Loudoun United Wins, EFL Playoffs Continue, and more: Tuesday Freedom Kicks
Morning DC Footy Folk!
30+ indoor soccer team update: we are killing it this season with an 11-4 win last night. I got a goal from pressing the goalie (perseverance always pays off kids!) and we are on a five game winning streak just like the Spirit! Maybe the Jose good luck is rubbing off on my team!
Anyways, onto the news!
Ulfarsson’s goal propels Loudoun United to 1st win of 2026 USL Championship season (Loudoun Times)
Loudoun got their first win of the season off an assist from former DCU player, Pedro Santos.
Former Spirit players Narumi Miura and Croix Bethune get shoutouts in this post! I do think, in hindsight, we could’ve kept Miura for depth but I am glad she is starting and showing her worth in Utah.
One month out: Are we ready for the World Cup? (SSFC)
We are T-minus 29 days out from the World Cup but it doesn’t feel like it for a large swathe of Americans. Anecdotally, I am trying to organize some watch parties with family and friends and many are surprised the tournament is so close. As mentioned in the article, this education should’ve started yesterday. The next best time is now…
USMNT midfielder Johnny Cardoso needs ankle surgery, likely out for World Cup (USA Today)
Unfortunately it seems as if one USMNT player who was likely to make the roster will have to miss out on the World Cup. It always sucks when a player’s dream is snatched from them just weeks before the tournament.
One person who we thought would miss the World Cup was Curaçao head coach, Dick Advocaat. But he may yet break the record for oldest coach to lead a side in the World Cup at 78 years young!
Mexico reverses decision to change school calendar for 2026 World Cup (USA Today)
…and the school children of Mexico wept. Side note: when I was a classroom teacher and it was a World Cup year, the last week of school was always an activity plus the World Cup on in the background.
Sources: James leaving Minnesota to train with Colombia (ESPN)
The James experiment ends not with a bang but with a whimper…
Leadership changes are incoming as an American soccer league will soon implement pro/rel. We will have the USL Premier, Championship (what Loudoun United plays in), and League One (what the Richmond Kickers play in)
Subs make key contributions as Hull reach Wembley (BBC)
Hull City will play in the “most expensive football match” (aka the EFL Championship Promotion Playoff) courtesy of beating cursed Millwall. They will face one of the Middlesbrough or Southampton, who play each other this afternoon. Let’s not forget the drama that can ensue from these playoff games.
Art imitates life? ‘Ted Lasso’ actor tries out for El Paso Locomotive (El Paso Times)
FUTBOL IS LIFE!!!
That’s all from me folks! See you in the comments!
Congrats on the over 30 team. I get signing James provided PR and maybe sold some tickets. But I absolutely hate it when MLS teams sign players like James or Gareth Bale so they can get in shape for the WC and then leave or retire.
I think James was the worst of the bunch. Bale helped LAFC win the MLS Cup, Julio Cesar was an adequate and professional GK for a handful of games in Toronto. James made no sense for Minnesota and didn’t look up to playing much soccer until his last match with them. Guess he had to test himself once and see if he was ready for the WC. Still an incredible passer.
James is maybe the player with the single largest gap between his floor and his ceiling I’ve ever seen, and in any given situation, it’s extremes of form and output.
A rejuvenated James is an incredible player. I didn’t think Minnesota was likely to get that player, and they didn’t.
He’ll always have Brazil 2014
Tai Baribo does an interview with the league and talks about flying everyday to training when he was a kid as well as passion in the game.
Love the passion! Tai and Louis might be able to do great things going forward?
And the ‘Ted Lasso’ actor has officially signed for El Paso Locomotive.
https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/48750339/cristo-fernandez-signs-usl-team
I hope he’s not going to become too much of a joke in the modern meme age. It could get rough, especially since he’s a known figure and face.
Its MLSPA Salary Release Day! Some notables for DC (Base Salary/Guaranteed Salary):
Aman: 88k/89k
Avilez: 88k/109k
Baribo: 2.1M/2.35M
Bono: 250k/262k
Clark: 400k/432k
Hefti: 370k/434k
Hopkins: 157k/157k
Johnson: 883k/883k
Kurokawa: 550k/615k
Markovic: 88k/93k
LOUIS: 1.19M/1.63M
Neallis: 650k/724k
LOVE the salary Hefti is on, and Kurokawa is great too. Munteanu’s base salary is actually below Max-TAM, but his transfer fee will keep him well into the DP range under his first contract. Baribo certainly got the pay raise he wanted (and is earning it). Johnson took a ~200k pay cut to come play here. Avilez’s guaranteed salary is weirdly high for a just-signed homegrown.
Hopkins will have to get a pretty big boost next time he gets to negotiate
But those fullback prices are clutch for their output and competency.
Would have been nice to have Louis on something far more easy to TAM down, but we’ll see.
Johnson I don’t think is going to be worth that salary past this season
We’re probably looking at a completely different set of goalies once the calendar switch happens. Maybe Leveille grabs the reins? It’ll be tough since he’s pretty much getting no game time now (and there’s no 2nd team).
