Two things to talk about this morning that affect my entire sports weekend. First, let me say that I am very glad that my wife (who is going on a mission trip to a far-off land for about a week) is not flying through France or Ireland to get there because right now someone is probably screaming their head off in the streets of Ireland.

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So who watched the game Friday night between Los Angeles and Houston? Or should I say who watched the semi-final match Saturday morning?Â

If you did watch the match, then you know exactly what I am talking about. You know that it was one of the worst planned and executed playoff matches in American sports history.

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ESPN has taken more than their fair share of stick for their football/soccer coverage, and for good reason. They're American (despite dubbing themselves The Global Leader) and, by and large, they do American sports well. Others: not so much.

But they've gone off-script with their latest venture, the Soccer Power Index, designed to render World Cup 2010 moot.

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Guido Erhard, who also struggled with depression

Big Story
The suicide of Robert Enke has shocked German football, with the country cancelling its friendly with Chile this Saturday and tributes pouring in.

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We could probably spend a day listing all the difference between our traditional North American sports leagues (MLB, NFL and NBA) with the way European soccer clubs are run, or in fact almost all leagues around the world are run, aside from MLS. For me, one of the key differences is roster construction. Click to continue reading...

If he were an opera star, he would be il divo. If he were an American sports star, he would be called a prima dona (yes, Americans don't speak other languages well) and be compared to Terrell Owens or various NBA figures. If he was a politician, he would rise to stratospheric heights only to quickly fall to the ground.

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I once read about a British sports journalist's amazement at the access that American sportswriters had. The British writer was visiting Chicago and asked to tag along with the Sun Times reporter who covered the Bulls. First, he went to a Bulls practice, and after the practice was over, the Chicago reporter ambled up to Scottie Pipen and Phil Jackson and asked a few questions.

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Working on the MLS Anti-Awards for 2009. Last chance for suggestions, but I'll give you a hint - couple of local Southern California players figure big.
But speaking of worst, I wanted to point out that the Daily Telegraph is an idiot.
The topic is worst sports uniforms. Coincidentally, one of my favorite sites, UniWatchBlog, is running a contest for worst American sports uniform of all time. Click to continue reading...

After a three week hiatus, Kartik Krishnaiyer returns to host the show with some excerpts from our EPL Talk interview with critically acclaimed and best selling author, Simon Kuper. Brian Zygo also catches up with Rico Clark to get his thoughts on scoring for the US in front of his father and World Cup qualification.

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Dear Mr. Goodell,

What has been witnessed all season long at Qwest Field in Seattle is the potential of professional Soccer in the U.S. Interestingly, it has all taken place at a football stadium. Who would have ever guessed, 14 years in, that MLS would make its biggest impact in a football stadium.

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Houston visits Seattle in MLS Cup playoffs

Our reward for enduring through 32 weeks of regular season matches is a fascinating final four in the Western Conference playoffs. While the Chivas USA versus Galaxy doubleheader in Los Angeles stacks up to be a tough defensive struggle for both squads, expect fireworks from the Houston Dynamo and the Seattle Sounders FC.

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When Michael Lewis published Moneyball in 2003, it instantly became one of the most influential books about American sports in a generation. Michael Lewis, normally a financial writer, analyzed how baseball's Oakland A's managed to consistently produce highly competitive teams despite a payroll that was a fraction of their biggest rivals.

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SMU Freshman hits 95-yard Soccer Goal @ Yahoo! Video
I live in America where soccer is still a second-string sport, but even the most controversial but popular American sports blogs can't ignore this fluke goal from a college soccer player at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX. Click to continue reading...

With all apologies to the footie-mad world, I have to say I'm a bit distracted by more provincial sporting pursuits this week. As I write my hometown Philadelphia Phillies (that's Major League Baseball if you aren't into the American sports scene) are in a best-of-seven series with the Los Angeles Dodgers for the right to go to the World Series (to presumably face the New York Yankees). Click to continue reading...

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Photo by ISIphotos.com

Landon Donovan won his sixth Honda Player of the Year award on Tuesday, also earning Honda Player of the Decade honors in the process.

The award, which goes to the top U.S. national team player, was voted on by 221 members of the American sports media.

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Photo by ISIphotos.com

Landon Donovan won his sixth Honda Player of the Year award on Tuesday, also earning Honda Player of the Decade honors in the process.

The award, which goes to the top U.

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Sample size that is. In soccer statistics this shows up in several ways. 1 there are so few significant events that the correlation and accuracy of the statistics will never be where they are for baseball, or really any of the American sports. It will ever only be close with correlations in the [. Click to continue reading...

Now that it's confirmed the United States will be participating in next year's World Cup, the American sports media will be ramping up their coverage of soccer here in the States. It's the way of...

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We're taking a look at the USA men's soccer jerseys of the last 25 or so years, not only to provide a bit of history, but also as a bit of a refresher before looking toward the future of the USA's kit. My main complaint about the USA kit is that there's no continuity. Unlike most national team kits, the design has changed drastically each time adidas or Nike has unveiled their latest designs.

