Since September, I know I've tried to fill the void that is the WPS off-season with Champions
League, EPL matches, the MLS Championship or even National Team games but it's just not the same
:-( And I'd venture to bet my fellow die-hard WPSers have been feeling the same way. But guess what
guys, the 2010 Pre-Season is finally here.
Click to continue reading...
The United States Soccer Federation has released the roster for the US Women's friendlies later
this month. The US plays Mexico on March 28th in San Diego (5pm - FSC) and March 31st in Sandy, UT
(9pm - ESPN2). GOALKEEPERS (3): Nicole Barnhart (FC Gold Pride), Jill Loyden (Chicago Red Stars),
Hope Solo (St.
Click to continue reading...
Most Women's Professional Soccer training camps are underway, and at least 10 players with
Wisconsin ties are gearing up for the league's second season or looking to secure roster spots.
Eight of those players are with the league's two Midwestern teams, the Chicago Red Stars and
Saint Louis Athletica.
Click to continue reading...
On Thursday, US Women's coach Pia Sundhage announced the roster for the Algarve Cup. The US open
against Iceland on February 24th. They play Norway on the 26th and Sweden on March 1st to finish
out their group. GOALKEEPERS (3): Nicole Barnhart (FC Gold Pride), Jill Loyden (Chicago Red Stars),
Hope Solo (St.
Click to continue reading...
The Women's Professional Soccer league held a dispersal draft for the right of the players that
were formerly apart of the Los Angeles Sol. The Sol ceased operations in late January. To some
surprise the first pick by Saint Louis Athletica was for USA midfielder Shannon Boxx. The World
Player of the year, Marta, was picked third by FC Gold Pride.
Click to continue reading...
Women's Professional Soccer held its dispersal draft Feb. 4 for players' rights previously held by
the Los Angeles Sol, whose operations were discontinued Jan. 28. FIFA World Player of the year
Marta fell to FC Gold Pride with the third selection, instantly making the Bay
Area club favorites in the 2010 title chase--if they can sign the Brazilian.
Click to continue reading...
By AVI CREDITOR
A day after St. Louis welcomed home Steve Ralston, the city appears to be in position to add
another top-notch soccer star.
St. Louis Athletica has traded for the top spot in the Los Angeles Sol dispersal draft, sending
three players and its second-round pick in the dispersal draft to the expansion Atlanta Beat.
Click to continue reading...
Also known as Jamie Moreno, the William Shatner of MLS. Not only that, he gives a really, really
awkward interview about being back.
First of all, much respect to Moreno for all the goals, but my mental image from last season is of
him sauntering around the field until one of his teammates won a penalty kick, at which point he'd
take the kick, bury it, and then do his old-man shuffle back to the center line.
Click to continue reading...
Two weeks ago last Thursday, on the eve of the Women's Professional Soccer draft, Chicago Red
Stars' front office staff were running around like their hair was on fire in a desperate attempt to
acquire a replacement for starting goalkeeper Caroline Jönsson. The resulting trade of team
captain Lindsay Tarpley to St.
Click to continue reading...
U.S. WNT 25 January @ 03:12 AM EDT
With the U.S. Soccer Federation consistently scheduling almost year-round programming for the U.S.
Under-15, Under-17, Under-20 and Under-23 Women's National Teams, as well as holding the U.S. U-14
Identification Camp every summer, it's a very rare thing for a players' first national team
experience to come with the senior team.
Click to continue reading...
If you go to the site of any WPS team these days you're likely to see a counter displaying the
days, hours, and minutes before opening day. We're something like three months away, with a bit of
March Madness in between, but with the days getting longer, you can definitely feel the soccer in
the air!
Click to continue reading...
If you want to play women's professional soccer, there is one collegiate programs that seems
to do a particularly good job prepping players for the big show. In the recent 2010 Women's Pro
Soccer Draft, seven Tar Heels were selected, including four of the first eight picks.
Tobin Heath was drafted first overall by the Atlanta Beat.
Click to continue reading...
Stanford's Kelly O'Hara, the No. 3 overall pick
View full size photo »
By SCOTT FRENCH / Contributing Editor
FC Gold Pride put together a really impressive draft today in Philadelphia, grabbing very good
to great players with every pick in Friday's WPS Draft.
Click to continue reading...
Sarah Teegarden might have to put her coaching career on hold.
The former UW-Milwaukee standout midfielder, who was an assistant coach at NCAA Division III
Alverno College in Milwaukee last fall, was selected by Saint Louis Athletica in the sixth round of
the Women's Professional Soccer draft today in Philadelphia.