Alex Bono is only 32, he’s got a few seasons left, and I think, since he was willing to return, he’d be willing to stick around and retire here as the main backup. And we should take that deal if it’s on offer.
He knows the league, understands his level and role, has no delusions or toxicity about being on the bench mostly. There’s a professionalism to being able to stay decent and hardworking in those circumstances, and I think he has that. Whatever psychotic shit Losada threw his way about weight is gone, and was a significant part of Hernan’s exit, probably.
He’ll maintain levels, and, at his age, will probably appreciate the amount of wear on the tires he’s avoiding while earning a check.
It’s silly to want your backup to be a jealous and bitter understudy, and he’s not that.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Bono stuck around, nor would I be surprised if another team offered him a bit more money after we inevitably stiff him in negotiations. He seems like a great dude and is definitely an asset to the team by just being around.
Also, I thought it was Seitz who got abused for his build, not Bono (though I’m sure it was a general issue).
Bono was the one who suffered from depression after bullying from the health regime of Losada. Which is a little ridiculous for a gk. You want them in shape enough for the short sprint action and occasional sweeper keeping that the league allows/calls for, but I think that was BMI pseudo science
It was Seitz: https://www.mlssoccer.com/news/chris-seitz-advocates-for-mental-health-awareness-in-sports-this-is-who-i-am
Losada was fired in 2022 and Bono joined the team in 2023.
Oh, I could have sworn it was Bono.
Ah well, still think he’s a good backup.
I haven’t kept tabs on how Joon is doing in Korea, but the possibility exists that he gets his groove back, comes back and wins the starting job from Johnson.
It’s unlikely, but the possibility exists.
I think the chances are higher of him coming back than most seem to think, cuz he should be a lot more seasoned and wise now.
But it’s relative, cuz I don’t think it’s likely, even as an optimist on it
transfermarkt (take it with a grain of salt) says that he’s played 10 games, recorded 6 clean sheets, and let in 6 goals.
That’s pretty good, but also in line (maybe a little bit better) than what he did in Korea before he came to DC.
Fwiw, Hopkins made $104k last year, so he got a hefty boost this year. I’m sort of expecting his next contract, which might come this year, to be a U22 one.
For sure, it’s just that he’s definitely come online and has figured out how he specifically contributes on the field. It’s gonna be a big jump. U-22 is good
It seems to be one of the best road-tested uses of the U-22 slot. Young international players are a crapshoot at best (hey Pirani! hey Joon!), although players like Caden Clark and Ted Ku-DiPietro are also not making that strong of an argument either.
Some YOY analysis:
Baribo went from 700k/810k last year to 2.1M/2.35M this year
Hopkins moves up from 104k/104k to 157k/158k to go along with being added to the senior roster
Sean Johnson went from 621k/1.063M last year to 883k/883k this year
Sean Neallis’ new contract got him a ~100k pay bump
Rowles jumps from 292k/494k to 550k/751k
Servania jumps form 104k/131k up to 275k/304k
And I still continue to be confused as to what exactly is happening with Joon/Kim’s contract. This has his salary decreasing from 354k/427k to 250k/350k. Not sure if that’s by design, or if it reflects his salary being partially, but not fully, covered by his loan team. The 3 other loaned out U22s in the league are difficult to get a read from as well.
This also lists Schnegg as 650k/756k for Charlotte, which is a ~50k increase on what he made last year. Maybe that implies that Charlotte did actually pick up his full contract? But without Goff poking around anymore, its going to be difficult to know for sure.
Most players seem to be on pretty decent salaries. We’re tied for the second-fewest number of $1 million+ salaries in the league. Pirani is on a big number, but only hitting the cap at a U-22 level. Aaron Herrera, Caden Clark, and Jared Stroud are on some outsized numbers, but I’d also be kind of surprised if any of them are around next year. Sean Nealis is on a big number, but there is a possibility that when he’s healthy, he could push Rowles and Bartlett for a starting spot, but so might Nikola Markovic who is on a much lower number. (I’d expect that we’ve seen the last of Garrison Tubbs in a DC uniform.)
It’s a pretty good sign for the league that Tubbs isn’t good enough for spot play in the league, but he also would look pretty sad next to even the stalwarts of yore who made rent money only
That whole right side of the field, Herrea, Clark, Stroud are a weak point of the team. I wouldn’t be surprised if they are looking for someone to sign for the right side and trading someone off.
I continue to think we should do the 3 DP model of striker, playmaker/second striker (system dependent), and right winger.
I do think Clark has plenty of games this season to get his head in line with his obvious talent, but if not, shit canned for sure.
He’s not up against especially tough competition, and still can’t push for more minutes. Same with Kijima. I’d be looking to swap bench players with some other GM, surely they can get minutes elsewhere and we can get contributions from new guys.
Tubbs just doesn’t have it upstairs to anticipate anything on the professional level, Kijima is a different story entirely.
He goes to any club that makes him part of a three man midfield as one of the build up players, he is a value for quality starter for a looong time.
Weiler doesn’t see him as his type, doesn’t mean he’s bad. He’s not an elite winger or playmaker, but his qualities in build up are gonna find a home.
Edit: oh, I think you meant Clark, and yeah, Clark needs to get it sorted