Of the two MLS matches on tap for Wednesday night, one will have a lot riding on the coin toss.
The game between the Columbus Crew and San Jose Earthquakes (10 p.m. ET) could come down to drawing the right side of the field given how the setting sun wreaked havoc in San Jose’s loss to Toronto FC.
The Houston Dynamo, who have injury problems on defense, have alternated between wins and losses over the last 10 matches. After Saturday’s loss to Philly, the New York Red Bulls are forewarned in their contest at Red Bull Arena (7:30 p.m. ET).
NYRB manager Hans Backe will take the bench tonight a little lighter in the pocket after receiving a fine for comments following the weekend’s loss in Foxborough.
Another MLS coach, Seattle's Sigi Schmid, has turned to blaming the referees for his team’s recent stretch of poor results.
D.C. United and defending champs Real Salt Lake will be getting to know one another really well as they face off twice in a four-day span in DC. It starts with tonight’s do-or-die play-in match for the US Open Cup at RFK Stadium (7:30 p.m. ET).
Real Salt Lake will be looking to extend their club record winning streak that made the month of May one to remember.
United’s recent turnaround coincided with the inclusion of a former local college player into the DC lineup.
Here’s a long feature piece on one of D.C. United's unexpected stars in 2010: Andy Najar and how he came to be discovered and developed in D.C. United academy.
It will be all about the academy players in tonight’s Nutrilite Canadian Championship finale for Toronto FC against the Vancouver Whitecaps. With the championship already in hand, Preki will be testing several academy products (BMO Field, 8 p.m. ET).
USA Today covers the story of another product of an MLS youth academy: the Galaxy’s Tristan Bowen.
Also in Canada, future MLS expansion club Montreal Impact will be hosting Italian giants AC Milan in a friendly match tonight.
Although the US made its roster cuts for the World Cup last week, one American only received news on Tuesday that he would not be playing in South Africa as New Jersey-born Giuseppe Rossi was left off Italy's roster.
The US held its first press conference in South Africa on Tuesday and trained on the same field it used in last year’s Confederations Cup.
ESPN’s Allen Hopkins was on site at USA training and says that Carlos Bocanegra and Jay DeMerit did not participate in the first full training session.
New York Times columnist William Rhoden reports on a new security threat at the World Cup and gets Bob Bradley’s take.
Get used to seeing College Gameday’s own Chris Fowler talking soccer and the US chances to get out of Group C.
While US opponents England also made their final roster known on Tuesday, other World Cup teams saw game action with CONCACAF side Costa Rica springing a surprise on a World Cup participant. Brazil and Honduras participate in separate warm-ups on Wednesday while fellow participants Greece and Paraguay square off.
Argentina’s Diego Maradona says he is yet to settle on a lineup but one player sure to feature is Lionel Messi, who is featured in this Washington Post article.
And Italy's Fabio Cannavaro, who lifted the World Cup in 2006, will not be coming to MLS after all after accepting a surprise bid from a Middle Eastern club.
Lastly, June 12 is not just about USA vs England for fans in the USA. There is also the Portland Timbers logo unveiling on that day and the club dropped another hint at what it may look like.
