CONCACAF
Fans longing for the bridge between North, Central and South American soccer, take notice. Change might just be on the horizon.
According to a statement released from CONCACAF, president Jeffrey Webb met with executive committee members of CONMEBOL on Wednesday in São Paulo, Brazil, to explore the potential for collaborative opportunities between the confederations.
Among the items discussed was the staging of a special Copa América in 2016 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of CONMEBOL that would involve CONCACAF's partnership and participation, referee development, technical programs and other synergies.
Webb is a special guest of CONMEBOL president Nicolás Leoz and will attend the second leg of the Copa Libertadores Wednesday evening between Corinthians and Boca Juniors.
"The discussions today were held in a spirit of genuine cooperation," said Webb, making his first trip to South America since his election as CONCACAF president on May 23. "I look forward to further talks and building a stronger relationship between our confederations."
Webb is accompanied on the trip by CONCACAF vice president Justino Compeán, who is also president of the Mexican Football Federation.
*A previous version of this story claimed 500,000 Salvadorans welcomed Mexico at their hotel. After further review, the original article states around 1,500 were in attendance. Use online translation services with extreme caution.
You probably thought the US would have it bad in Guatemala City, what with the normal torments experienced by American sides venturing down to Central America.
But that appears to be strictly child's play when compared to the reception Mexico is getting in El Salvador. According to MedioTiempo.com, somewhere around 1,500 Salvadorans* gathered at El Tri's hotel on Monday night in San Salvador to make sure the team that arrives at Estadio Cuscatlán on Tuesday is running on as little sleep as possible. Google Translate tells me that the crowd banged drums, sang songs inapproriate for this space and set off rockets throughout the night, while also killing time by "jiggling" the cars that had the unfortune to turn up the wrong street.
You know, a normal Monday night with Mexico in town.
Now, I'm not entirely sure I buy the claim that the gathering drew 500,000 people – essentially a fifth of the city's metro population – but The video and photos paint a pretty clear picture. The Salvadoran fans mean business, and Mexico haven't even walked out of the tunnel yet.
Just suddenly having [Fabian Johnson] on the squad feels like finding a solution to a problem you'd gotten so accustomed to that you'd stopped even thinking of it as a problem. He's the soccer equivalent of laser eye surgery or getting air conditioning for the first time.
Is Fabian Johnson the irrefutable savior of American soccer? Alone, it's unlikely.
But in Brian Phillips' article on the US men's national team at Grantland, he argues that Johnson is just another reason why US soccer is poised to push the limits on how well – and subsequently, how poorly – they can play.
Essentially, with a more attack-centered mentality and a formation to maximize the talent in the midfield, the potential to produce big-time performances (we're looking at you, Scotland) are ever more likely.
With that being said, against powerhouse teams like Brazil – where a 4-1 loss seemed to sting a whole lot less than a scoreless draw with Canada because, well, the team looked better – the risk of being dumped with an unsightly scoreline is also on the rise.
It's time to drop the "up-and-coming" tagline (it's been far too long), start playing up to the talent available (not to say that the US will consistently take down the world's elite, but just ask the past two World Cup champions, Spain and Italy, if they still get a can't-wait-to-play-them feeling in their stomachs when they see the United States on their schedule), and stop accepting losses to teams well below the Americans' capabilities (a la Panama in the 2011 Gold Cup on US soil).
"By gambling that he can teach the USMNT to walk before it's really gotten world-class at crawling," Philips writes, "Klinsmann is taking an already chancy situation and stirring in a fresh vial of crazy."
With the 2014 World Cup as the ultimate showcase of Klinsmann's US side, perhaps straying from the status quo and going for glory is just the type of craziness we need.
As they say, timing is everything.
On the same day the Houston Dynamo found out that they will face Honduran side Olimpia in the group stage of the CONCACAF Champions League this summer, the MLS club has reportedly plucked one of Olimpia's most prized possessions.
Honduran international midfielder Oscar Boniek García is apparently heading to the Dynamo after rumors of the deal first surfaced several months back. Diez is reporting that the president of Honduran club Olimpia has confirmed the deal.
The article states that Boniek García, who was one of the stars of the 2011 Gold Cup, will be joining the Dynamo following the second of two World Cup qualifiers on June 12 in Toronto.
He's versatile enough to play in several of a number of positions from holding midfielder, to attacking midfielder and even on the right side of midfield, a position still in flux for Houston in 2012.
Earlier this week, MLSsoccer.com profiled Earthquakes right back Steven Beitashour as a player that could be on US national team coach Jurgen Klinsmann's radar.
Turns out, Klinsmann and US Soccer may have to move sooner rather than later if that's the case.
