UEFA threatens World Cup boycott, NWSL leaves Victory+, and more: Friday Freedom Kicks
It’s Friday! There’s a lot of attention today on FIFA nonsense, but I tried to find some actual soccer and/or fun news as well.
UEFA vows World Cup boycott as Concacaf, AFC reject FIFA private equity plan (ESPN)
Federations are coming out against FIFA’s proposal to sell World Cup rights to private equity. I’m happy to see that. Less happy that the tournaments most likely to be affected by a UEFA boycott are women’s tournaments, including the U-20 women’s World Cup later this year.
Fifa’s sales pitch revealed: more tournaments, more debt … but no mention of women’s game (The Guardian)
In case you need a reminder of what all this is about, here’s a look at how FIFA is trying to sell this deal to its members.
American Outlaws have also weighed in, asking US Soccer to reject the proposal:
NWSL Matches Scheduled for Victory+ to Stream on NWSL+ Beginning Immediately (NWSL)
We should have seen this coming after two teams left the Victory+ platform in recent weeks for failure to make payments. It does raise some questions about why the league thought signing with a streamer no one had heard of was a good idea in the first place.
Anyway, I enjoyed this joke about it:
NWSL to start 2027 season in February ahead of Women’s World Cup next summer (The Athletic $)
This would be the earliest start to the NWSL season by quite a bit: February 11! It seems risky to me.
The Most Hated MLS Team in Every State (Roto Wire)
DC is not a state (Statehood now!) and thus does not appear in this article, but Maryland and Virginia both hate NYRB the most. As does… New York.
Morocco leave it late to snatch WAFCON victory over Algeria (Yahoo Sports)
WAFCON continues apace! Yesterday, hosts Morocco beat Algeria to claim the top spot in their group.
Here’s PJ with a quick look at today’s matches and which Spirit players you should be watching in them:
USMNT’s Gio Reyna in talks over move to Strasbourg from Borussia Monchengladbach (The Athletic $)
Gio Reyna is reportedly on the move once again. Will this be the team where he finally thrives and gets consistent minutes? I remain skeptical.
For some Friday cuteness, the Loudoun United guys winning some fans in Indianapolis:
Finally, your schedule of events for the weekend: three home games!
| Teams | When | Where | Watch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Loudoun United FC vs. Hartford Athletic | Sat., Aug. 1 at 7 p.m. | Leesburg, VA | ESPN+ |
| D.C. United vs. Nashville SC | Sat., Aug. 1 at 7:30 p.m. | Washington, DC | Apple TV |
| Washington Spirit vs. SD Wave | Sun., Aug. 2 at 4 p.m. | Washington, DC | CBSSN |
Tomorrow will be the last DCU game for a while due to the Leagues Cup…..screw the Leagues Cup as the US Open Cup should be the priority. I know its a money thing as MLS controls Leagues Cup where they don’t control all of the revenue streams for the US Open Cup.
I have bad news about DCU games in the US Open Cup too…
Don’t remind me…
Really annoying to have it shoehorned in yet again, after already taking a huge chunk of time off for the World Cup. The only thing I really like about the calendar change is that now the gold cup and Copa América won’t force a break (or force teams to play with reserves), but the various other competitions and holidays will probably just result in the same…
The time off will at least allow the new players to settle in and for Weiler to figure out his XI. Nothing like actual gameplay to really see if it’ll work though.
Nice story from the Loudoun guys, and great work by them with kids!
I’m glad Reyna is moving to Strasbourg. He needs minutes, playing time. Yeah, he’s gotta stay healthy too. But the WC showed he has some magic in his boots but he’s inadequate right now as a player you’d attempt to rely on. Other than his goal against Paraguay, his play for the US was forgettable (and that’s being charitable).
As for NWSL, I applaud their effort to get all games “televised” but damn they’ve got a hodgepodge of media outlets.
Remember that DCU disastorous foray into a streaming service? What was that called?
I remember now! FloSports!!!! (I think I got that right?)
lol, I thought you were doing a sarcastic dig at Apple before the follow up
I chortled
No, Apple TV is league wide, not a unicorn venture into the abyss.
