Image credit: Indiana Futsal

INDIANAPOLIS — Come enjoy delicious food, beverages and live music with Indiana Futsal at Un Poquitico De Cuba this Friday from 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. at 1417 Commerce Avenue — the building with the Indianapolis flag painted on it — on Indy’s near east side. The cover is $5 at the door and is an all-ages event.

Indiana Futsal has a historic venture to Havana planned later this month to help grow the game of futsal and connect with youths in Cuba. All proceeds from Friday’s party will benefit the organization’s trip.

“Join us for a night of dancing, live music, local beer, Venezuelan arepas and the best ice cream in the city,” said Indiana Futsal director Justin Becht. “More importantly, we are raising money to empower youth in Havana through the beautiful game.”

Event sponsor Centerpoint Brewing Company will be serving its offerings, as will Sun King Brewing, El Venezolano food truck and Gordon’s Ice Cream Parlor. Fellow local nonprofit RUCKUS Makerspace also linked up with Indiana Futsal to host the event.

“About two years ago, I had a chance to go down (to Cuba) to visit my family, and couldn’t help notice the fact that every street corner, every park, every landmark, was filled with kids playing the game of futsal,” said Indiana Futsal’s Guy-Jo Gordon in a promotional video for Friday’s party. “The game has grown organically at an exponential rate, and we have an opportunity to go down there and see how they’ve helped facilitate the growth of the game down there. Additionally, they’re also looking at us to provide them with the expertise that we’ve developed over the last couple years in building futsal courts.”

Un Poquitico De Cuba attendees are advised to use 16th Street to access parking across the street from the facility due to road construction. If you’d like to support the cause but are unable to attend Friday’s soiree, please visit the organization’s GoFundMe page set up specifically to fundraise for the Cuba trip.

Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KJboxing.

Support Soc Takes on Patreon for access to exclusive content and supporter benefits. Click here to become a patron today.

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Photo credit: John Perry

With the Group Phase coming to an end Thursday, let’s look back at some of the most breathtaking golazos we’ve witnessed so far at the 2018 World Cup.

Here’s our list of the top 10 goals based on the criteria of sheer magnificence, degree of difficulty and importance. Excellent service and/or a remarkable buildup are also considered. All videos are courtesy of FOX Sports.

10. Paulinho makes an off-the-ball run straight up the gut, then delicately flicks the ball over Serbian goalkeeper Vladimir Stojkovic for Brazil’s first goal in a 2-0 triumph — a match Brazil needed a result in. Slight edge to this one over teammate Philippe Coutinho’s bender against Switzerland simply because you don’t see goals like this too often. Plus, Coutinho already gets his props on this list by assisting on the gorgeous ball into Paulinho.

Paulinho makes a GREAT run up the middle and pokes it over the keeper to put Brazil up 1-0! pic.twitter.com/vUvY8SHCKw

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 27, 2018

9. Belgium’s Adnan Januzaj gives Danny Rose the sauce before bending a beauty of a left-footer top shelf for the only goal of the game in a win over England. Had the match had any real meaning, this strike might’ve made the top five.

Januzaj creates some separation and curls it beautifully to put Belgium up 1-0 on England and give them the lead in the Group G standings! pic.twitter.com/TrwUnuxnxD

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 28, 2018

8. In the opening match of the World Cup, Denis Cheryshev shows off his sublime finishing ability by darting into the box and ripping an outside-of-the-boot stunner in host Russia’s 5-nil downing of Saudi Arabia. Cheryshev completed his brace in style with this one, and his first was ridiculous as well.

The first game of the FIFA World Cup turned into a blow out.

Check out every goal from Russia vs Saudi Arabia. pic.twitter.com/pPF76hhCTm

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 15, 2018

7. Nigeria’s Ahmed Musa controls a difficult ball out of the air and absolutely rifles a volley into the back of the net in his team’s 2-0 takedown of Iceland. Musa’s technique on this stunner is a joy to behold, plus he recorded a brace.

6. Some bloke named Cristiano Ronaldo is good at these things called free kicks in soccer. Just watch. The goal earns Portugal a 3-3 draw with Spain in the most edge-of-your-seat match of the entire Group Phase. He gets additional brownie points for completing a hat trick with this one, of course.

Take a bow, Cristiano Ronaldo. 🙌 pic.twitter.com/pJwSByuz5y

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 15, 2018

5. Nacho Fernandez redeems himself after conceding a penalty with an absolute screamer of a volley from outside the box in Spain’s 3-3 draw with Portugal. Jesus Christ.

UNBELIEVABLE STRIKE FROM NACHO! 😱

The defender makes up for his early mistake with a beauty to put Spain ahead 3-2. pic.twitter.com/r6Zokn9mQ5

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 15, 2018

4. Portugal’s Ricardo Quaresma hits a shot about as perfectly as is humanly possible from outside the box, which ends up salvaging a 1-1 draw with Iran. This one is pretty much a carbon copy of Cheryshev’s, only with the opposite foot, a little more swerve and from farther out. Take a bow, Quaresma.

Ricardo Quaresma’s goal today vs Iran was straight 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/yapZd2r5hl

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 26, 2018

3. Marcos Rojo bangs in a volley with the inside of his foot in the 86th minute to give Argentina a 2-1 victory and, more importantly, an improbable spot in the Round of 16. Off the charts on the importance scale.

