General Soccer Thread

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mikechamp
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Re: General Soccer Thread

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Soccer in the U.S. is returning in 1 month... maybe!
NWSL announces plan to start season on June 27, will be first U.S. team sport to return to play

The National Women’s Soccer League announced on Wednesday its plan to start the 2020 season and become the first United States sports league to return to play.

The NWSL season, which never officially began due to the COVID-19 shutdown, will take the form of a 25-game tournament for the Challenge Cup, the NWSL’s yearly championship. All nine NWSL teams will play four games to determine seeding, then the top eight teams will advance to the quarterfinal knockout round.

The tournament will begin on June 27 and last for 30 days. The preliminary games and quarterfinals will be played at Zions Bank Stadium in Herriman, Utah, and the semifinals and final will be played at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah. No fans will be allowed at any games.

While the NWSL and the NWSLPA are in agreement on the plan, it all hinges on the players being willing to participate in a compressed season on artificial turf. Yahoo Sports’ Caitlin Murray reported on Monday that a number of NWSL and USWNT players are not in favor of the Utah plan and could choose not to play.

https://news.yahoo.com/nwsl-announces-p ... 07772.html

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mikechamp
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Re: General Soccer Thread

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Got an alert on my phone this morning that the Premier League is returning on June 17.
The Premier League is set to return on Wednesday 17 June, three months after the league was brought to a halt following the coronavirus crisis.

As per The Telegraph, the first games to be played will be Aston Villa at home to Sheffield United and Manchester City versus Arsenal.

Those are the games which the above sides have in hand over the rest of the league, which will allow the league to recommence on the weekend of the 19th, 20th and 21st June at a level playing field, with all sides having played an equal amount of games - 29.

https://www.si.com/soccer/chelsea/news/ ... on-june-17

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mikechamp
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Re: General Soccer Thread

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Now, Serie A has announced they will resume play on June 20, per an ESPN alert on my phone.

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mikechamp
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Re: General Soccer Thread

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mikechamp wrote:
May 28 20, 1:14 pm
Now, Serie A has announced they will resume play on June 20, per an ESPN alert on my phone.
La Liga will return on June 11, per an ESPN alert on my phone.

Might there be an announcement about the resumption of the Champions League at some point soon?

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A 21 year old American carrying 2 Louis bags, wearing tight ass capri’s and getting papped up in an airport en route to signing with a mega club.


Folks, we made it. Feels good. Feels right.

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mikechamp
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I don't even know what to say about this, other than their goal differential is going to be all messed up now:
German team socially distances by fielding seven players, beaten 37-0

German lower-league side SG Ripdorf/Molzen II suffered a 37-0 defeat on Sunday after only fielding seven players in a bid to maintain social distancing against their opponents as they feared contracting the coronavirus.

In a previous match, Holdenstedt II players had been in contact with an opponent infected with the coronavirus during a previous match. While the squad later tested negative for the virus, the Ripdorf players did not feel safe due to the 14-day infection period. "We tried to postpone the match," Ripdorf co-chair Patrick Ristow told ESPN. "But Holdenstedt wanted to play."

https://www.espn.com/soccer/german-bund ... cesbeaten-
In the article, there is a brief video "highlight" of a goal or two scored on a helpless goalie.

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mikechamp
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Re: General Soccer Thread

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For those who care about the future format/infrastructure of European football:
Why football is facing major change, despite 'toxicity' of Project Big Picture plan

When Premier League chief executive Richard Masters addressed a parliamentary hearing on 10 November, he delivered a line all English football could agree on, despite the fierce opposition that followed Project Big Picture's unexpected unveiling a month before.

"Change is coming."

Masters was talking about the situation in Europe, where negotiations around the expansion of Uefa's club competitions have been taking place for 17 months now. However, if England's so-called 'big six' clubs have their way, that "change" will be far more extensive than what appears set to happen on the continent - an expanded format for all European club competitions, including the Champions League group stage.

An 18-team Premier League, no more EFL Cup or Community Shield, B teams, the scrapping of FA Cup replays. All these were mentioned within the Project Big Picture proposals, which became public ahead of schedule at the beginning of October when they were leaked to the Daily Telegraph. "Everything is up for discussion. Nothing is off the table," Football Association chairman Greg Clarke told the same Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) committee, exactly 27 minutes before he came out with the words that consigned his tenure to the bin.

