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2021-22-23-24 News Thread

Oh, FSG want to compete ... but only to the point where it drives revenue. It's bad for business to suck, so they avoid that. It's expensive to win championships, so they avoid that as well. They're the 70s and 80s IBM of sports ownership. Competence delivered in the most boring way possible.
 
Well, Matt Crocker proved to me that he's actually started to take his job as sporting director seriously. Berhalter absolutely had to go and for once he didn't muck around and take forever to make a decision. I honestly don't care where he goes from here so long as it's not Cherundolo. You just CAN'T go with another USMNT alum MLS coach with a middling track record again.
 
Euro 2025 qualifying took place today. Surprised at how thorough Iceland's win over Germany was (3-0). France qualified with their 2-1 win over Sweden. And the Lionesses beat the Republic of Ireland 2-1. They need just a single point to advance.
 
After winning Euro 2024 and the 2022-23 Nations League, Spain coach Luis de la Fuente has expressed interest in the vacant uS job. He extended his contract with the Spanish z federation through 2026 just last month.
 
For context, the Spanish federation is still reeling from the fallout of the mess surrounding the treatment of their women's team. Going out with a big W for a nice, stable, fairly low-stakes job has to be tempting.
 
It's tempting to connect Southgate to the US job, but he's bonkers if he doesn't follow Klopp's lead and take some time off before taking another gig. That job is so freaking stressful due to outside pressures and inside politics that I'd recommend 2 months on a beach with no phone followed by a good 4 months of therapy before even thinking about next steps.
 
He did a great job changing the culture around the team. Tactically, he was questionable and almost laughably so in this past tournament. He also suffered a bit in the way that all international managers at the end of a long reign where they are too loyal to the players who had been successful for them in the past.

I wouldn't want him for the US job and frankly he was the perfect person to become England manager at the time he did considering the state of chaos the team was when he took over, but I don't think he's actually a good fit for any other job.
 
I still think some of Southgate's issues with player selection and usage were political ... because that's always the case with that job. That said, he's nobody's idea of a tactical genius, but he is competent, which would put him above 90% of the actual USMNT field should he want to pursue that job. I think he's awfully vanilla, but maybe what the US program needs is a guy who actually understands how to build a winning international team culture. Right now I think that may be the biggest problem with the American program. But again, I think he needs to go find a beach and collect himself. That freaking England job would give anybody the DTs ... especially after 8 years of it.
 
This morning, the board of directors for Angel City FC unanimously approved the sale of the controlling stake in the club to Disney CEO Bob Iger and his wife, Willow Bay, who is the dean of the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. The valuation was $250 million, with another $50 million committed investment. That makes Angel City the most valuable women’s franchise in the world. Bay will serve as the primary governor for the club on the NWSL board. Founders Natalie Portman and entrepreneurs Kara Nortman and Julie Uhrman and early investor and current board member Gillian Berry will remain on the board. Primary investor Alexis Ohanian is out. When he provided the initial funding, and was the controlling owner, he did not set himself up with control of the board. The Wall Street Journal reported this week that there have been battles over spending between Ohanian and club President Uhrman. Earlier this year, the club hired an investment bank to find a new controlling owner.
 
NWSL is definitely changing tax brackets with the incredible valuations of the newer franchises ... and right at the time when the USL Super League (also Div 1) is gearing up and the USL W League (Div 2) is starting to gain traction in smaller markets. Also, the WNBA just announced their first properly big TV rights deal that was fueled by the injection of their dynamic rookie class of 2024, led by Caitlin Clark. It's a growth era for women's sports, for sure.
 
Fabrizio Romano says that Patrick Vieira has expressed interest in the USMNT job. He left as manager of Strasbourg by mutual consent earlier this week. He also noted that Thierry Henry was also identified by US Soccer. Henry is currently the coach of the France U21 and U23 teams, so he’ll be coaching in the Olympics.

No thank you to either. Vieira’s best run as manager was at NYCFC, his first job. He was fired mid season at Nice and Crystal Palace. He was at Strasbourg for 1 season, finishing 13th. Henry’s club managerial career is nightmarish, a total of 49 games at Monaco and MLS Montreal, with onky 13 combined wins. He's been more successful with the French youth teams but he’s only been in those positions since last August.
 
I liked how Viera's teams played at Palace and NYFC and will allow that Henry's time in Montreal was marred by their nightmarish front office. Can't speak to the rest of their experiences. I suspect Viera would be a mild upgrade from Berhalter and that Henry would be a Klinsmann shaped mess.
 
BTW, I 100% feel that US Soccer would have already hired Steve Cherundelo as its new coach (or at least made moves in that direction) if they weren't under outside pressure as co-hosts of the next World Cup. Given the chance to do the esay, lazy, probably wrong thing in the hiring process, when it comes to men's team USSF bats at a Hall of Fame pace. It is a testament to the sheer determination and willpower of the US women in largely drove themselves to very top of the women's game starting with the 99ers that has saved them from the same comfortable lack of ambition that has largely doomed the men.
 
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jeffbear said:
Good news for Everton fans. That's a solid, well financed group that have done a credible job stabilizing Roma.
Click to expand...
Friedkin Group pulled out yesterday, citing concerns about Everton’s debt to 777 Partners, now held by American insurance firm A-Cap. That debt is £200 million, but is complicated by 777’s insolvency. Friedkin would want A-Cap to take a discount on the dent, but it’s too risky at this point. They have already loaned Everton £200 million and have taken over as the secured lender for the new stadium. Everton’s total debt load is about £600 million and another £450 million in shareholder loans from Farhad Moshiri. He was hoping to get at least £50 million but may end up with a token amount, if the club is ever sold.
 
Yup. And pulling out while also contributing yet another huge chunk of debt to the club's books is ... well, it's hard to put in words. Those poor supporters. Moshiri deserves nothing and will likely get it. 777 deserves a world of hurt and it looks like they're in the process of getting it. Those Everton fans deserve none of this hardship and anxiety yet they're going to get it in spades ... as the only people involved who really give a crap about the welfare of the club.
 
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