Perks of being on the far edge of DC’s broadcast area:
I never had to deal with Flo
Downsides:
I had to deal with ESPN+ most seasons before Apple and hardly ever got to hear the home call
I went the Spirit season opener this year which was on March 13th. I brought a friend for her first game. It was so cold at the top of the supporters section; we had to find another spot to watch the game from which ended up being the Heineken Bar area. Having a home opener in early February is going to be pretty brutal. Maybe they’ll prioritize teams with warmer temps such as Orlando and LA?
Also forgot to add in my above comment that I am going to a DCU game tomorrow for the first time in almost two years. My family is Salvadoran and they wanted to go to the Salvadoran Heritage Night. Me and 4 of my cousins will be going for the first time in years despite being regular attendees back in the mid 00s to late 10s. I would say DCU trying to reconnect with the Latino fan base is working.
It is. The Salvadoran community around Manassas area seems interested in our new transfer. Many off my families have mentioned it at work.
I remember seeing more Korean fans in the stand when Kim Joon Hong was goalie. So it makes sense.
I’d definitely be interested in hearing your and your cousins thoughts about his well they execute the heritage night.
I’ll probably add a short paragraph about my experience in my Tuesday Freedom Kicks 🙂
Look forward to it.
It is my understanding that the Asian football federation (or whatever it is called) has also spoken out against FIFA’s grotesque plan.
It’s in the headline and article posted, “AFC” is them
Indeed it is!
Does the NWSL have problems signing one network to broadcast all the games? Peacock seems to be the network to watch all the DC Power and GSL games.
Per Tom Bogert, we have the answer to the DC Homegrown signing: Midfielder Kamil Castillo.
He was one of the top choices that Gregory Roche posited as the possibilities for the signing. Sogut seemed really high on him, and it would be nice to have a dynamic Najar or Paredes type homegrown again.
Yeah I saw he was one of Roche’s top theories. Seems to be a CM. I tend to trust Roche’s analysis of the academy kids more than just about anyone, so I’m patiently awaiting more analysis from him on what Castillo brings. Though it does seem like he should be pretty good.
Here’s, uh, highlights of him as a 7 year old: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKwx0GgM4Vg
I guess the fact that he was good enough to have highlights as a 7 year old bodes well for us?
DC makes this signing official:
https://www.dcunited.com/news/d-c-united-signs-midfielder-kamil-castillo-to-a-homegrown-contract
Roche’s analysis:
2010 born #8. A tall, rangy MF who loves getting on the ball, is difficult to dispossess, and has a ton of tricks. Better going forward than defending and probably needs to get a bit stronger before seeing first team minutes.
Pretty exciting qualities to look forward to when he’s more ready to play against the goons in MLS!
Sounds like River Plate might now be open to sending Subiabre out on loan with a purchase option to try to get their full asking price ($8M) for him. Seems like DC is still the main team in the running, but I guess the specific price has been a sticking point.
https://lapaginamillonaria.com/mercado-de-pases/river-analiza-un-cambio-en-las-condiciones-de-ian-subiabre-para-acelerar-su-salida?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
I like Subiabre, but $8 million is definitely a lot. It would surpass Munteanu as the club’s record signing. There are some pretty SERIOUS questions about the club’s ability to develop young players, which Subiabre would certainly need.
I still want him to end up here, but I understand the club trying to bring down the price. A loan sounds like a good way to make this happen.
If he’s better than Louis, than 8 million might actually be worth it in the current market.
Getting him on loan to see if he is would be clutch
I just want to know how skillful he is at diving. 🙂
Carlos Cordeiro, the former US Soccer President and now former Senior Advisor to Infantino, has resigned in protest of this FFE non-sense.
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7482493/2026/07/31/infantino-fifa-world-cup-plans-cordeiro/
Apparently USMNT and Columbus Crew wingback Max Arfsten is also on his way to Middlesborough.
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7482775/2026/07/31/max-arfsten-transfer-middlesbrough-columbus-crew-usmnt/
Chelse has been hit with a suspended transfer ban and $13.4M fine for an alleged 74 breaches of the English FA’s rules.
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7480240/2026/07/31/chelsea-fine-points-deduction-transfer-ban/
Apparently Monday is election/voting day for the new MLS commissioner.
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7481157/2026/07/30/mls-owners-commissioner-vote-date-new-york-garber-berg-nathanson/
2028 LA Olympics tickets are expensive though ti varies by location, sport, and stage.
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7480645/2026/07/31/2028-la-olympics-ticket-prices-fees-most-expensive-games/