Tickets for the Saturday night's Eastern Conference Final between the Fire and Real Salt Lake sold out today. The sellout is the second consecutive for the Fire - who will sell a very limited amount of standing room only tickets for the game.

If you're sitting on some cash, you can buy the so called "FieldSide West" tickets for $250 a pop.

Click to continue reading...

Tickets finally went on sale today throughout the country for the second leg of the CONCACAF/CONMEBOL playoff between Uruguay and Costa Rica in Montevideo. In about seven hours, the Uruguayan soccer federation has sold more than 20,000 tickets. At this rate the match should be a complete sellout before the weekend. Click to continue reading...

The playoff numbers look like this...

5 year comparison Conference Semifinals 1st Leg  Avg +/- Home Teams  2005  12,147 NA  Chicago  NY  Colorado  Los Angeles  2006  9,533  -21.52%  Chicago  NY  Colorado  Chivas USA  2007  14,245  49. Click to continue reading...

Tom Anselmi defended his decision to extend Mo Johnston's contract by saying, and I quote: "Our expectation was to not make the playoffs the first three years. We didn't think we would."
Bra. Vo.
Not expecting Toronto FC to qualify for the playoffs? In a league where half the teams move on to the post season? Click to continue reading...

Well, I'm at home for reasons that would bore the hell out of you, might as well fake liveblog it.
Preceding program - Who Killed the USFL? Fascinating. Probably not what an MLS fan wants to see.
Wow, a sellout! I mean, David Beckham. Not attendance. I talk a lot about how illegitimate Chivas USA is, how bad they are for MLS, how bad they are for soccer, and what a great day it will be when they finally dry up and blow away. Click to continue reading...

To the surprise of no one, the first leg of the CONCACAF/CONMEBOL playoff in Saprissa has officially sold out. Tickets were sold in approximately two days at spots all over the country. I would have been shocked if there hadn't been a sellout. Click to continue reading...

Columbus needs a big game from Robbie Rogers at Rio Tinto Stadium. (Getty Images)

While last night's game in Seattle got the playoffs started with a 0-0 bang, the rest of the playoff clubs get ready to join the Dynamo and Sounders in the fun. One series kicks off tomorrow night while the other two wait it out for Sunday.

Click to continue reading...

I've also been meaning to put in my own take on the 2009 MLS regular season attendance numbers. Tom over at PI looks at the issue in terms of expansion teams versus older clubs, but I'm not sure that's a complete analysis. This won't be either, but here's a few brief points:
1) Outside Seattle, no team saw more than a 1% increase in attendance - except San Jose because of the Barcelona double header. Click to continue reading...

So the first off-season head has rolled, and it's not even a manager.

FC Dallas GM Michael Hitchcock was relieved of his duties on Tuesday – a move every bit as surprising as Michael Moore making another movie about establishment greed in America. (They won't actually replace Hitchcock, per se; they'll rearrange duties, hiring a technical director and retaining John Wagner as head of the front office.

Click to continue reading...

W.C. qualifier has 134 tickets sold
I probably don't know the whole story, but it doesn't make it any less remarkable. Only 134 tickets have been sold in Columbia for an upcoming World Cup qualifier against Chile.
It's a big game! Chile is right in the mix for a berth and Colombia is just two points out! Click to continue reading...

Liverpool v. Leeds, Elland Road

The power and glory of the Carling Cup returns for Liverpool fans, and what better way to start than at a side with a tortured past!

Leeds United do find themselves top of the League One table as of today's kick-off, but they've struggled to maintain form since Bernie Madoff took charge of their finances in 2001.

Click to continue reading...

Well, what can you say. At least the Aztex have been, umm . . . consistent? Sure. Consistent; that's the ticket.

• box score - USLSoccer.com
  

  Weather: Sunny, Attendance: 13,034

  Note per the Montreal Gazette article below: that 13K attendance "was the Impact's first sellout of the season, although a sizable portion of those ticket buyers weren't on hand for the game.

Click to continue reading...

Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images

Lionel Messi today has been given medical clearance to play in the Gamper on Wednesday against Manchester City. Messi had been sidelined since last week when he suffered a left thigh injury in practice. He was not able to play in the Argentine friendly or this past Sunday against Athletic Club Bilbao.

Click to continue reading...