Argentina were minutes from being eliminated from the FIFA World Cup…

Then Marcos Rojo came to the rescue. 🇦🇷 pic.twitter.com/fSYSsp6ynp

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 27, 2018

2. Down a man and in a must-win situation, Toni Kroos curls in an indirect free kick at the death to lift Germany to 2-1 win over Sweden. Germany later flames out of the Group Phase in epic fashion, but this goal brings hope to the hopeless at the time.

TONI KROOS HAS THE CLUTCH GENE pic.twitter.com/YDO2nNQty7

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 23, 2018

1. Lionel Messi brings the ball down with two perfect touches while in full stride and puts a desperate Argentina side on the board first against Nigeria. Extra marks because it’s Leo fucking Messi and he makes it look easy. Also, that ball over the top by Ever Banega tho…

“Maradona was up, the bench was up, the stadium is ALIVE!”

Hear JP Dellacamera and @TMeola1 call Messi’s goal vs Nigeria in our Call of the Day. pic.twitter.com/41UiVZ5G7a

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 27, 2018

Do you agree or disgree? Let us know us which goals we’re missing and which ones we should’ve left off our list in the comments below.

Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KJboxing.

Support Soc Takes on Patreon for access to exclusive content and supporter benefits. Click here to become a patron today.

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Photo credit: Robbie Mehling/Soc Takes

The World Cup has reached the knockout rounds with upsets galore and many a favored contender heading home early. But you probably knew that already.

Instead of using some weird metric to rank and/or predict the World Cup, I’ve been itching to get back to my bread and butter: USL analyses. Today, that itch has been scratched.

Back around the ides of May, I wrote a reasonably detailed, two-part progress report on the 2018 USL season about a quarter of the way through it. Right now, there have been 266 of 561 matches played, which means we’re at roughly the midway point of the season. And most importantly, it’s a period where the season has a 48-hour break for me to sit down, write, make spreadsheets, calculate arbitrary percentages and write. And for the really mathematically inclined, it means that every team has played, on average, 16 games. Plenty of data over which I can pore and jump to conclusions.

As before, the two primary metrics I’m tracking are points per game and average attendance, for reasons explained at length in the Q1 progress reports. Also, this report is being deliberately written as a two-part affair due to the sheer lengthiness of the previous two USL pieces. Hopefully it’ll be easier to swallow once I break this in half.

And with that, let’s jump to some Western Conference midterm conclusions.

Colorado Springs Switchbacks

* Points per Game: 1.333, 9th in West (+.061 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 3,603, 18th in USL (+15.9% from Q1)

Oh hey, the team that I said would be fine and likely competing for the bottom two playoff spots in front of larger crowds is doing just that. Colorado Springs has started to figure things out again and currently sits in ninth by less than .07 points per game behind San Antonio. The club’s goal differential is in the positives, the defense has looked solid and they’ve won three of their last five. While they’re still recovering from a relatively poor start to the season, there honestly isn’t much cause for concern here. Attendance is up 6.3 percent relative to 2017 and they’ve allowed the third-fewest goals in the conference. These are clear, positive signs.

Prognosis: If they don’t make the playoffs, they’ll miss by three points or fewer.

Fresno FC

* Points per Game: 1.158, 11th in West (+.067 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 4,962, 11th in USL (-12.5% from Q1)

Fresno is having a very whelming debut season. While attendance is down by a few hundred per game, the club has started winning. And yeah, they’ve started losing as well, but let’s focus on the winning because I’m going to be focusing a lot on losing further down this article. Fresno has gained a position in the PPG standings, moving from 12th to 11th, and honestly might make some noise come September. Their goal differential is in the positives and they’re still averaging roughly 5,000 per game. Yeah, they could be doing better, but this is a team that was hand-assembled by the one and only Frank Yallop, so take the little victories and build for the future. Also, I still don’t like the jerseys and think the secondary fox logo needs to be the primary logo.

Prognosis: They’ll finish roughly one-third the way up the table, which is to say probably 11th or 12th. But that’s fine.

LA Galaxy II

* Points per Game: 0.941, 14th in West (+.275 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 1,148, 30th in USL (+5.6% from Q1)

Los Dos are finally doing proper soccer-related things both on and off the field. Don’t get me wrong, they’re still not a good team or even mediocre, but they’re marginally less depressing to look at than they were in May. And now, speculation time. We got word recently that Toronto FC II is moving down to USL D3 for 2019, which means that they now have the (R) for relegation listed on the standings. Here’s where I promote LA Galaxy II doing the same: LA Galaxy II should do the same thing. USL D3 costs less, and while it might not be up against the same opposition level as USL, it’s likely not that dramatic of a change and won’t be significant enough to impact player development either way. Kids need meaningful minutes, and as long as USL D3 adopts the same rules and regulations for the games themselves as USL, it’ll be fine.

Prognosis: Relegation, but the American style where you choose to do it of your own volition because freedom.

Las Vegas Lights FC

* Points per Game: 1.133, 12th in West (-.117 from Q1) * Average Attendance: 7,523, 5th in USL (-8% from Q1)

* Meme Game: Full Chelis

Here is a summary of all the important events involving Las Vegas Lights FC since Q1: Freddy goddamn Adu scored his first professional goal since 2015, Chelis got himself suspended again and I got into several heated debates over their home jerseys. I maintain, correctly, that they are beautiful masterpieces of kit design, and sit among the greatest jerseys ever worn in the history of the sport. Other people, who I will refer to as Bailey and Dan from the Dallas Beer Guardians for the sake of anonymity, claim that they’re either tacky or stupid or horrible or other negative adjectives that I honestly didn’t bother paying attention to because they’re simply incorrect. Anyway. There’s been a slight decline in PPG which is what happens when Los Dos blows you the actual hell out 7-2, but they beat Colorado Springs and Tacoma Sounders both 4-1. Just like I said before, this team is genuinely entertaining no matter what the score, and the party in the stands keeps on keepin’ on.

