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August 24, 2007
Our soccer news honor roll
We're tired of harping on the local rag, so we thought today we would turn things around and look at the question of MLS news from a different angle. Specifically, we wanted to pass along links to some of the outlets we recommend for MLS and USA soccer news.
For Earthquakes news, the best sources lately have been the Toronto Globe and Mail, the Toronto Star, the Salinas Californian, HDnet television, San Jose's Metro, and even the L.A. Times, all of which have published stories on the Quakes in the last month or so, unlike some other papers. (Oh, did we say we weren't going to harp on the local rag today? Oops.)
So, what else is worth your attention? Here are a few recommendations, in alphabetical order:
- Du Nord. If brevity really is the soul of wit, as Shakespeare once wrote, then Du Nord is one of the wittiest places in the soccer universe. Blog meister Bruce McGuire (yes, he does have a last name—we found it here) creates a compendium of links to the latest news items, often in just a few words, yet he manages to be funny at the same time. That's a lot harder than it looks—as writer Blaise Pascal once wrote, "I have made this letter longer than usual, only because I have not had the time to make it shorter." Du Nord is a great source for links to the latest news without a lot of editorializing, but when Bruce does throw in his opinion, it's always concise and perceptive.
- MajorLeagueSoccer magazine. They don't have any articles on their web site, but we picked up a copy of their debut issue at Border's yesterday and we are impressed. Nice variety of articles, solid grahics and photography, and even unos articulos en español. We're looking forward to seeing more from editor Scott French and his crew.
- Sideline Views. OK, they're LA writers and the blog is a bit Galaxy-centric, but Andrea Canales and Luis Bueno provide content for a number of web sites and newspapers and use their blog as a way of expanding their relationship with their readers. You'll find editorial comments on Sideline Views as well as fun stuff like raw audio from interviews, news items, and links to other stories like this one that says Frank Yallop may be on the way out in L.A.— in favor of Juergen Klinsmann, according to Canales and Bueno.
- Soccer by Ives. Ives Galarcep covers soccer for the Herald News, a paper published in northern New Jersey, and the blog serves as an outlet for information about the world of soccer beyond the Red Bulls.
- Soccer Insider. The Washington Post's soccer guy, Steven Goff, runs the paper's blog and it's probably the best source of breaking news in American soccer. The latest example is today's item about European newspapers reporting that former Real Madrid coach Fabio Capello met with representatives from U.S. Soccer when the team was in Europe this week for their friendly against Sweden. What really sets the Goff blog apart is his ability to take these stories to the next level: He followed up by contacting U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati, who told him this: "I can confirm that Bob Bradley and I met yesterday with Fabio Capello. We had a good chat about international and American soccer. I will not comment further about the contents of our meeting."
In other news, FC Dallas signed Brazilian World Cup winner Denilson yesterday, using the team's Designated Player slot, providing more evidence that big names are willing to consider MLS in wake of the Beckham signing. And, despite the criticism by some that MLS is "a sort of senior league of fading stars," we'll note that Denilson is celebrating his 30th birthday today, which hardly makes him over the hill. (Oh, did we just snipe at the local paper again? Oops.)
Posted by Jay at August 24, 2007 05:58 AM