For the past two days, The Kin of Fish has recounted this Summer of Soccer, the greatest, most visible season the beautiful game has had in the US, perhaps ever. This week, we've looked at the US Confederations Cup run, and the buzz around David Beckham's return to MLS. Today, with just hours to go before the US Men's National Team tries to get its first win ever at Mexico's Azteca Stadium, we look at the amazing support of Euro Club friendies that ended just last week. Click to continue reading...

With J Hutcherson -- Big ticket weekend, with yet another Euro super club setting up shop. This time it's Barcelona, on track to sellout the Rose Bowl against the LA Galaxy on Saturday. Whatever number they lay down becomes the target for Real Madrid, playing DC at the biggest venue in the National Football League on August 9th. Click to continue reading...

Sunday's Gold Cup Final between the United States and Mexico at Giants Stadium is officially a sellout. The two teams face each other with new look squads, just weeks away from the World Cup Qualifier at Azteca. "I think it'll always bring out the emotion," US coach Bob Bradley said about playing Mexico. Click to continue reading...

The Rochester Rhinos of the USL First division had their Open Cup run ended by defending champion DC United of MLS on Tuesday night. The Rhinos were the last surviving USL club in the tournament and their 1999 Open Cup title was the only one by a USL club in the tournament since MLS clubs started competing in 1996. Click to continue reading...

The first batch of season tickets in Seattle went quick. Every game's been a sellout.
Then, luckily, the ownership decided to open up some more.
And I got some.
Many others aren't so lucky. Those puppies are in high demand. Here's Sounders FC general manager Adrian Hanauer on the possibility of increasing capacity again:

"There isn't a definitive answer.

Click to continue reading...

Good crowds attended this week's eight matches, except of course in Dallas. The league averaged just over 16,600.

The week began with west leading Chivas USA visiting Houston. A midweek turnout of over 14,500 saw the Dynamo continue its good form.

On Saturday, the east's top teams clashed in DC in front of over 18,300.

Click to continue reading...

This week's eight matches averaged just over 13,100. Last year's week 12 included a visit by Beckham to San Jose. The game was at Oakland Alameda and drew over 39,800.
After 92 matches, the league is drawing 1,479 fewer per game than the first 92 games last year, a 9.1% decrease. On the up side, the average was 2,000 better than the corresponding week in 2005 which also had World Cup Qualifiers.

Click to continue reading...

The Rapids make their first trip to Sandy, UT and Rio Tinto Stadium to take on FaKe SaLt LaKe. With a win tomorrow the Rapids reclaim the Rocky Mountain Cup, which has lived in Salt Lake City the last two years. Game time for this one is at 8 pm, which unfortunately overlaps the U.S. National Team World Cup Qualifier by 30 minutes. Click to continue reading...

Colorado forward Conor Casey has been called into the US National Team squad for Saturday's game against Honduras at Chicago's Soldier Field. 50,000 tickets have already been sold for that game, and US Soccer is expecting a sellout. Click to continue reading...

I don't want to toot my own horn, but I am a LEADER in the football writing world. My audience of twenty looks to me as a voice they can TRUST, not a voice that will shank them around like a Gerrard strike into Row Z, or yell at them at a press conference or something. Some ask if me if I'll ever sellout, and I say, you kiddin'? Click to continue reading...

Well, 12 years of barely-challenged supremacy had to come to an end at some point, but tonight's limp defeat at Sellout left a nasty taste in my mouth. I think plenty of us, in all honesty, saw it coming. I think I did too - defeat's sometimes better taken on your own, and I ended up perched towards the foot of the grotty-as-ever Arthur Waite stand, and ended up walking out seven minutes before Click to continue reading...

Sorry for the late notice everyone, but hopefully you still have time to get prepared for tomorrow's "Stuff the Bus" activity. As some of you have heard on 94.9 KCMO, we're collecting extra school supplies at tomorrow's match to assist the City Union Mission in providing school supplies for those less fortunate. Click to continue reading...

Well, the crowd was incredible. We fell 3-0 tonight to Columbus on goals from Marshall and Moreno (2). To all of you out at the park, a wholehearted, THANK YOU. The stands were packed, you were loud, and it was an excellent atmosphere. The new Ink Pavilion kicked off behind the Piojo banner in centerfield, and was a success. Click to continue reading...