Prognosis: I wonder how long management tolerates Chelis’ actions before he gets la patada.

OKC Energy FC

* Points per Game: 1.000, 13th in West (+.667 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 3,964, 16th in USL (+2.6% from Q1)

OKC doesn’t suck anymore! The eight-game losing streak came to an end just days after I wrote the Q1 report (although technically it was nine because they lost to NTX Rayados in the Open Cup in what was, frankly, an embarrassing mess of a game) by beating Colorado Springs 1-0. Since then, they’ve actually won three more games, and drew Tulsa, so there’s hope for them yet! In fact, those three wins constitute an active winning streak, beating the Portland Saplings, Rio Grande Valley Football Club Toros of Edinburg and Los Dos by a combined 6-2 scoreline. By points per game, they’re actually the most improved team in the Western Conference. Maybe Steve Cooke is finally settling in up there, or maybe they’re regressing to a much less horrifying mean. All I know is I no longer avert my gaze when Fotmob shows a notification from an OKC game, and this is a welcome change.

Prognosis: Honestly, who knows? I’d like them to make the playoffs but they need to continue not sucking for like, more than three weeks. Reply hazy, try again.

Orange County SC

* Points per Game: 1.688, 4th in West (-.013 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 3,013, 23rd in USL (-2% from Q1)

Everything is quietly going really well for Orange County this season, which is to say they’re doing fantastic work despite few people noticing. But I notice! And not just out of guilt for forgetting them in the USL season preview. Thomas Enevoldsen has nine goals this season, tied for first in the league, while Andre Rawls is tied for second with seven shutouts. And they’ve not only been good, they’ve been consistently good. They haven’t gone winless for more than two consecutive games all season and they haven’t lost at home since March. All the important numbers are way, way up from last year, and they’re on track to surpass their 2017 points total at around 25 games. In the Q1 report, I speculated that Braeden Cloutier might be drawing the attention of MLS teams. I’m willing to expand on that to say both Cloutier and Oliver Wyss, a guy with a really long title that really just means GM, should be viewed as potential replacements for some of the underwhelming/disappointing management teams in MLS. While OCSC fans will rightfully want them to stay and keep things up as long as possible, I can’t help but think that these two might be doing a better job with that unnatural disaster in the Bay Area than the recently appointed powers that be.

Prognosis: This is a genuine top-five team. Unless something super weird and depressing happens, they’re making the playoffs easily.

Phoenix Rising FC

* Points per Game: 1.944, 2nd in West (-.156 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 6,505, 8th in USL (-0.9% from Q1)

Phoenix Rising head coach Patrice Carteron, the winningest coach in Arizona United/Phoenix Rising history, is gone. He’s buggered off to Egypt to manage Al Ahly SC. Honestly, I can’t really see why the man he replaced, Hossam El-Badry, felt the need to quit. Al Ahly was comically dominant in the Egyptian Premier League last season, winning 28 of 34 league matches and losing only two. The club only lost the CAF Champions League by a single goal in 2017. As best as I can tell, the group stage elimination in the 2018 CAF Champions League was the death knell, but I don’t see how Carteron can really make much of an improvement here. Al-Ahly has won the league three seasons in a row with a grand total of six losses. But that’s an entirely different story. God, Egyptian soccer is stupidly unbalanced. More relevantly, his interim replacement in Phoenix, Rick Schantz, seems to be doing just fine. He’s coached Phoenix to four consecutive shutouts, including three wins, and the club hasn’t lost since May 26. Chris Cortez has been remarkably consistent, with three goals in the past six games alone. Phoenix currently has the best offense and highest goal differential in the conference. The club managed to somehow hold onto a 1-0 lead against Orange County despite playing down a man for 55 minutes. That red card alone is an anomaly, one of only three issued to Phoenix players all season. This a well-built, well-run and unusually well-disciplined machine. Off the field, the club continues to average north of the stated “capacity” of their stadium by over 300, and haven’t had crowds much below 6,000 at worst. Everything is still going right for Phoenix, and I don’t think the loss of Carteron is going to significantly damage their season.

Prognosis: Easy top-three team. Strong candidate for the top seed. Likely championship contender.

Portland Timbers 2

* Points per Game: 1.529, 7th in West (-.171 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 2,696, 24th in USL (+46.5% from Q1)

The Saplings have seen a massive turnaround from last season. Not only are they playing properly good soccer, they’re even bringing in more people to see it than the previous two seasons. Cameron Knowles is proving himself as an above-average or better coach, and his team is on track for its best-ever finish. I don’t think the Timbers management told him that they need to make the USL playoffs, but it’s definitely a positive externality of proper management and coaching. It’s also a sign that the Timbers are going to continue to be good in MLS for a while. And this 2 team is one of the few I don’t expect to drop to USL D3, unless they decide to pinch as many pennies as possible.

Prognosis: Likely making the playoffs, probably as a 7th seed.

