Union

The big news today is that Philadelphia Union President Tom Veit will be stepping down on December 31st. Veit will remain involved in the organization as a consultant and CEO Nick Sakiewicz will assume Veit’s duties. Veit has been with the Union for three years and has been instrumental in building the brand and the franchise.

A great Kasey Keller save denied Arrieta's powerful header off a corner kick. (Photo: Daniel Gajdamowicz)

An unnamed source has told The Brotherly Game that Cristian Arrieta’s time in Philly is over. Arrieta arrived on the Union with a strong pedigree. In 2008 he was the USL-1 Defender of the Year and in 2009 he repeated that feat while adding an MVP trophy to his resume. But things never quite clicked for Arrieta in MLS. He failed to establish himself at either right back or in the middle, and while Michael Orozco Fiscal bounced back from his early struggles, Arrieta was forced to pal around with Toni Stahl in the Nowak doghouse. There may yet be a place for Arrieta in the US top division, but it won’t be in Philadelphia.

MLSsoccer.net gives a review of Philly’s 2010 strike force. Le Toux gets high marks, even though he was inexplicably left off of the MVP finalists list. Edson Buddle missed mid-May through mid-July while on international duty. Yet the Galaxy made the playoffs and beat the Columbus Crew in his absence. How is he a most valuable player again?

WPS

Bad WPS news to report: It appears that league champs FC Gold Pride are on the brink of folding. This would leave the league with six teams once the New York team joins next season. I saw Barbara Bush wearing a giant diamond-encrusted pin on her jacket that spelled out TEXAS at the World Series. Someone do the world a favor and pawn that sucker for WPS’s sake.

A Project Pink ball signed by WPS runners-up Philadelphia Independence is being auctioned off.

US

Goalscorer yael Averbuch (via Reuters)

The USWNT continued their dominance in World Cup qualifying by thrashing Costa Rica 4-0. The U.S. wrapped up the group stage with 18 goals scored and none conceded. They will play either Mexico or Canada in the semifinals. The winner get a ticket to the World Cup while the loser has to win the third place game to go. Abby Wambach scored from the spot in the first half, and Lauren Cheney, Yael Averbuch and Alex Morgan put the game out of reach in the second.

MLS

The two MLS teams still alive in CONCACAF Champions League — Columbus Crew and Real Salt Lake drew each other Monday for a quarterfinal match.

Business Insider reports that the World Cup did little to help MLS’s attendance or TV numbers. They decline to mention that MLS continued play during the World Cup, which may have had an effect on the attendance and television numbers. Honestly though, MLS. Would the NBA play through the summer Olympics?

The MLS playoffs are underway, so here is your round-up of first round action.

In case you miss it when you read the playoff round-up, the MLS playoff format is ridiculous. Thankfully, Don Garber is announcing that changes will take place in the coming years to fix glitches like teams jumping conferences. This could be great, or it could be the BCS. You never quite know what you’ll get with Garber.

The Vancouver Whitecaps began a 6-week training session yesterday. The workout will be the final audition for many players hoping to make the squad for the Whitecaps inaugural MLS season.

Elsewhere

Champions League continues today with the second half of the group stage. If you have Fox Soccer Channel: 3:30 – Tottenham v. Inter Milan. 6:00 – Kobenhavn v. Barcelona. 8:00 – Bursaspor v. Manchester United. My predictions: Tottenham 1-3 Inter Milan. Kobenhavn 0-2 Barcelona. Bursaspor 34-1 Manchester United.