multiple camera angles of the on-field action and access to NFL Red Zone. The SF Giants have a "race" that is powered by fans shaking their phones (??). There's also plenty of technical information for geeks who are interested. As more people live-tweet/blog games, and legends like #SonarFeed are born, will data prove to be a great compliment to the on-field action, or will it be a great distraction?
What explains why the Olympics are so enjoyable and popular and why a soccer match is so fun? The crowds. Once there is a critical mass of fans, go ahead and try to not get caught up in the excitement.
An interesting look on what a neutral friendly is like at the grand old Yankee Stadium. The writer finds the American "obsession" with kits to be strange (especially ones for teams that have nothing to do with the game), calls it the "Mexican wave" (AHEM) as it apparently is known outside of the US, and talks about how Hazard disappeared during the game while PSG impressed.
The scoreline was not particularly flattering, but that's not what mattered about last night's friendly between the Seattle Sounders FC and Chelsea FC. It was about the storylines: Roger's testimonial and Fredy's brace to name two.
Sounders FC vs. Chelsea FC | Recap, Stats, Quotes
Now, therefore, I, Dow Constantine, Executive of King County, do hereby proclaim July 18, 2012 to be Roger Levesque Day...
King County proclaims today to be Roger Levesque Day It's great to see Roger getting recognition by the wider community. Dow Constantine mentions Roger's charity work, his goal celebrations, and the many other things he has given to the Sounders. Today truly is all about the #48seconds. (direct link to proclamation)Yes, they do actually play soccer in China. Yes, it is almost as exciting as it is here. Aging euro-stars that aren't performing up to expectations? Check. Fierce rivalries complete with epic trolling? Check. All-Star team at the bottom of the table? Check. Interestingly enough, they may actually have a hooligan problem. Drogba hasn't started playing yet, but it is only going to up the ante when he does.
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#TheTrialist has been playing more like a trialist. Perhaps that is harsh, but a fall from form is likely a large part of the Sounders' struggles this year.
A fantastic inside look at how Eddie's time with the Sounders has gone--what motivates him and has kept him in the starting 11. Having had the pleasure of meeting EJ, I can say that Brian Straus's take is same is mine: The EJ7 you think you knew from all the media before is not the same as the one the Sounders have now. And if you needed a higher endorsement here's what Brad Evans had to say: "He put his head down and worked form day one. Extra fitness with (fitness coach Dave Tenney), extra everything. He really wanted to battle and earn his place in the lineup. He had the right state of mind and still does."