Real Monarchs SLC

* Points per Game: 2.313, 1st in West (-.132 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 1,895, 28th in USL (-10.2% from Q1)

Let’s talk about Mark Briggs for a quick tangent. Mark Briggs, head coach of Real Monarchs ever since Mike Petke got promoted last March, is currently on administrative leave due to his ongoing domestic assault case, and has been since May 29th. Since then, the team has been coached by RSL legend Jamison Olave, and the efficient machine that is the Butterflies continues to win games. The team is currently on a stronger pace than last year’s runaway season, and that’s legitimately terrifying. They’ve only lost three times this season, and never by more than two goals. Olave now has three wins from his first four games in charge with a 6-3 aggregate scoreline. This team is the strongest in the league, and it’s not even all that close. To match the Monarch’s points-per-game pace, Cincinnati would need to be more than five points better than they currently are. Their defense is the second best in the conference, their goal differential is third best and they’re the only team in USL with more than 10 wins. Everything that Dell Loy Hansen has done to grow his organization is working nearly perfectly. And yet, no one is turning up to games. Not really no one, but still, not very many people considering the stadium seats 5,000 in a suburb with 51,000 people. I don’t understand this at all, unless their marketing for USL games is worse than what FC Dallas does here.

Prognosis: Hide your kids, hide your prospects and hide your draft picks ’cause they’re scoring on everybody out here.

Reno 1868 FC

* Points per Game: 1.647, 5th in West (+.347 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 4,402, 13th in USL (+13.1% from Q1)

Reno started the year in decidedly not-good fashion, and then, on April 21, they decided to stop being not good and to start being good again. It worked. Reno is now on a 13-game unbeaten streak and they’ve won three of their last five. They’ve gained five positions in the Western Conference points-per-game table since Q1, tied with only OKC for biggest mover. And yet, there aren’t many standout individuals on the team this year, save for maybe Antoine Hoppenot. He’s tied for second place in the assist leaders table with 7, which is pretty good, but still indicative of the lack of reliance on any one player in particular this year. This is exactly how a team should be built, in my mind, so that on any given day they can get a positive result. Attendance wise, they’re still down relative to last year, but up from Q1 to halfway. I’m still not worried about that.

Prognosis: Another championship contender, assuming their inevitable regression isn’t too mean.

Rio Grande Valley FC Toros

* Points per Game: 0.750, 16th in West (-.139 from Q1) * Average Attendance: 5,203, 10th in USL (-8.1% from Q1)

* Name: Too long and kinda stupid

I no longer think RGVFC is unlucky. At this point, I’m pretty sure they’re just bad. They’ve won just once this season, which was preceded by a three-game losing streak and followed by an active 10-game winless streak. They’ve been shut out in four of the last five, and they’ve scored a grand total of four goals since their lone win in April. They have the second-worst offense in the conference, with no signs of improvement any time soon. The only positive note, if one considers this positive, is that they lead the league in draws with nine. Nine out of sixteen drawn. Gerson Echeverry has not inspired much confidence in his coaching abilities. But hey, the fans are still showing up, so at least they have that going for them, which is nice.

Prognosis: Tie Fighters engage.

Sacramento Republic

* Points per Game: 1.611, 6th in West (-.189 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 11,444, 2nd in USL (-1.1% from Q1)

Dearly beloved, we are gathered here to mourn the loss of Sacramento’s sellout streak. Born on June 18, the year of our lord Two Thousand and Sixteen, the sellout streak lived a bright and vibrant life that was tragically cut short on Saturday, the 23 of June, just days after its second birthday, due to 99 tickets which went, unfortunately, unsold. While our hearts may be filled with sorrow, may we draw comfort from the timeless adage; the flame that burns twice as bright burns half as long. Following the ceremony, there will be a reception to celebrate the sporting achievements of the departed, including sixth place in the points-per-game table at a pace surpassing that seen the previous season.

Prognosis: Press F to pay respects.

Saint Louis FC

* Points per Game: 1.294, 10th in West (-.106 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 4,156, 14th in USL (+5.5% from Q1)

Saint Louis is a bit of an enigma this year. After an early six-game unbeaten streak, they went six without a win, followed by two shutout victories before going winless the next two. There’s only been one blowout loss, the 3-6 fiasco against Los Dos in which Efrain Alvarez and Ethan Zuback both scored hat tricks. I want to say that things will probably be fine, and given their blowout-averse tactics, that’s probably warranted, but I’m still not sure. They definitely need to stick with Anthony Pulis for at least the rest of the season, barring some unforeseen spiral of death. This team hasn’t had much in the way of consistency from year to year, with four different head coaches in four seasons, so maybe Pulis the Younger just needs more time to settle in. The decline in points per game isn’t all that dramatic, either. In the stands, things are definitely moving in the right direction, with their two most recent home games drawing 5,432 and 4,284 respectively. If they keep that up, they might find their stadium a bit on the small side by season’s end.

Prognosis: It’ll be fine. Probably.

San Antonio FC

* Points per Game: 1.400, 8th in West (-.044 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 6,985, 7th in West (-0.2% from Q1)

San Antonio has remained consistent, with only a resurgent Reno bumping them down one spot in the standings. Points per game wise, they sit a bit lower than I expected, with that four-game unbeaten streak ending at five games, and have won just two of their last six. That said, they weren’t shut out in any of those six, so the offense is clearly working to some degree. But that degree has only been good for fifteen goals in fifteen games, simply not good enough when they’re conceding slightly more than a goal per game on average. They still have a decent shot at the top eight, but I’m a lot less confident in their soccer than I was at preseason or Q1. Honestly, I think if San Antonio doesn’t make the playoffs, Darren Powell might find his seat becoming hotter. Off the field, attendance has barely moved, with that 0.2 percent representing a grand total of 13 fans per game. They even cracked 7,000 at the start of June. All good there.

