Happy Thursday, everyone. Sorry for the late departure of the Freedom Kicks, as I am out of the country for a wedding and master of ceremonies/cruise director duties called last night. Here’s some of what took place yesterday:
L’OL féminin bientôt vendu à Michele Kang, une femme d’affaires américaine (L’Equipe)
Translates to: Women’s OL soon to be sold to Michele Kang, an American businesswoman. That’s right, Michele Kang is rumored to have purchased a huge stake in Olympique Lyonnais, including its women’s team. Unclear in that report was whether that stake included OL Reign, which would be a problem for the Washington Spirit owner. However, Lyon put out a statement that refuted the L’Equipe report:
Guess we’ll have to wait to see how this develops.
USMNT roster named for Mexico friendly (SSFC)
A MLS-heavy roster for the USMNT as they take on Mexico next week in a friendly that occurs outside of a FIFA window. Former Black-and-Red players Paul Arriola and Julian Gressel are among the 23 named to the roster.
USWNT to play Wales in Women’s World Cup send off on July 9th (SSFC)
San Jose’s PayPal Park will be the site of the USWNT’s Women’s World Cup send off as they host Wales on July 9th.
Loudoun United has added some new investors, including local real estate exec Jordan Stuart, who has served as an advisor to D.C. United and Loudoun over the past few seasons. Also, as our own Ryan Keefer adds, this comes as DCU owners Jason Levien and Steve Kaplan have added some funds to the piggy bank across the pond at Swansea City.
Where to find SB Nation’s MLS blogs now (Hudson River Blue)
This was really cool for HRB to do. With almost all of the MLS blogs, including this one, being cut by SB Nation, this is a guide of where to find the former SBN coverage for each team in the league. We thank them for including us in that piece and definitely use it as a guide as you seek to learn more about our opponents each week. Note: many of those blogs also cover the NWSL and USL, so this will be helpful for information on those teams as well!
Premier League clubs agree to drop gambling sponsors from front of shirts (ESPN)
Gambling sites can still be sponsors, but they can no longer be on the front of jerseys after the end of the 2025-26 season.
There was plenty more to discuss from yesterday, including UEFA Champions League and Concacaf Champions League, so hit the comments and enjoy!
Andy Najar is back in training and could be available for selection on Saturday. Not sure if the gash on Chris Durkin’s foot has healed or not, but having a right side of Najar, Ruan, and Taxi going at Montreal sounds pretty okay.
Maybe, I’m still pulling for a Hopkins sighting on the right. If we play Najar at RM, I’m not sure there’s the same combustion to go with the creativity that he used to have. I’m fine with competition between Najar and Ruan for RB
I was thinking Najar at RB and Ruan on the wing, where he’s looked his best for DC this year. If Hopkins can lay claim to that spot, all the better. He needs to have a good performance soon, though.
Ruan has a lot of speed, and occasionally puts in a decent cross, but don’t get think Benteke knows when they’re coming. I’m jonesing for consistent play and quality on the right.
Turns out Durkin IS back. Where does he play? Right wing? Right back? Is he on the bench?
I think that O’Brien and Canouse are our center mids, and Klich likely needs to play, but that could be on the left in a 4-4-2. If Durkin is on the right, that’s a lot of slowness on the field.
Derrick Williams and Brendan Hines-Ike are both a few weeks away, so Donovan Pines likely keeps his starting job. Nigel Robertha continues his unlucky streak and is out for 2-3 months with a fractured ankle. I think that one of the players the club has been pursuing is a backup striker, so the quicker we can get that, the better.
Pines has been one of the better players lately, so I’m happy to see him continue to get starts. Of course, I’m waiting for the giraffe on roller skates to appear but it hasn’t happened yet. Maybe he’s turned a corner, that would be a huge relief.
FC Cincy’s Brenner is heading to Serie A with Udinese: https://www.mlssoccer.com/news/sources-fc-cincinnati-udinese-finalizing-deal-for-brenner-transfer
Brenner will stay with Cincy until July then make the move to Italy.
A win Saturday probably gets Losada canned, imo.
Class act by HRB and kudos to them. We’re all in this together.