For all practical purposes the first matchday of the CONCACAF Champions League is over (Cruz Azul hasn't finished their game yet), but there are several things we can learn.
1. Never bet on a Belizian (I have no idea of that's right) team, especially if they play Cruz Azul. The game is not over yet, but Cruz Azul should advance from this night with a considerable aggregate lead, they currently lead 5-0. Click to continue reading...

The time has come for North America's answer to their European counterpart. The Champions League begins tonight. In this space I will rank and give a brief preview of the eight preliminary matchups. Several of the teams come from leagues that have played internationally very little over the past few years, so those teams will be unranked. Click to continue reading...

The rankings got a pretty big shakeup after Aguila of El Salvador destroyed Juventud Independiente 10-0. This win rocketed Aguila to the top of the rankings and reminded me that my computer formula still has a lot of flaws.
The game of the week was won by San Luis against Tigres 1-0. San Luis dropped one place (due to the miracle game mentioned above) and Tigres dropped 5 places to eighth. Click to continue reading...

Sorry I couldn't post this sooner, I have been working and all of a sudden it was Friday night and I hadn't posted a weekend preview. There are a few good games going on in North America this weekend, the best of which takes place in Mexico. The number 2 and 3 teams in the rankings play tomorrow. San Luis (2), the best offensive team in Mexico, has 13 points from 5 games and Tigres (3), has only conceded one goal in three games. Click to continue reading...

Three midweek MLS matches take place today and tomorrow. Tonight, DC United visit New England and the Houston Dynamo host Chivas USA. Tomorrow, the Galaxy host the Chicago Fire in the ESPN game of the week.
The United-Revolution game has to be the best of the trio, featuring on-fire DC (37), who has won 3 out of its last 4 games, and New England (34) which has lost its last 3 games, getting outscored 9-2 in the process. Click to continue reading...

Three North American Clubs will take part in the Copa Sudamericana, a UEFA Cup of sorts for South America. Chivas de Guadalajara and San Luis of Mexico both qualify as the best two teams from Clausura 2008 that did not qualify for this season's Champions League, and Motagua of Honduras which qualified via the 2008 CONCACAF Champion's Cup. Click to continue reading...

Every once in a while a game comes along that I really wished I had bet on, even just a dollar, something. One of those games took place Saturday when MLS best New England visited league worst San Jose and left with an embarrassing 0-4 loss. Perhaps we should have seen it coming, San Jose had been unbeaten in its last four games, including a 3-2 win last week over the Galaxy, while New England had gone on a two game losing streak. Click to continue reading...

The game of the week stays in MLS again, when Real Salt Lake (31) visits the Houston Dynamo (30) in a meeting of the top two teams in the Western Division. The teams have only met once, with a goalless draw in July.
The top ranked North American team, Deportivo Saprissa, is idle this weekend in Costa Rican action. Click to continue reading...

New England lost its second straight game to an Eastern Conference opponent Tuesday night, this time in the semi-finals of the US Open Cup. DC United scored early, and, after the Revolution equalized, scored two to put the defending cup holders away.
Charleston came came back from a 0-1 deficit to tie in the 32nd minute to force overtime and a shootout. Click to continue reading...

It's that time of the year again, time for the US Open Cup Semi-finals. DC United (37) take on defending Open Cup champion New England Revolution (21), while the Seattle Sounders of USL-1 visits another USL-1 side, the Charleston Battery. It is guaranteed that the final will pit an MLS team against a USL team.

Click to continue reading...

Cruz Azul, the previous number 1, lost to San Luis on Tuesday 2-1; but even with a 2-0 victory over Tecos, Cruz Azul fell to fourth. Costa Rican side Saprissa destroyed recently promoted Ramonense 5-0, shooting the defending champions to the top of the rankings, becoming the first Costa Rican team to be first. Click to continue reading...

Cruz Azul (1) lost to San Luis (8) 2-1 on Tuesday, most likely moving them from the top spot for next weeks rankings. There is the possibility of Alajuelense (3) becoming the first Costa Rican team in the ranking's short history to be ranked first.
New England (23) visit Chicago (16) in the game of the week, pitting the only ranked MLS sides. Click to continue reading...

I know that this post is off topic for this blog, and I know that what I'm going to say will never happen, but I was bored. Forget about the UEFA Champions League, CONCACAF Champions League, and any other such thing. There should be a true FIFA Club World Cup. The top 32 teams from around the world will meet in order to crown the true club champion. Click to continue reading...

Sorry about the lack of posting, my vacation was a good one, but it is now time to get down to business. These are the first rankings since the beginning of the North American soccer season. Please keep in mind that these are weighted against the results of last season.
1. Cruz Azul - Mexico
2. Click to continue reading...

Its Friday, which means (to those absolutely retarded ones out there) that it will soon be the weekend. And this weekend is special because, in addition to MLS action, football season kicks off for real in North America. For the first time since the beginning of these rankings, the top four leagues in CONCACAF will be in action. Click to continue reading...