Photo: Philadelphia Union
Philadelphia Union
Only one Union game in the upcoming season will be broadcast nationally. It’s against D.C. United in August and on Fox Sports 1. No word yet on local TV broadcast plans. Hopefully we don’t get hosed like D.C. fans with that pay streaming service.
By the way, most of the Union’s home games will start at 7:30 PM.
Bethlehem Steel signed midfielder Zach Zandi, who’s from West Chester. He’s played for Villanova and Reading United.
Darius Lewis, who spent three seasons in the Union’s academy, signed with a team in the Faroe Islands.
Joe Tansey chatted with Ernst Tanner.
FC Cincinnati hired Dennis Carroll as the club’s first Chief Operating Officer. He was with the Union for 10 years, most recently as Senior Vice President of Finance.
Local
Saint Joseph University’s women’s soccer team promoted Fred King to associate head coach.
MLS
Joe Tansey dug through the schedule and picked the 10 games he finds intriguing.
Good riddance. https://t.co/OXYPMI1vWN
— Jonathan Tannenwald (@thegoalkeeper) January 8, 2019
Sometimes players fall through the cracks. Ohio native Abdi Mohamed is one of those players. He hopes to be drafted by the Crew.
Sporting KC is installing an electric field heating system, allegedly the first of its kind.
Miami named Niki Budalic as Director of Soccer Operations. He’ll report to the Sporting Director. Budalic was GM of Soccer Operations for Orlando City and the Orlando Pride. The same Orlando where homegrowns haven’t wanted to play for?
USL
That soccer stadium in downtown Chicago ain’t happening.
NPSL
Oh snap!:
It appears that we didn't make #USOC2019
After 3 years of "being unlucky" it's clear that it may not be for us. Not that we don't like paying $10k/game for the chance to play the local MLS team we already play.
We will discuss with Members if we bother to pursue it next year. pic.twitter.com/yCCKmL21qA
— Minneapolis City SC (@mplscitysc) January 8, 2019
Around the globe
Grant Wahl interviewed an American investor who is looking to buy a Scandinavian club with one objective: Use it to develop young American talent. (Wahl also had some dead-on criticisms about putting live soccer behind paywalls.)
Saudi Arabia routed North Korea, 4-0, in the Asian Cup. Iraq also won.
Sounds like Jermain Defoe is stoked to be playing for Steven Gerrard’s Rangers.
Sky-high mascot fees prove nothing is beneath Premier League profiteers.
Manchester United are opening three entertainment centres in China. It’s all about the brand, man.
Highlight of the day
Goal scored off a coffin at a memorial ceremony:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvoaTYLWIsk
Totally agree with Wahl about the pay walls. I’ve seen so much I was already paying a subscription for move behind an additional layer of pay walls — from the FA Cup to the Champions League — it’s a pain in the ass. If I want to follow a PL team in all competitions, I need to shell out for NBCSN Gold, BR Live and ESPN+. That might not even cover it all.
–
With this happening, it should be a must for MLS to get as much of its games in front of people on networks most are already paying for. I know it’s not totally in their hands. ESPN isn’t going to show more MLS games if they don’t think they can sell ads around it. But MLS should make those rights as tantalizingly affordable as possible. There’s definitely a pretty big football void and MLS might be able to fill some of it.
Ugh…7:30 games mean we probably won’t make it to Rita’s afterwards before they close at 10. Bring back 7pm weekend games.
Looks like the Union have signed Gaddis.
I wish Jay Sugarman had invested in a Scandinavian team.
And today the Union traded 5 draft picks to FC Cincinnati for $150k-$200k in Garber bucks.