World soccer teams take to the field today in celebration of the countdown reaching double digits. 99 days to the Copa Mundial!!

This anthem is pretty sick.

Artist MADSTEEZ has completed one of the sickest mural’s I’ve ever seen and what’s best, it is all soccer! Even better – it’s in LA! I gotta go see this thing with my own eyes.

Thx Addy

I’m love love loving this sick new spot for the upcoming FIFA 10. In a week I hope to be love love loving the game too.

This is actually the UK version. The USA version is the same except they throw Blanco and Donovan at the end instead of Benzema and Xavi.

This is for you Dad, on your birthday, the latest person to answer a resounding Yes to the question: Is it time for Americans to care about soccer?

Via SoccerByIves

With this week’s amazing Champions League Final completed, the less amazing FA Cup in the books, and the final weekend of Serie A and La Liga all wrapped up, the season of European Football is over. It has been a hell of a ride and Wednesday’s defeat of Manchester United by Barcelona was a fitting swan song. Although it has only been my first season of fandom, I’ve jumped in with both feet and I’m already ready for next season. But before the first kick of the 09-10 season, we get all the excitement of the summer transfer window! So who is going where? At this point we can only guess – so let’s take some guesses. Please feel free to chime in with your thoughts fellow soccer fans.

Well first thing’s first and that’s that Chelsea needs a new manager. While it is still up in the air, my money is firmly on AC Milan’s Carlo Ancelotti (if no other reason than because he looks so much like Guus Hiddink). So what does an Ancelotti Chelsea look like? Here’s my guess, no more Didier Drogba. I’m going out on a limb, but I think Drogba leaves Chelsea for Inter Milan and his old boss Jose Mourinho. So who is out there to replace Drogba? How about Valencia’s David Villa? We know Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich isn’t afraid to spend money.

Liverpool has already been rumored to have made an offer for ManU’s Carlos Tevez and while I do think they could use a bit more depth at striker (move Kuyt to the bench spot), I just gotta think the money is better spent on defense. Liverpool needs a strong Rio Ferdinand type to lead in central defense. For me the best case scenario would be to lure Gerard Pique away from Barca. I know that this is unlikely as Pique just left ManU for Barca last year – but after his performance in the Champions League, he has gotta be on the top of the list. What are other options for potential Liverpool defenders? How about Everton’s Joleon Lescott or Juve’s Chiellini. Basically anyone better than Jamie Carragher will do.

Around the rest of Europe, the hottest player up for grabs has got to be Frank Ribery. Expect all the big clubs to make a play for him but my guess is that it will be the deep pockets of Manchester City that lure the frenchman away from Bayern. That is, of course, assuming that Cristiano Ronaldo stays at Manchester United, which I suspect he will (if he leaves watch Ribery go there instead). So if Ronaldo stays at ManU and Ribery goes to ManCity, where does that leave Real Madrid? My prediction is that they spend their rich transfer budget on Inter’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Of course this assumes that Drogba does indeed go over to Inter… and now it’s obvious how fragile this house of cards I’ve built really is.

So these are just some thoughts on a few of the potential big moves. Will Adebayor stay at Arsenal? Will Figo or any of the other old euro stars come to MLS? Where will big names like David Silva, Juninho, and Gareth Barry end up? Let the summer excitement begin!

Seattle sports fans finally have a reason to get excited – and it is for the beautiful game no less! MLS kicked off the ‘09 season last night in Qwest field with the expansion team Seattle Sounders FC dismantling the NY Red Bulls – a team that played in the MLS final last year! Seattle has a great squad, led up front by 21 year-old Colombian phenom Fredy Montero (two goals and one assist) and in the net by 39 year-old captain Kasey Keller, one of USA Soccer’s best goal keepers ever. Former Arsenal star Freddie Ljungberg, certainly one of the best in MLS, is also on the squad but not quite in match form as he recovers from hip surgery.

What was really incredible was the support given the team by the fans. Qwest was roaring like the 4th quarter of a Seahawks game – the crowd a sea of rave green and sounder blue scarves. Everyone from the MLS Commish to the commentators was impressed.

“Having spent my whole career in Europe, I was worried about being let down — why come home for this?” said a beaming Kasey Keller. “But there’s probably not a better atmosphere for soccer in America.

“This team is raising the bar for what our teams could achieve,” Don Garber, MLS commissioner, gushed at halftime.

“This is the most successful launch in MLS history,” Joe Roth, the Hollywood movie producer and part-owner of the team told the crowd. “We proved Seattle is the capital of soccer in this country.”

MLS gets a lot of flack for the play not being up to the level of the Euro leagues. There is a lot of truth in that. But I for one am extremely excited to finally have a team I can fully support. Now just don’t move to Oklahoma.

The Sounders next take on Real Salt Lake a week from Sat. at Qwest. Here are some links:
Art Thiel reports (P-I) — Sounders Home — Sounders $5 T-shirt QFC Promo (someone in NW wanna grab one of these for me – size M pls?)