Click to continue reading...
Sarah Teegarden might have to put her coaching career on hold.
The former UW-Milwaukee standout midfielder, who was an assistant coach at NCAA Division III
Alverno College in Milwaukee last fall, was selected by Saint Louis Athletica in the sixth round of
the Women's Professional Soccer draft today in Philadelphia.
Click to continue reading...
Fan favorite
Lindsay Tarpley, the first to score a Red Stars goal and very much
"the face" of the franchise in its first year, has been traded to the Saint Louis Athletica for
goalkeeper Jillian Loyden. Just one in a series of surprises on WPS draft day. Read more at our WPS
page.
Click to continue reading...
Lindsay Tarpley is staying in the Midwest, but will head a few hours south.
The Madison native and U.S. national team regular was traded by the Chicago Red Stars to Saint
Louis Athletica for goalkeeper Jillian Loyden before today's Women's Professional
Soccer draft in Philadelphia.
Click to continue reading...
Lindsay Tarpley is staying in the Midwest, but will head a few hours south.
The Madison native and U.S. national team regular was traded by the Chicago Red Stars to Saint
Louis Athletica for goalkeeper Jillian Loyden before today's Women's Professional
Soccer draft in Philadelphia.
Click to continue reading...
Catching up on the day:
*U.S. Soccer said today a USMNT Feb. 24 exhibition at home against El Salvador is under
consideration. The U.S. has confirmed games before the World Cup begins against Honduras Jan. 23 at
Home Depot Center and the Netherlands in Amsterdam March 3.
*Chivas USA announced this afternoon that striker Eduardo Lillingston is going out on loan to
second division Mexican team Tijuana.
Click to continue reading...
Marquette sophomore goalkeeper Natalie Kulla and Saint Louis Athletica defender
Elise Weber, a former University of Wisconsin athlete, were invited to a U.S.
Under-23 women's national team training camp.
The weeklong camp in Carson, Calif., starts Wednesday and includes matches against the South
Korean full national team on Jan.
Click to continue reading...
United States Women's coach Pia Sundhage has called 26 players into camp in preparation for the
2010 Algarve Cup in Portugal. The United States has been drawn into a group with Iceland, Norway,
and Sweden. The tournament kicks off on February 24th. The US will have two scrimmages against
Korea during camp in Carson, California.
Click to continue reading...
The 2009 soccer year passes into history this week and a new year of soccer memories begin on
Friday!
In another effort to churn out a weekly column using a tired, formulaic method, I present for
your consideration XI personal highlights from my year in soccer:
I. Fulham's Run to the Europa League: In some ways, my support of Fulham is
more pure than that I have for the Chicago Fire, Chicago Red Stars or even my current employer, the
Milwaukee Wave.
Click to continue reading...
By BENJAMIN GOSS, Assistant Professor Sports Management, Missouri State University
L-R: McDermott (behind podium, emcee), Donigan, Santel, Hudson, Viverito, Flynn, and Cooper.
Before a crowd of over 200 attendees, on last Thursday, the John Cook School of Business at Saint
Louis University hosted a panel called Sport Business & Soccer.
Click to continue reading...
By BENJAMIN GOSS, Assistant Professor Sports Management, Missouri State University
L-R: McDermott (behind podium, emcee), Donigan, Santel, Hudson, Viverito, Flynn, and Cooper.
Before a crowd of over 200 attendees, on last Thursday, the John Cook School of Business at Saint
Louis University hosted a panel called Sport Business & Soccer.
Click to continue reading...
U.S. Soccer has announced the finalists for the 2009 Best of U.S. Soccer awards and there's only
one week left to vote for the 12 categories on USSoccer.com.
The eighth annual series gives fans the opportunity to make their selections for the best in
soccer in the United States. The 12 categories recap a busy 2009 crammed full of action, which
included FIFA World Cup qualifying, the FIFA Confederations Cup, Abby Wambach's 100th goal, another
Development Academy Season and the CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Click to continue reading...
Nice article on the WPS site:
Aluko is currently working as a paralegal at the law firm of SC Andrew in London. Her
work there will conclude in February when she returns to St. Louis to begin Athletica's pre-season
camp. Aluko has also begun work on her New York bar legal course, which she describes as "quite
intense.
Click to continue reading...
Defender Brittany Bock, 22, received her first call-up to the U.S. Women's National Team today
in the wake of a 12-day camp at Home Depot Center and ahead of the Oct. 29 game against
Germany.
She was an integral part of the Sol's defense last season.