Beitashour, who led the Quakes last year with seven assists and already has four to his name in 2012, holds dual US-Iranian citizenship. According to Centerline Soccer's Robert Jonas, the San Jose native has been contacted by the Iranian national team, but not yet by the United States:
Steven Beitashour after #SJEarthquakes training: "It's been a goal of mine, since I was a little kid, to play in the World Cup."
— Robert Jonas (@robertjonas) May 11, 2012
Beitashour said he hasn't been contacted by #USSoccer, but with USA/Iran dual citizenship, says he has another option, play for Iran.
— Robert Jonas (@robertjonas) May 11, 2012
#SJEarthquakes defender Steven Beitashour on playing for Iran "They've contacted me a couple of times about getting into some of the camps."
— Robert Jonas (@robertjonas) May 11, 2012
Beitashour, born in the US, still favors playing for the #USMNT "Hopefully the US will come calling. If I get a chance, I'll impress them."
— Robert Jonas (@robertjonas) May 11, 2012
So it appears for the time being, Beitashour will hold out for a call from Klinsmann. But if the coach dawdles in calling up the third-year defender, Beitashour could easily be added to US Soccer's list of ones that got away.
Power 5: Steven Beitashour on Klinsmann's radar?
Surprise lors des éliminatoires des Jeux Olympiques : le Canada a battu les États-Unis 2-0. Les Américains n’ont pas montré grand-chose au cours des 90 minutes et les Canadiens ont su concrétiser leurs occasions.
Le deuxième but est particulièrement édifiant. Regardez sur la vidéo ci-dessous, vous verrez à quel point les Américains sont passifs, figés comme des piquets. Spectateurs de la combinaison Teibert – Davies sur corner, ils ont vu Cavallini prendre le dessus sur son adversaire direct et profiter de leur apathie. Qu’attendaient-ils ? Une tasse de café ? Ça les aurait peut-être réveillés…
Le Canada fait un pas important vers les demi-finales, mais le chemin vers Londres est encore long. Quant aux Américains, ils devront être moins léthargiques lors de leur dernier match de groupe contre le Salvador.
Cet été, les regards des amateurs de sport du monde entier seront tournés vers Londres, pour les Jeux de la XXXe Olympiade. Les qualifications de la zone Concacaf pour le tournoi masculin de soccer débutent ce jeudi. Règlement oblige, dans cette catégorie, ce sont les équipes nationales espoirs (-23 ans) qui s’y collent. Huit pays se disputent deux places qualificatives. Les États-Unis et le Mexique partent favoris, mais il faudra aussi se méfier du Honduras et du Canada.
Des joueurs de MLS ont été convoqués par cinq équipes, en plus grand nombre dans les rangs américains et canadiens. Dans l’équipe à la feuille d’érable, seuls Russel Teibert, Doneil Henry et Matt Stinson peuvent revendiquer une place de titulaire à Vancouver ou Toronto.
Du côté des États-Unis, il y a davantage de joueurs établis, notamment Freddy Adu, Juan Agudelo et Brek Shea, régulièrement appelés chez les « A ». On retrouve aussi plusieurs titulaires potentiels qui auraient été utiles à leur club respectif en ce début de saison : Sheanon Williams (dont la sélection a créé une nouvelle polémique à Philadelphie) mais aussi Bill Hamid, Perry Kitchen, Zarek Valentin, Teal Bunbury, Sean Johnson et Michael Stephens.
Voyez le programme complet du tournoi, et suivez-le sur vos écrans.
TUCSON, Ariz. – Juan Agudelo returned to New York Red Bulls practice here on Friday, walking a little taller. Literally.
The 19-year-old striker scored the US Olympic team’s opener in their 2-0 win over their Mexican counterparts in Texas on Wednesday – his first goal in a US shirt since his strike against Argentina nearly a year ago.
And Agudelo gives full credit to the bleached mop rising off the center of his scalp.
“It was just a play that we drew up the day before at practice, actually,” he explained to MLSsoccer.com. “Just a near-post cross off a corner kick and I was able to get my head on it with the Mohawk.”
If that ‘hawk looks like an homage to a certain Wesley Snipes movie to you, you’re not alone. Apparently Agudelo’s ‘do immediately reminded US Under-23 head coach Caleb Porter of the Stallone/Snipes sci-fi action classic Demolition Man.
And right there, folks, is where the generation gap between the 37-year-old coach and the teenage striker becomes apparent.
“Caleb told me about that – I didn’t really know about Demolition Man,” Agudelo admitted.
Fair enough. He wasn’t even a year old when the movie came out in 1993.
“I searched on Google images and it was like I was staring at myself,” he continued. “It wasn’t what I was going for, but that’s the way it worked out.”
Maybe it's time to add "Simon Phoenix" and "Demolition Man" to Swagudelo's growing list of nicknames.
WATCH: Agudelo on his time with the US U-23s
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