Sometimes the question you ask leads to an unexpected answer. In my efforts to suss out the status of LWB Jared Karkas and LW Mike Fucito I made an unexpected discovery. Now some readers may have known this already, but the Sounders have a Senior Roster spot available. Why is this an unknown? Because the MLS [.

Earlier this week the Alliance Council had our monthly conference call with Bart Wiley (Director of Business Development) and we discussed many things (I have to leave it at that because our blog entry at the team site is going up soon). The thing that concerned me the most was a conversation about where Sounders FC [.

"We expect to make money on the game; Adrian doesn't know what he is talking about there. ... I just think it is a little out of bounds in your first year to throw stones the way they [Sounders FC] have." -- Kevin Payne, DC United President
It's getting ugly, isn't it?
But should we have expected any less?

Would you believe it: how about an expensive marketing campaign focused on the history of a club and the sport, promoting an actual competitive domestic match in American soccer.

So much of this "summer of soccer" in the U.S. has been huff and puff about games that don't matter (aside from the $$$), with the series of high-profile friendlies sweeping the nation featuring Real Madrid, Barcelona, Chelsea et al.

Next year the Sounders will compete for four major trophies Supporters Shield (30 regular season games), MLS Cup (30 + 4 Playoffs), US Open Cup (up to 6) and the CONCACAF Champions League (up to 14). There will be significant issues with balancing the roster and lineups for this run. The depth of MLS [.

Duane threw up a great post yesterday, that is getting a bit lost in the noise of Beckham and the upcoming weekend. It also, got a bit turned on its ear when the news came out that Fulham hasn't actually talked to anyone yet. But it still deserves comment, because until MLS isn't a feeder [...]

I had a chance to speak with Adrian Hanauer, the general manager and one of the owners of the Seattle Sounders, at halftime of Saturday's 2-2 tie between the Colorado Rapids and the Sounders. He watched the game, wearing his Sounders scarf, from the press box and was quite animated. The game was 1-1 at halftime.

Let's just start with the money quote. Obvious, but still money. "We want to win" After finding out that Sounders FC didn't win the bid for the Open Cup Final if DC beats Rochester I contacted General Manager and minority owner Adrian Hanauer concerning the bidding process. The brief email exchange follows.