Also named to the roster were Torrance's Shannon Boxx of the Sol and USC product Amy
Rodriguez.
Click to continue reading...
GOALKEEPERS (2): Nicole Barnhart (FC Gold Pride), Hope Solo (St. Louis Athletica) DEFENDERS (6):
Brittany Bock (Los Angeles Sol), Rachel Buehler (FC Gold Pride), Lori Chalupny (St. Louis
Athletica), Amy LePeilbet (Boston Breakers), Heather Mitts (Out of Contract), Cat Whitehill
(Washington Freedom) MIDFIELDERS (8): Yael Averbuch (Sky Blue FC), Shannon Boxx (Los Angeles Sol),
Tobin Heath (North Carolina), Angela Hucles (Boston Breakers), Lori Lindsey (Washington Freedom),
Carli Lloyd (Out of Contract), Heather O'Reilly (Sky Blue.
Click to continue reading...
Running late, but wanted to weigh in on the defense of marriage.
Yup, I'm with John Marcotte if we're going to defend traditional marriage, lets defend it all
the way. No more half measures ... after all, this is a sacred institution.
'Til death do us part ... hear that?
Oh, and while we're at it (totally unrelated) the Breakers lost a couple of stalwarts in the
expansion draft.
Click to continue reading...
Although I am enjoying the breast beating and hair-shirt wearing that the Bath City community is
engaged in at the moment, my status as a native Atlantan has given me some cheerier football news
to report to you today.
Just over an hour ago Women's Pro Soccer (WPS) has announced the results of their first ever
expansion draft, and as a result the first six members of the new Atlanta Beat roster have been
revealed.
Click to continue reading...
I've just arrived home in San Francisco and am about to start working on some video footage from
the All-Star Awards dinner. But before I do, I thought it would be nice to pick up where I ended my
blog yesterday and share a bit more from the WPS All-Star weekend.
Saturday night, we held the First Annual WPS Awards Dinner in the Versailles Ballroom at the
Chalet Hotel in St.
Click to continue reading...
Not many surprises here.
The WPS awards were handed out Saturday night ahead of Sunday's WPS All-Star game in St.
Louis.
The six award winners:
*Golden Boot Award - Marta (Sol)
*Defender of the Year - Amy LePeilbet (Boston Breakers)
*Coach of the Year - Abner Rogers (Sol)
*Goalkeeper of the Year - Hope Solo (Saint Louis Athletica)
*Sportswoman of the Year - Christie Rampone (Sky Blue FC)
* Player of the Year Award - Marta (Sol)
Quotable:
"Each player in the league has it as their goal to try for an award like this," said
Marta on being named WPS MVP.
Click to continue reading...
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.
Click to continue reading...
United States Women's National Team coach Pia Sundhage has named 26 players for a training camp
running from September 21st to October 2nd in Carson, California. GOALKEEPERS (3): Nicole Barnhart
(FC Gold Pride), Ashlyn Harris (North Carolina), Hope Solo (St. Louis Athletica); DEFENDERS (8):
Brittany Bock (Los Angeles Sol), Rachel Buehler (FC Gold Pride), Lori Chalupny (St.
Click to continue reading...
By CHRISTA MANN
After a twenty game regular season and two opening rounds of the playoffs, today's Women's Pro
Soccer Championship (4:00 PM EST on FSN and Comcast affiliates) features the L.A. Sol against Sky
Blue FC (NJ).
One team was always expected to be in the championship game, while the other, well the other
wasn't even expected to make the playoffs amid inner turmoil and early-season struggles.
Click to continue reading...
By CHRISTA MANN
After a twenty game regular season and two opening rounds of the playoffs, today's Women's Pro
Soccer Championship (4:00 PM EST on FSN and Comcast affiliates) features the L.A. Sol against Sky
Blue FC (NJ).
One team was always expected to be in the championship game, while the other, well the other
wasn't even expected to make the playoffs amid inner turmoil and early-season struggles.
Click to continue reading...
It was a close semifinal between Sky Blue FC and St. Louis Athletica. Hope Solo makes some big
saves in this game! But was it enough... watch to find out!
The 1st ever WPS Championship game is this Sunday at 4pm Eastern time on FSN. If you get that
channel check it out!
JM
Click to continue reading...
By CHRISTA MANN
Sky Blue FC (NJ) will be making an improbable trip to the WPS Championship after pulling off yet
another upset when they defeated the St. Louis Athletica 1-0 in the WPS playoff semifinal on
Wednesday.  Â
For the first time since July 18, St.
Click to continue reading...