Prognosis: I wonder how Alen Marcina likes Des Moines.

Seattle Sounders 2

* Points per Game: .786, 15th in West (+.008 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 3,483, 19th in USL (-0.9% from Q1)

Sounders 2 have remained consistent throughout the first half of the season. The only problem is that they haven’t been consistently good. They’ve won just one of their last eight. The team looks completely different at home versus away, with all three wins in Tacoma and two total points on the road. Seattle is level on points with Tulsa right now, which is definitely not a good place to be. John Hutchinson hasn’t seemed as completely lost as Ezra Hendrickson was last season, so maybe they’ll improve. But my money’s on both of those numbers staying more or less the same for the remainder of the season. At least the people in Tacoma seem to like it. Just need to finish that new stadium and rebrand.

Prognosis: Can they break the spell of the typical?

Swope Park Rangers

* Points per Game: 1.750, 3rd in West (+.083 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 933, 31st in USL (+1% from Q1)

The Swope Park Rangers still don’t play in Swope Park, but they still get results. Paulo Nagamura is catching on quickly in his first head coaching position, and his team has been both consistent and good. The club remains undefeated at home thanks to Kharlton Belmar. He alone is responsible for more than a third of Swope Park’s goals, tied for the USL lead with nine. I doubt he spends much more time in the USL, as that’s the sort of performance that warrants a call-up to the first team. Off the field, the Rangers have drawn fewer people all season than the league’s average attendance by over a thousand. That’s pretty bad, and looks even worse on broadcast. Maybe a drop to USL D3 and a return to Swope Park could help those numbers.

Prognosis: If Belmar stays, they keep winning. If Belmar leaves, who honestly knows?

Tulsa Roughnecks

* Points per Game: 0.647, 17th in West (+.092 from Q1)
* Average Attendance: 3,228, 20th in USL (-2.7% from Q1)

It took Tulsa 16 games to win their first of the season, leaving Toronto FC II as the only team in USL without a win. That’s positively dire, and cost head coach David Vaudreuil his job last week. At their current points per game pace, this season might end up worse than their 21 loss campaign in 2016. There’s no positive way to spin this. Tulsa is barely playing soccer at this point. Michael Nsien at least began his interim spell with that one win, and if he can salvage something of this season, he might actually get the permanent coaching job. It’s borderline impossible to do worse than Vaudreuil did here this year. Attendance wise, Tulsa is down from Q1 but not by much. More worrying is the 16.2% drop compared to 2017. Things need to change in Tulsa.

Prognosis: Blow it up and rebuild.

My Eastern Conference midterm progress report can be found here. I hope you enjoyed this sprawling, rambling analysis of the USL Western Conference at roughly the halfway mark.

Follow John on Twitter: @JohnMLTX.

Support Soc Takes on Patreon for access to exclusive content and supporter benefits. Click here to become a patron today.

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OKC Energy co-owner Bob Funk Jr. Credit: The Oklahoman

Bob Funk Jr. and his co-owner Tim McLaughlin do not make snap judgments.

Just a few weeks ago, it seemed likely that Funk’s OKC Energy club would be building a new home in the Bricktown area of Oklahoma City. The site was a 40-acre mill called Producers Cooperative Oil Mill (colloquially referred to as the “PComm” property). But on June 1, news broke — rather under the radar — that Funk and his partners had pulled out of the deal.

Prima facie, this leaves Energy in a precarious position — no immediate plans for MLS, a team playing at a site that doesn’t meet USSF requirements and a relaunching of exploration of potential sites. Funk spoke to Soc Takes and it soon became clear that he sees an upward trajectory toward MLS and considers most of these issues to be minor perturbations.

PComm

The plans for the PComm site included retail stores, a hotel and housing as complementary to the soccer stadium.

“The price was too high at first because of which we looked at other opportunities. We talked to a group in Edmond and Norman about potential sites. Also in Northwest Oklahoma City, but everyone agreed that critical mass is downtown, so we decided that the stadium had to go downtown. The Mill site made sense in terms of location at that time.”

Having seemingly selected the site and then deciding against it, many have wondered why. Funk was hesitant to discuss the reasons, citing confidentiality issues, but perhaps one of their initial concerns – an inflated price for the property – contributed to their decision. In support of this, OKC Business writer, Steve Lackmeyer previously suggested that he suspected the “co-op has a greatly inflated asking price” as reason for reneging the bid.

While OKC soccer fans may understandably be upset at a further delay in the possibility of seeing their checkered jerseys traversing a soccer-specific stadium, Funk believes that perhaps this isn’t the right time for a stadium or an MLS bid.

“Timing is everything,” he said. “Pursuing something at the wrong time might kill the dream.”

