The British Empire fought for this!

The Daily Mail goes patriotic after Jan Moir's homophobic innuendo and their divers perp walk. But it seems a bit fascist in its endeavour. After all, the very people they want to honour fought that scourge in World War II. And yes, it is also true that the British Empire was not welcome in many countries.

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Photo by ISIphotos.com

The U.S. Under-17 national team won a World Cup game on Thursday, but for many American observers, the 1-0 victory against Malawi didn't quite feel like a triumph. The disappointing performance led to some criticism (from SBI among others), and while it might seem misguided to be critical of a team of teenagers, the fact remains that this U-17 squad isn't just some youth team.

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Photo by ISIphotos.com

The U.S. Under-17 national team won a World Cup game on Thursday, but for many American observers, the 1-0 victory against Malawi didn't quite feel like a triumph. The disappointing performance led to some criticism (from SBI among others), and while it might seem misguided to be critical of a team of teenagers, the fact remains that this U-17 squad isn't just some youth team.

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A few numbers to have a peer at.

First thing that jumps out:Â when the bookies have not got our games quite right (4/9), all four results have been in our favour.

That's interesting isn't it? I appreciate that bookmakers' odds are not the be all and end all, but they are a good neutral barometer of what we might generally expect to happen in a game.

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It started with a bang, got mired in controversy and then just kind of fizzled out amid a flurry of cards and whistles as the referee imposed himself more and more.
In many respects this game was more than just a title decider. It was a barometer of just how far the Thai Premier League has progressed over this season. Click to continue reading...

Pedro Gomez is like a barometer of human size. He looks normal-sized when stood next to Jozy Altidore --who is actually a pretty big dude-- but when placed in a shot with Landon Donovan he looks like a giant, Cuban Jay Leno. Call me simple but I find it fascinating and think that going forward all U. Click to continue reading...

Some call it complacency, others the championship hangover. In Mexico it's known as campeonitis. Whatever it is, it stinks. And it is being measured in alarming levels at Ciudad Universitaria, home to Pumas UNAM. The only remnant that you can see on the pitch of the team that won the previous tournament is the itty-bitty little star they added to their jersey. Click to continue reading...

Rafa Benítez's six years in English football can be measured by buzzwords. If his first two years were dominated by "rotation" and zonal marking, his fifth will be best remembered for his "facts".
There are the old stalwarts of "possibilities" and "game intelligence." To that list, add his leitmotif for the coming season: "managing expectations. Click to continue reading...

Hard economic times can also foster innovation, and it's no surprise that a supporter-owned and run club, FC United of Manchester, this summer became the first club I've heard of to allow supporters to set their own season ticket prices.

In May, the Unibond League club formed in protest at the Glazers' takeover of Manchester United, explained their decision:

The Board is excited to announce a radical new campaign in which you can decide how much you pay for your own season ticket this summer.

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I tell people all the time that there are plenty of soccer fans in this country. It's just that only a relatively small percentage like MLS. But since that's the country's most visible soccer property, it's convenient to use as a barometer. See, all across this great land, there are people who love them some Mexican [. Click to continue reading...

Laugh about it, shout about it / When you've got to choose / Every way you look at it, you lose
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Lost in the whirlwind tour of South Africa and the Confederations Cup, which brought outlets from Harper's to Deadspin to what seemed like every newspaper in the country out for a week-long soccer columning festival, was the demise of Brad Friedel's once heralded (here at least) soccer academy in Ohio.

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Jan Versleijen's Young Socceroos have drawn a tough group in September's U-20 World Cup in Egypt. As well as perennial high-flyers Brazil, there are the Czechs, runners-up in the 2007 event, and CONCACAF loose cannon Costa Rica.
The youngsters' performance at this event will be interesting to watch, for a number of reasons. Click to continue reading...

What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up / like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore And then run? Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over like a syrupy sweet? Maybe it just sags / like a heavy load. Or does it explode? -Langston Hughes On Friday, April 3rd, [...] Click to continue reading...

As most of you likely know the beloved du Nord, the time-consuming spawn of Minnesota's Bruce McGuire, is on hiatus... maybe forever. Which begs the question of where you can get your daily dose of soccer weblinks. After finishing a piece here at TIAS and waiting for an embargo to pass so that I can publish [. Click to continue reading...

Steve Goff touched on a topic close to my heart yesterday. He asked readers, "What do you think it is going to take for an American soccer player to re-enter the mainstream commercial industry?" I live in two worlds: soccer journalism and the non-sporting mainstream media. At magazine after magazine soccer is shot down for editorial [. Click to continue reading...

Like a child breaking down and building back and breaking down and building back an antique before carving their own milestone, 2008 was a year of tinkering before making real progress. But that's not to say history wasn't made... The most common thing I wrote down in my notebook over the last year was two words attached [. Click to continue reading...

While I try to edit down and pair together a year's worth of notes into some sort of digestible column on the year that was 2008, check out 2007's offering (has anything changed?) and take a moment to vote for your favorite online soccer offerings over at USSF and Soccerlens. - banner photo of famed sneaker designer [. Click to continue reading...

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LET OUT THE SLACK EDITION There's so much soccer going on right now that I don't know where to turn where to look where to work. The largest project in the history of this little blog is almost finished and will help usher in my favorite month of the year. The last two weeks in an [...] Click to continue reading...

losing effort maybe not the only lesson for american soccer at the olympics In the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, China came home with 59 medals (28 gold), good enough for 3rd place in the medal count behind Russia and the United States, the latter of which had 91 (36 gold) and dominated the games [. Click to continue reading...