14 MLS players called up to USA roster for FIFA U-20 World Cup
The United States have their 21-player roster for the 2023 FIFA Under-20 World Cup, with head coach Mikey Varas naming an MLS-heavy squad for the high-profile tournament that's held in Argentina from May 20-June 11. See the full roster here.
Former USMNT defender Onyewu named US Soccer VP of sporting
The U.S. Soccer Federation has named Oguchi Onyewu as their vice president of sporting, formally taking a newly-created role that involves working closely with new sporting director Matt Crocker. Onyewu, 40, will work on all sporting matters within the federation and help manage relationships with clubs and leagues in the United States and across the world, along with strengthening stakeholder relationships.
Austin, Cincy and Nashville cruise into Round of 16 of US Open Cup
The US Open Cup Round of 32 continued Wednesday evening with seven Major League Soccer teams punching a Round of 16 ticket, bringing themselves one step closer to a trophy and a CCL berth. See the full results here.
Vancouver Whitecaps reach semifinals over York United
Vancouver Whitecaps FC are into the 2023 Canadian Championship semifinals, pulling away from lower-division side York United FC with a 4-1 victory Wednesday night while traveling cross-country for the midweek fixture. They’ll face Pacific FC (CPL) in the next round come late May.
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After last night, we’re officially into the Round of 16 in the US Open Cup and officially at the point where these games start to grab a little more attention from the fans, players and coaches of the MLS sides. The upsets are fun and all that, but now they really start to matter to all involved. Because somewhere along the way in each team’s USOC journey, they reach a point where they realize “Oh, wait, we get a Champions League spot for this??” and that they only have to win a few more games to do it. It rapidly becomes a pretty big deal. Especially for teams that could really use a win. (Hello, 2022 Orlando City SC!)
That’s part of why assessing the teams most likely to win the USOC has a different calculus than normal power rankings. You have to want it too. The teams more likely to rotate their lineup or ease off the gas are less likely to be on their A-game against an MLS or USL side that really, really wants it. So let’s take a look at where each team falls on that alignment chart and see if we can figure out who’s going to win this thing. (We can’t.)
LAFC
LAFC are the clear-cut best team in MLS and probably the best team on the continent. We’ll find out soon enough if they can go ahead and claim that title outright when they take on Club León in the Concacaf Champions League final on May 31 and June 4. They’re certainly good enough to win this whole thing. However…
The USOC’s Round of 16 is scheduled for May 23-24 and the quarterfinals are set for June 6-7. I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say that LAFC might be focused on other things at the time. Thing is, they still might have enough depth to cruise past all that anyway. At that point, they’d be outright favorites. But it just seems unlikely.
LA Galaxy
Things are pretty bleak for the older brother in LA right now. They’re tied for dead last in MLS, they won’t be able to sign any international players in the summer transfer window and everything feels like it’s about as bad as it could possibly be. I don’t think that’s an overstatement.
So, I guess the question here is whether or not they’ll try to “save the season” by going all-in on US Open Cup. I’d imagine they’ll be more concerned with trying to drag themselves out of the basement. Which means rotating lineups and making sure their best XI is good to go on the weekend to try and start grabbing much, much-needed points in the league.
Austin FC, Real Salt Lake, Inter Miami CF, Charlotte FC, Chicago Fire FC, Minnesota United FC, Colorado Rapids
Look, I’ll be honest, if we were picking Audi MLS Cup Playoffs teams instead of potential US Open Cup winners, I’m not sure I’d confidently pick any of these teams. Only one is above the line right now and it’s eighth-place Minnesota, who recently got a big boost with the return of Emanuel “Bebelo” Reynoso, but, I dunno, it all still seems kind of weird, right? They’ll have to sort that out.
Anyway, making a run to a US Open Cup title would be a big deal for all involved. It would either be the first trophy or the first trophy in a long time for anyone from this bunch. Like Orlando last year, it would make a mediocre regular season feel a lot more palatable.
In particular, the Rapids, Austin and Minnesota especially feel like they might have the juice to work their way through the rest of the competition. The Rapids haven’t lost since March and have looked decent to maybe even good as of late. You’ve got to think Austin still have some of their 2022 magic left over in between the couch cushions somewhere. And the Loons have learned to play a scrappy, tournament-appropriate brand of soccer without Reynoso.
To be fair though, everyone here does have a shot. Just not as good a shot as…
Columbus Crew, FC Cincinnati, Nashville SC, Houston Dynamo FC, New York Red Bulls
We’ll go team by team here for our favorites.
This feels like a perfect competition for the Crew to thrive in. They seem to be a well-coached team with good pieces that’s still a few roster moves away from really competing at the top of the league this year. The USOC could be a gentler way into a CCL spot for a team likely set to take a leap forward next year.
Elsewhere in Ohio, Cincinnati have the quality, the “we haven’t won a trophy yet but we’re good now and we wanna” juice, and a history of success in the USOC even before they joined MLS. They’ll treat this seriously, and they’re likely the best team on this list.
Nashville are really good, really hot as of late, really well set up to succeed in a tournament and looking for their first trophy. I don’t think I need to explain more than that.
Houston are a bit more of a dark horse, but they’re playing so well lately, and they’ll be well aware that a trophy likely isn’t coming any other way this year. Ben Olsen and company will be set to go all-in on this one and they have the talent to pull it off. It could be the kind of thing we eventually view as a major stepping stone to the franchise’s revitalization in Houston.
And, lastly, I put the Red Bulls here because no team has been better defensively this season in MLS. Very few teams have better underlying numbers, and fewer teams still have such a deep rut they’ll be desperate to pull out of. With an interim(ish) manager looking to make an impact and a team in need of some good news, I’d bet they go in on this. At that point, who knows. I wouldn’t count them out.
I mean, I wouldn’t really count anyone out. This competition is full of surprises.
NYCFC release stadium renderings: New York City FC have unveiled new renderings for their planned soccer-specific stadium that’s set to debut during the 2027 MLS season in Queens’ Willets Point neighborhood. The 25,000-seat venue, privately financed at $780 million, is one aspect of the Willets Point Revitalization Plan. Aside from New York City’s first-ever soccer-specific stadium, the project would include the city’s largest 100% affordable housing development in 40 years (estimated 2,500 units) amid pedestrian-friendly, 21st-century urban planning principles. It will also include over 40,000 square feet of public open space, a 650-seat school, a 250-key hotel, and ground-floor retail shops.
- Joe Lowery looked at who has the most to lose this Rivalry Week and explained what rivalry smells like. I bet you have questions after that. I’m not going to answer them. You gotta click on the link.
- Portland Timbers' Claudio Bravo won the AT&T 5G Goal of the Matchday.
- Mikey Varas is leaning on "team culture" as the US U-20s head to the U-20 World Cup.
- FC Dallas honored victims of the recent mass shooting in Allen, Texas.
Good luck out there. Play favorites.