The dream

Joining MLS has always been the goal for Energy. “The way I’ve looked at it – since we made it our franchise official, we wanted to talk about MLS. We were thinking 8-10 years ahead and a new stadium was our intention from the beginning. I didn’t want to be an USL owner forever. The vision has always been to get to MLS, and therefore, a stadium was on our minds from the beginning.”. “

“It’s not easy, there are risks bringing an MLS franchise here. But, we’re also generating economic benefits for the city. Yes, owners are building facilities, but they are taking a  significant risk. Owners only invest if the public wants it. Therefore, it’s not as simple as ‘let the owners build it by themselves.’

Future plans for the stadium

Image credit: OKC Energy

While the earlier plan involved retail and other amenities, Funk says that going forward, a stadium-only plan is more likely. He is also hesitant to commit to the exact financial plan. While declaring that private money will be involved, Funk says level of public investment would be contingent on the idiosyncracies of the site itself.

OKC problems

When asked about how receptive the legislature is of their current and future plans for a stadium, Funk said, “They’ve been receptive. Because we’ve pointed out that we want to make it multi-purpose . I think everyone loves the idea. The big skepticism is how much will it cost? And how are we going to pay for it? Finding a location, coming up with a plan of how this will work, and then meeting with local officials/business leaders and keeping them constantly updated, so that when the time is right, we want to pounce. We’re going to continually ask for civic leaders and the public’s input to get complete buy in.”

While these sorts of measured responses are to be expected from owners, Funk’s blunt and informative analysis of why securing public funding is problematic in OKC was a pleasant surprise to this author. Funk explained that before he felt comfortable asking significant public investment, he felt that more pressing issues in OKC needed governmental investment.

“We have some issues in OKC. Mainly, education, criminal justice reform – via mental health, drug rehab facilities, etc. , infrastructural issues (such as streets, roads, etc; public safety ( Funk explained later that he believed the city police department to be understaffed by ~500 officers). These social problems need to be solved first and then we can talk about MLS landscape. That’s why we are being cautious and careful of our approach. Especially if we need to go to the voters to ask for funding.”

When it was pointed out to him that these issues would require longer than a 5 year arc to be resolved, Funk clarified –

“We’ve had a pretty good record in OKC of identifying problems and fixing them. I don’t think we’re going to solve the education problem, but we’re going to try to sort out the funding issue w/ education, for example.”

Taft Stadium

One area of worry is the current site of OKC Energy’s home games. The stadium does not meet the width requirements for USSF “by a

Bob Funk Jr. Credit: OKC Energy

 few feet”. Energy’s stadium size was one of the waivers that USL had to apply for last year. Funk remains calm although he admits that it is an issue that has to be addressed.

“Yeah, we realize it’s an issue. I’m at a loss how to fix it. Even in Norman, there isn’t a stadium that seats anything over 5k that fits a soccer field that’s grass. Do i think our fans are complaining about the field width? No. It’s important from my perspective from division II that we find a way to comply. It keeps us out of hosting US Open Cup, too.”

When asked if the Energy will apply for a waiver again this year, Funk responds rather tongue-in-cheek, “As long as NYC FC are applying for waivers, I’m not concerned.”

The takeaway

Backing out of the PComm proposal sounds like a financially prudent move. But, it is important to note that having not put in an MLS bid this time around, Energy’s MLS dream is contingent on the announcement of further expansion slots by MLS.  Unless MLS opens up more expansion slots, for now, the OKC to MLS dream is dead.

Bob Funk Jr has a strategic plan for OKC Energy. Yet, he understands that he doesn’t exist in a vacuum.

Instead, he exists in the mercurial valley of lower-division soccer. Sometimes there are avalanches of a fleeting new local team, sometimes the clouds strike the mountains of aforementioned sociopolitical turmoil causing unexpected delays. Sometimes, the sun comes out, and you sign an exciting all-encompassing kit deal with Under Armor. Sometimes, the relative calm and subsequent tornado of USSF sanctions strike the valley. But, Funk Jr understands the power of two words in lower-division soccer: continuity and preparation.

As their logo says, “Labor Omnia Vincit” — labor conquers all.

You can follow Nipun on Twitter @NipunChopra7.

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. — In the regular-finale for both clubs, Louisville City FC downed the Indy Eleven 1-0 on Saturday night at Louisville Slugger Field. LouCity, already locked into the No. 2 seed in the USL Eastern Conference playoffs, damaged the Eleven’s hopes of maintaining the fifth seed with the win.

Follow Robbie on Twitter: @RobbMeh.

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The Athletic contributor, lawyer and founder of socceresq.com Miki Turner hops on the podcast to offer his insights on the #SaveTheCrew fiasco, NASL vs. USSF lawsuit and Seattle Sounders’ 2018 campaign.

Miki touches on everything from how he thinks the lawsuits will shake out to his postgame cigar and beverage preferences.

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Image credit: NPSL

On Friday, the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) released its Conference XI, a list of the best 11 players plus a manager from each of the league’s conferences across all four regions. Here is the full list of 2018 NPSL Conference XI selections:

MIDWEST REGION

East Conference XI Head Coach Dale White, Erie Commodores FC Goalkeeper Nicolau Neto, Erie Commodores FC Defender Casey Bartlett-Scott, Erie Commodores FC Defender Max Flick, Fort Pitt Regiment Defender Chris Cvecko, Cleveland SC Midfielder Craig Quinn, Erie Commodores FC Midfielder Rafa Godoi, Rochester Lancers Midfielder Joe Falcone, Syracuse FC Midfielder Nicholas Kolarac, Fort Pitt Regiment Forward Cam Philpot, Erie Commodores FC Forward Vinny Bell, Cleveland SC