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It has been announced that since the takeover of Birmingham city by a Hong Kong businessman that David Gold was asked to take a role as Vice President of the club and the new owner, Carson Yeung, was going to bring in someone who heads one of his companies. Â At that idea, Gold quit.

Can you blame him?

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Bath City were ejected from the Somerset Premier Cup tonight by Southern League side Bridgwater Town. It was not a narrow loss either. Bridgwater won a convincing 3-0 victory. It was the sort of defeat that could really shake a team right before a crucial FA Cup match on Saturday. It was the sort of defeat that might bring pressure on a manager to resign or cause fans to tear up their season tickets in disgust -- except it wasn't because this was the Somerset Premier Cup. Click to continue reading...

Episode 141 of the EPL Talk Podcast features an interview with Nick Szczepanik, writer for The Times newspaper and a regular co-host on TheGame Podcast. Szczepanik offers an intriguing insight to English football by having lived in the United States and being a follower of American sports.

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I know, I know, it sounds silly. Â Anton Ferdinand puts in an own goal and gives Manchester United a draw (which allows them to stay atop the EPL rankings) and that somehow exhibits Man U's power? Â It does. Â Let me show you.

Remember, I'm writing from an American Sports perspective.

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It looks as if Arsenal may soon lose its status of being the only top four club controlled by an English board, while Liverpool continues its search for a purchaser. At Arsenal, American sports entrepreneur Stan Kroneke is close to winning the battle with Moscow-based billionaire Alisher Usmanov to control Arsenal.

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Last week, I discussed the decline in beat reporting on American sports, which is hitting the less popular sports leagues such as Major League Soccer particularly hard. My particular example came from the city I know best, Chicago, where we've seen the major daily here cut its beat reporter for the Fire this year and replace him with an enthusiastic but inexperienced blogger, whose work rarely makes the print edition.

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Anyone who even lightly follows Serie A (like me) knows that Napoli is in a bit of trouble. Currently standing at the bottom half of the league tables, Napoli's performances have been considered disappointing this season, even after an exciting 2-1 win against Siena this weekend, in a match that was billed to be a make or break for their head coach, former Italian National manager and Metrostars player, Roberto Donadoni.

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A Russian oligarch who's even richer than Roman Abramovich has signed a letter of intent to buy the New Jersey Nets. At the same time, academics are concocting plans to introduce promotion and relegation to American sports. I'm not saying this is a thing, but given Kobe's love of Barcelona and David Beckham's unclassifiable homosocial bond with Kevin Garnett, I don't think anyone will be too shocked if Steve Nash scores a free throw with his head next season.

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The US Team's next test will be October 10th against Honduras. Â With only one win to go before clinching a World Cup berth I think we need to start looking ahead. Â I mean, at this point the US is nearly assured of attending World Cup 2010 in South Africa.

All the time we say about Professional American sports: Â Don't fix it if it ain't broken.

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According to press reports this evening, the Blue Square Premier has been unable to reach agreement with the new boy in the British pay television market, ESPN. This comes as no great surprise. For one thing, lower division football doesn't exactly fit in with the profile that the nascent channel has built up over the last couple of months, a profile based upon top European football, Premier League football and American sports.

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The Fire Bob Bradley movement has returned front and center. This movement's proponents continue to advocate the termination of the current US coach while offering little advice in the way of a realistic replacement. Many proponents of this movement have also vastly over rated the talent level in the current US Men's National Team Player pool, believing that the failures that can be rightfully blamed on a poor youth system, college soccer and a domestic league that doesn't focus on player development as it once did are all down to a single man.

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ESPN's SportsNation has spoken in regards to what the average american sports fan thinks about soccer, and it certainly seems like this past summer has increased the interest level of our game-
Which is more likely in the next 10 years?
Cubs win the World Series - 40%
Danica wins the Indy 500 - 37%
U. Click to continue reading...

Postmatch coming. Feel free to leave comments here

Related posts:

1. US-El Salvador 1997 Highlights of the US trip to San Salvador during the...
2. Blatter, Garber out of touch with American sports fans FIFA President Blatter's statement a couple weeks back regarding.

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Raise your hand if any of the following criteria apply to you:

- have you been a football supporter for ten years or less?

- have you "picked" a top European club to follow?

- do you currently reside in one of the 50 States that make up this fine country?

If you answered Yes to any or all of these questions, you very well may be eligible to also have a "2nd team".

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TV ratings for Major League Soccer in the United States are doomed. Why? Because most soccer fans such as ourselves have been programmed to watch European football. Let me explain.

On a typical weekend or weekday, European football matches kick off in the morning or mid-afternoon.

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Women's Professional Soccer held their 1st Championship Final last Saturday, and it had everything American sports fans love. It had the dominant, fan favorite squad (LA Sol) against the ragtag underdogs (Sky Blue FC), who had heroically beat Saint Louis Athletica in a 1-0 game a week ago today for the right to face Marta and LA for the title.

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