Midfielder Sebastian Velasquez looked up at the Fresno FC goalkeeper ready to shoot a penalty kick in the final minutes of the first playoff match for El Paso. A tied game and a chance for an upset was a spot Velasquez knew well. In 2013, in his second season in Major League Soccer, he faced a penalty kick for a chance to win the MLS Cup for Real Salt Lake. He missed. Velasquez had grown by leaps and bounds following that
The MLS is growing and improving at a fairly impressive rate these days, thanks to American and international play alike. But as the recent edition of soccer’s newest great rivalry – “El Trafico” – demonstrated, it’s still the major international stars that make the biggest impact. LAFC-versus-LA Galaxy was rightly billed as a clash not just between two cross-town adversaries or two good teams, but between Carlos Vela and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Unless Christian Pulisic decides to make his way home
Columbus Crew SC officially broke ground on their new stadium today shortly after a season of rebuilding for the new ownership of the franchise. An hour before the event, fans were invited over for beer, food, and plenty of other amenities, including a DJ playing music. The celebration of the beginning of a massive project for the Crew and the city of Columbus began with an enthusiastic reception for the emcee of the event, Crew SC legend and NBC Sports pundit Kyle
Columbus Crew SC came into their last home match of the season mathematically eliminated from playoff contention. Meanwhile, Philadelphia were playing for the top spot in the Eastern Conference. The motivations of both teams were very different for this Sunday clash. The match got off to a slow start as the first half was goalless and the Union did not muster a single shot on target. Columbus had a few decent opportunities as Luis Diaz and Pedro Santos kickstarted most of
On Sirius XM FC on September 17th, the NPSL announced that they would be making the jump into a two-season system. The summer season will remain in place and, as NPSL Chairman Kenny Farrell said, will take precedent when looking at any possible tough decisions, but there will be a spring/fall season as well. Spring will run in March and April, teams will then break for summer season, then teams that will continue playing in fall will resume play in
The National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) is proud to announce that Las Vegas Legends FC (Las Vegas, NV) has joined the league as an expansion team. The club will begin competition in the West Region’s Southwest Conference in 2020. “We are very excited to bring the NPSL to Las Vegas,” NPSL Managing Director Cindy Spera said. “It is wonderful to see the Southwest Conference continue to grow and we are looking forward to having a strong presence in Nevada.” The Legends
Columbus Crew SC got a much-needed victory over FC Cincinnati as they defeated them 3-1 at Nippert Stadium. Columbus and Cincinnati both came into the second match of their rivalry dubbed “Hell is Real” wanting to take away a much-needed victory. The victory would be much more than three points as both sides were looking to get the first win over each other in MLS. While Cincinnati had beaten the Crew 1-0 in the U.S. Open Cup in 2017, Columbus probably
Toronto FC stole a point late from Columbus at MAPFRE Stadium as Jozy Altidore capitalized on a point-blank header in the 90th minute. Columbus went with a 4-2-3-1 formation while Toronto went with a 4-4-2 formation playing Patrick Mullins alongside Jozy Altidore up top for Mullins’ return to Columbus. Toronto FC were frustrated for much of the first half as 61% possession did not lead to any reward until a long-distance strike
The first MLS edition of the “Hell is Real” rivalry between the Columbus Crew SC and FC Cincinnati did not disappoint. The dramatic match ended 2-2 after a comeback from Columbus split the points between the two Ohio sides. Columbus went down early in the 16th minute as Darren Mattocks headed home a corner kick from Victor Ulloa. The visitors took advantage of some poor marking from Columbus as Mattocks was wide open in the six-yard box. The second goal came seven