Forward Kendell McFayden, FC Buffalo

Great Lakes Conference XI Head Coach Lewis Robinson, Grand Rapids FC Goalkeeper Michael Novotny, AFC Ann Arbor Defender Stephen Carroll, Detroit City FC Defender Trent Vegter, Grand Rapids FC Defender Joseph Stanley Okumu, AFC Ann Arbor Midfielder Derek Sutton, Grand Rapids FC Midfielder Nick King, Kalamazoo FC Midfielder Brad Centala, Detroit City FC Midfielder Marc Ybarra, AFC Ann Arbor Forward Scott Doney, Grand Rapids FC Forward Damani Camara, FC Columbus

Forward Yuri Farkas, AFC Ann Arbor

North Conference XI Head Coach Adam Pribyl, Minneapolis City SC Goalkeeper Jan Hoffelner, Duluth FC Defender Maxwell Kent, Minneapolis City SC Defender Ryan Tyrer, Duluth FC Defender Nicholas Itopoulos, Med City FC Midfielder Niklas Roessler, Med City FC Midfielder Max Stiegwardt, Minneapolis City SC Midfielder Joe Watt, Duluth FC Midfielder Nigel Nielsen, Sioux Falls Thunder FC Forward Claudio Repetto, Med City FC Forward William Kidd, Minneapolis City SC

Forward Ncengetere Jacques, Dakota Fusion FC

NORTHEAST REGION

Keystone Conference XI Head Coach Sacir Hot, FC Motown Goalkeeper Matt Perrella, Atlantic City FC Defender Thomas Judge, FC Monmouth Defender Kouassi N’Guessan, Junior Lone Star FC Defender Hani Nasr, FC Motown Midfielder Yaya Fane, Junior Lone Star FC Midfielder Matt Nigro, FC Motown Midfielder Andreas Bartosinski, West Chester United SC Midfielder George Akampeke, FC Monmouth Forward Dilly Duka, FC Motown Forward Anthony Allison, Junior Lone Star FC

Forward Jordan Saling, FC Monmouth

Mid-Atlantic Conference XI Head Coach Brandon Quaranta, FC Baltimore Goalkeeper Quantrell Jones, FC Baltimore Defender Colin Verfurth, Northern Virginia United Defender Kevin Morris, FC Frederick Defender Jordi Davis, Virginia Beach City FC Midfielder Chris Welsh, Northern Virginia United Midfielder William Eskay, FC Frederick Midfielder Jade Mesias, FC Baltimore Midfielder Fernando Casero, Charlottesville Alliance FC Forward Joshua Fawole, FC Baltimore Forward Sebastian Refi, Virginia Beach City FC

Forward Jacob Gosselin, FC Frederick

North Atlantic Conference XI Head Coach Carlos Mendes, New York Cosmos B Goalkeeper Hami Kara, Hartford City FC Defender Jonathan Borrajo, New York Cosmos B Defender Dominick Falanga, Brooklyn Italians Defender Andrew Geres, Hartford City FC Midfielder Danny Szetela – New York Cosmos B Midfielder Miguel Carneiro, Elm City Express Midfielder Starvros Zarokostas, Rhode Island Reds FC Midfielder Juan Parada, Kingston Stockade FC Forward Bljedi Bardic, New York Cosmos B Forward Shaquille Saunchez, Elm City Express

Forward Ryan Taylor, Hartford City FC

SOUTH REGION

Heartland Conference XI Head Coach Will Montgomery, Little Rock Rangers Goalkeeper Walid Birrou, Little Rock Rangers Defender Ben Watson, Little Rock Rangers Defender Uzi Tayou, FC Wichita Defender Jair Hernandez, Saint Louis Club Atletico Midfielder Nelson Landaverde, FC Wichita Midfielder Declan Fitzpatrick, Tulsa Athletic Midfielder Brayan Lopez, Saint Louis Club Atletico Midfielder Guilherme Barbosa, Ozark FC Forward Chevaughn Walsh, Saint Louis Club Atletico Forward Alex Guadron, Little Rock Rangers

Forward Damieon Thomas, Tulsa Athletic

Lone Star Conference XI Head Coach Dana Taylor, Laredo Heat SC Goalkeeper Carlos Herrera, Laredo Heat SC Defender Younes Boudadi, Laredo Heat SC Defender Antone Jarvis, Dutch Lions FC Defender Rio Ramirez, Fort Worth Vaqueros FC Midfielder Andres Felipe Rodriguez Becerra, Midland-Odessa Sockers FC Midfielder Jacob Powell, Dutch Lions FC Midfielder Hayden Tucker, Shreveport Rafters FC Midfielder Jamie Lovegrove, Fort Worth Vaqueros FC Forward Guillermo Diaz, Laredo Heat SC Forward Kalle Sone, Fort Worth Vaqueros FC

Forward Nathan Regis, Midland-Odessa Sockers FC

Southeast Conference XI Head Coach Bill Elliott, Chattanooga FC Goalkeeper Phil D’Amico, Chattanooga FC Defender Juan Sanchez, Chattanooga FC Defender Jack Gurr, Georgia Revolution FC Defender Samir Bihmoutine, New Orleans Jesters Midfielder Juan Hernandez, Chattanooga FC Midfielder Kristian Moore-Cowell, Asheville City SC Midfielder Jack Hoey, Greenville FC Midfielder Oliver Roberts, New Orleans Jesters Forward Isaac Promise, Georgia Revolution FC Forward Bruno Andrade, Asheville City SC

