Salvation is here! The English football season is back. I’ve been trying to fill the summer void by taking to cricket but it’s been challenging. In the text commentary for the previous Test match against India, for example, several cricket fans fretted about being “dragged kicking and screaming” to soporific events by their domineering wives. […]

"Barcelona's philosophy never changes. Speed of thought, and speed of mind, enable the players to take control of any match" is how Nike describes the successful formula that the Blaugrana preaches. After watching this 90 second video, you get a good glimpse of what separates Barcelona from many of their competitors in Europe as well […]

I’m not ready. The 20th Premier League season begins this weekend but I’ll likely be at the beach rather than watching Liverpool battle Sunderland in the Europa League qualification derby.* While the season has begun in mid-August for decades, now it’s still a jolt every summer. Particularly this year as between the Gold Cup, the Women’s World […]

In an American sports landscape dominated by four primary sports (football, baseball, basketball, and hockey), Major League Soccer has always faced an uphill battle since it's inception in the mid-90's. Some would say that the saturation point may have been reached long ago, especially with the increased popularity of fringe sports such as NASCAR and […]

The draw for the second round of the Carling Cup (aka League Cup) has been announced. Most of the Premier League teams are competing at this stage (bolded below): Millwall v Morecambe Blackburn v Sheffield Wednesday Bury v Leicester West Ham/Aldershot v Carlisle Bournemouth v West Bromwich Albion Crystal Palace/Crawley v Wigan Peterborough v Middlesbrough […]

Assuming that the remainder of the Premier League matches will kick off as scheduled this weekend, it's going to be a huge weekend for FOX Soccer and soccer fans throughout the United States. Saturday marks the rebranding of Fox Soccer Channel as FOX Soccer. The 24/7 soccer network is planning on unveiling its new name, […]

God bless Ian Darke and ESPN2. After their best plans went to ruins when Tottenham Hotspur and Everton cancelled their opening match of the season Thursday, the game that ESPN2 was supposed to show live to viewers in the United States, ESPN will now show a different match live instead. Fulham against Aston Villa will […]

So far this summer, Juventus has spent money all over the pitch, already adding ten players to their books as of this writing. But despite spending somewhere in the range of 70 million euros on new transfer fees and making permanent loan deals from last season, the biggest buzz the Turin giants created this offseason […]

Those who know my writing know that I have an affinity for DC United and have followed the team, with varying levels of intensity, since its inception. So it should surprise no one that I have been closely following the Black-and-Red this season, not just because of rooting interest but because this has shaped up […]

According to Ives Galarcep, Freddy Adu will return to Major League Soccer after signing with the Philadelphia Union. Soccer By Ives claims that Chivas USA management were unwilling to support the signing of Adu to a designated player deal. Will add details as they become available.

"Norwich, Q.P.R., Swansea! Come in, come in." "Well, this is rather nice." "It is, isn't it?" "May we take our coats off? And could we trouble you for some seats, we've come a long way." "Erm, I wouldn't get too comfortable." Norwich City, Queens Park Rangers and Swansea City join the Premier League party this […]

Talk about bad timing. Zippo, the American lighter brand, chose this week to unveil their lighters that feature the crests of four of the Premier League's biggest clubs. The irony is that in the same week that Zippo releases these, London was in flames while major cities in the rest of England also were the […]

July saw Kevin Hartman named MLS’s MVP of the month. He follows that accolade with an inclusion into our MLS Legends feature. The 37-year old currently leads the league in minutes, and we caught up with Kevin on the way to practice. He told us all about his stock portfolio, and how he’s managed to […]

Following the riots in London I am delighted to write that the Football League has today confirmed that all matches in London will take place at their scheduled kick off times. The riots that started in London and have spread to other parts of England have been a shocking embarrassment to our country, leading to […]

It's time for our annual ritual. To put my head on the line, to take the abuse and guffaws and predict how I think the 2011-12 Premier League table will look at the end of the season. But I'm not doing it alone. I encourage each of you to share how you think the table […]