Features news coverage of DC United and its players, including match reports and general football news.
This is the moment North American soccer fans have been waiting for; the CONCACAF Champions Cup Final is here. However, with more exciting MLS action coming up this weekend, Americans are spoiled for choice as we creep closer to summer.
Written by Liviu Bird. Leave a response
Although there are two teams (San Jose and New York) that have only played two matches, this will be the first review in which I publish the Major League Soccer table, and this season there are some surprises early on. In fact, what I predicted to be a weekend of matches that are nothing special turned out to be a very exciting weekend of big teams losing to supposedly weaker opposition yet again. Welcome to the MLS.
Written by Liviu Bird. One comment
In the past couple of days:
•The Mexican league continued its commanding dominance in the Champions Cup – the most finalists in the history of the competition with thirty-two, twenty-three of which have won.
•Costa Rica has also had a good record – in second place with ten finalists, six of which were also winners.
•The Revolution win their second match of the season.
•The Galaxy take on three new players.
•A new MLS club starts to forge their identity.
Written by Liviu Bird. Leave a response
Major League Soccer’s second week kicked off on Thursday, with two matches, and finished with five more at the weekend. Also, CONCACAF Champions Cup semi final action took place in Pachuca, Mexico, and Houston, Texas.
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This was a week of surprises for the MLS. Opening weekend, officially known as MLS First Kick 2008, was riddled with surprise results and courageous showings by supposedly inferior sides.
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Soccer season in the USA is almost here. We’ve had some exciting times already, with both DC United and Houston Dynamo advancing to the semi finals of the CONCACAF Champions Cup, the Los Angeles Galaxy completing successful tours of Australia/New Zealand and Asia, FC Dallas traveling to Brazil, and the United States U-23 team qualifying for the Beijing Olympics later this summer after missing out on Athens in 2004.
On to the first set of fixtures this weekend:
Written by Liviu Bird. Leave a response
The moment we’ve all been waiting for is finally here! The 2008 Major League Soccer season is upon us. Here are a few things to look out for this season:
As usual, at the end of the season, Major League Soccer will deliberate over a number of awards, along with the silverware that the deserving teams will carry away. I have predicted who will win the ones that arouse my interest:
Written by Liviu Bird. 7 comments
With CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying also taking place this week, the Champions Cup squads were left without some of their more talented young players. However, the show must go on, and the more experienced players took to the pitch once again to defend their club’s honor in the second leg of the quarter finals.
Written by Liviu Bird. Leave a response
Entertaining and unpredictable are the two words I would use to describe the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions Cup quarter finals.
There are several reoccurring themes in Central American football, all of which were on display this week: lots of bookings, a bit of diving, and crazed supporters. It will be interesting to see how the American teams fare at home, since American supporters aren’t commonly known to be that wild. Hopefully DC United’s Barra Brava will have some part to play in proving me wrong, and I hope the MLS Cup Champion Houston Dynamo’s fans will also be in good voice.
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After losing to Chivas de Guadalajara in the semi final of the CONCACAF Champions’ Cup, DC United went on to win the MLS Supporters Shield with sixteen wins, seven draws, and seven losses in the league. Even if Chivas USA had won their last match, DC would have still won the Shield on goal difference, thanks to a twenty-goal season from newcomer and league Most Valuable Player Luciano Emilio. However, their season ended frustratingly when they lost 3-2 on aggregate to the Chicago Fire in the first round of the MLS Cup playoffs.
Besides the Champions’ Cup, DC were also involved in the SuperLiga, US Open Cup (briefly), and the Copa Sudamericana. They lost 1-0 to Harrisburg City Islanders of USL-2 (American second division) in the Open Cup, but they were anything but disheartened by that. In the SuperLiga they lost to the LA Galaxy in the semi finals. And finally, the Copa Sudamericana ended when DC lost to Chivas de Guadalajara (again) on the away goals rule, after the two-legged tie ended 2-2.
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So, I’ve had a little time to rest up after the past week, and what a week it was.
Written by Eddie Griffin. One comment
The Texas Pro Soccer Festival is wrapping up today, so there’s only one more day of action to report on after today.
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While I’m here in San Antonio, my main task is covering the Texas Pro Soccer Fest from all angles, not only for SL, but also one of the event’s main organizers, Ziga-Zoga, and for MLSNet.com.
So, it’s been a very busy week, to say the least. But on Wednesday, I was a little sidetracked by another matter.
Written by Eddie Griffin. 2 comments
It’s after 6 in the morning here, and really, I should be asleep, but I have a couple of event-related pieces to finish before I can call it a night.
However, I feel obligated to respond to this article, simply because in the time that I’ve been here in San Antonio, I’ve seen first-hand how hard all of the people involved with putting on this event have worked, and even though Steven Goff didn’t have a disparaging intent (at least I’d hope so), it would help for him and several of the commenters to know more about the situation before saying something.
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Soccerlens editor Eddie Griffin is in San Antonio covering the Texas Pro Soccer Fest, a pre-season tournament / training camp for MLS teams DC United, Chivas USA, Toronto FC and defending MLS champions, Houston Dynamo.
Now that I finally have a chance to really sit down and knock something out, I have a few tips for those who may be aspiring journalists, when it comes to covering extended a large-scale event.
Written by Eddie Griffin. Leave a response
This week, Major League Soccer will be coming to south Texas, in the first (of hopefully many) Texas Pro Soccer Fest.
From March 3-9, four of MLS’ most popular teams and some of the league’s biggest stars will be on display in the San Antonio area, in a weeklong training camp and friendly match series.
Brian Ching, Dwayne De Rosario, and the two-time defending MLS champion Houston Dynamo will be making the short trip, and they’ll be joined by another former champion in four-time winners D.C. United, who boast last year’s MVP, Luciano Emilio, Jaime Moreno, and a notable recent addition in Argentine midfielder Marcelo Gallardo.
Along with the Dynamo and D.C. United, two of the league’s most popular franchises will take part, in 2007 Western Conference regular-season champion Chivas USA and Toronto FC, who had one of the league’s highest attendances last season, their first season in existence.
Written by Eddie Griffin. Leave a response