These options are all controversial. But most contentious of all, in a document that laid out plans to address the massive funding gap between the Premier League and the rest of English football, was the demand for voting power to be concentrated in the hands of a minority of clubs. Following the widespread criticism that met its public release, it might have appeared to some observers as if the proposed changes in Project Big Picture had been scrapped.

As we will see, this is not the case. The story is far from over.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/55131356

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mtcefc
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Re: General Soccer Thread

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mikechamp wrote:
December 2 20, 9:52 am
For those who care about the future format/infrastructure of European football:
Why football is facing major change, despite 'toxicity' of Project Big Picture plan

When Premier League chief executive Richard Masters addressed a parliamentary hearing on 10 November, he delivered a line all English football could agree on, despite the fierce opposition that followed Project Big Picture's unexpected unveiling a month before.

"Change is coming."

Masters was talking about the situation in Europe, where negotiations around the expansion of Uefa's club competitions have been taking place for 17 months now. However, if England's so-called 'big six' clubs have their way, that "change" will be far more extensive than what appears set to happen on the continent - an expanded format for all European club competitions, including the Champions League group stage.

An 18-team Premier League, no more EFL Cup or Community Shield, B teams, the scrapping of FA Cup replays. All these were mentioned within the Project Big Picture proposals, which became public ahead of schedule at the beginning of October when they were leaked to the Daily Telegraph. "Everything is up for discussion. Nothing is off the table," Football Association chairman Greg Clarke told the same Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) committee, exactly 27 minutes before he came out with the words that consigned his tenure to the bin.

These options are all controversial. But most contentious of all, in a document that laid out plans to address the massive funding gap between the Premier League and the rest of English football, was the demand for voting power to be concentrated in the hands of a minority of clubs. Following the widespread criticism that met its public release, it might have appeared to some observers as if the proposed changes in Project Big Picture had been scrapped.

As we will see, this is not the case. The story is far from over.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/55131356
If covid has proved anything over the last year, in my opinion, it is how much football needs fans in the stadium. Especially in England. Yes, I am biased, but the behind closed doors games have been completely tedious and boring. The fact they pushed to get them played (for the broadcast rights) says it all.

Since more and more money has gone into football from various places (Hell Man City) I have felt more and more disenfranchised from the sport I fell in love with when I was young.

When I was young, I felt like I could see a footballer in my town, maybe live close to one, see one in the pub etc. Today the young players earn more in a week than I will ever earn in a year. I don't blame them in the slightest, they get offered a contract.

It is more to do with the "image" of football for me, like in Liverpool. The two football clubs, billion pound organisations, millionaire players playing in futuristic facilities, being broadcast over the world. Yet if you looked around the stadiums, it is a very poor area where most people struggle to afford to go to the games.

This power grab by the "elite" teams take the game further away from the common man, where it all started.

The League and FA Cup have already been made relatively worthless, when years ago FA Cup Final day was almost like a public holiday.

I don't know what my point actually is, but years ago I wouldn't have missed an Everton game for anything. Now I am barely interested anymore.

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mikechamp
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Re: General Soccer Thread

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For what it's worth, I get a big kick out of the FA Cup. All the domestic cups feel like football's version of March Madness to me.

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mtcefc
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Re: General Soccer Thread

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mikechamp wrote:
April 16 21, 2:02 pm
For what it's worth, I get a big kick out of the FA Cup. All the domestic cups feel like football's version of March Madness to me.
The idea of it is fantastic, literally any football team can enter it, the criteria is you have to have a pitch with working floodlights (pretty much).

Every now and again you get a David Vs Golliath tie, like this season non league Marine FC near Liverpool played Tottenham at home, they showed it on tv and people were sat on the walls of their back garden (legal during lockdown) watching Gareth Bale play for free.

The last real "small" team to win it was Wigan in 2013 who beat Manchester City in the final. I think the shine has been taken off the competition and teams only really take it seriously once they get in the quarter finals.

This story breaking yesterday is just sad.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/56795811

Ironic that 3 of the teams involved are owned by The Glazer Family, J W Henry (Fenway Sports) and some guy called Stan Kroenke?!

Looks like they want an NFL/MLB style competition with no threat of relegation. Quite sad really.

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