Forward Mason Walsh, New Orleans Jesters

Sunshine Conference XI Head Coach Paul Dalglish, Miami FC 2 Goalkeeper Brian Holt, Jacksonville Armada FC Defender Daniel Navarro, Miami United FC Defender Mason Trafford, Miami FC 2 Defender Mechack Jerome, Jacksonville Armada FC Midfielder Daniel Meneses, Boca Raton FC Midfielder Dylan Mares, Miami FC 2 Midfielder Val Feeney, Palm Beach United Midfielder Javier Monsalvez Carazo, Jacksonville Armada FC Forward Derek Gebhard, Jacksonville Armada FC Forward David Ochoa, Miami United FC

Forward Jaime Chavez, Miami FC 2

WEST REGION

Golden Gate Conference XI Head Coach Sergio Sousa Jr., Academica SC Goalkeeper Javier Valdez-Raya, Napa Valley 1839 FC Defender Brennen Canfield, Academica SC Defender Jorge Lualua, Napa Valley 1839 FC Defender Francisco Garcia, El Farolito Midfielder Alex Bettencourt, Academica SC Midfielder Miguel Lara, Sonoma County Sol FC Midfielder Miguel Acevedo, FC Davis Midfielder Alexandre Gonzalez, El Farolito Forward Cody Golbad, Academica SC Forward Edson Cardona, El Farolito

Forward Omar Nuno, Sonoma County Sol FC

Northwest Conference XI Head Coach Mike Pellicio, Spokane SC Shadow Goalkeeper Bryan Hernandez, Spokane SC Shadow Defender Spencer Wolfe, Spokane SC Shadow Defender Jack Sluys, Kitsap Pumas Defender Alex White, FCM Portland Midfielder Ryan Middleton, FCM Portland Midfielder Alvaro Rubio, Kitsap Pumas Midfielder Ryo Asai, PDX FC Midfielder Tanner Williams, Spokane SC Shadow Forward Freddie Braun, FCM Portland Forward Uriel Herrera, Kitsap Pumas

Forward Michael Ramos, Spokane SC Shadow

Southwest Conference XI Head Coach Paul Caligiuri, Orange County FC Goalkeeper Hugo Gomez, Orange County FC Defender Cody Shelton, Orange County FC Defender Jakub Waligorski, ASC San Diego Defender Raphael Santana, FC Golden State Midfielder Daniel Crisostomo, Orange County FC Midfielder Enrique Cardenas, FC Golden State Midfielder Shane Shelton, Riverside Coras Midfielder Ignacio Nacho Cancela, FC Arizona Forward Dakota Collins, Orange County FC Forward Dallin Cutler, ASC San Diego

Forward Allisson Faramilio, FC Golden State

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Sports Illustrated senior writer Grant Wahl joins the panel to discuss the differences between Bruce Arena and Jurgen Klinsmann, young Borussia Dortmund and U.S. national team phenom Christian Pulisic, and the cities most likely to have their Major League Soccer bids accepted.

Use the hashtag #SocTakesPod to join the conversation on social media. And make sure to subscribe to Grant’s own excellent Planet Futbol podcast on iTunes, etc.

Thumbnail photo credit: Sports Illustrated

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Photo credit: Mediacom Communications Corp.

As originally reported by ESPN’s Jeff Carlisle, New York Cosmos owner and de facto NASL leader Rocco Commisso had extended his “let’s talk about this” deadline to the USSF until May 31.

On May 30, a letter from USSF secretary Dan Flynn was emailed to Commisso. U.S. Soccer provided Soc Takes with a copy of the letter.

The USSF made its position clear:

• They would not “deviate from the annual sanctioning process.”

What that essentially means is that the federation would not be dissolving the Pro League Standards (PLS) and the NASL would not be provided with the 10-year runway they desired. The NASL asked for said runway to be able to populate its clubs and set them up for success without interference from the USSF.

The letter also addressed other concerns about the $500 million investment:

• “We also do not see this process negatively affecting the proposed capital infusion, at least as it has been publicly described.” The USSF suggested that knowledge of the PLS would allow NASL owners to invest the capital into the league as they deem fit. (Note: This does not address the obvious counterpoint that Rocco only wished to invest the money if the aforementioned requirements were met.)
• Multiple team ownership – The USSF states: “Although the board did not specifically address this aspect of the PLS, if multiple team ownership is intended to be part of the NASL’s plans, at least in the near term, please provide, as part of the application for divisional sanctioning a detailed description of the provisions the NASL is prepared to adopt and implement to protect the integrity of NASL’s competitions.”
  • In essence, the USSF wants more info to vote on whether the NASL will be granted a waiver allowing the league to have multiple owners.
• Pro-rel – The USSF cites the CAS filing and also asks for more specifics regarding the plan, vis-a-vis, would the system include MLS/USL or whether the pro-rel system would involve NASL and other unidentified partners.
• Conflicts of interest – The USSF states that the board and all of its directors are careful to avoid conflicts of interest. The letter also later points out that all directors are in compliance of Bylaw 413, Section 2 and that the members of the Athlete Council are in compliance of the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act.
• Equal representation for all professional leagues – The USSF points out that the board cannot amend this without the introduction and vote of a new bylaw. It encourages the NASL to propose a bylaw proposing restructuring of the board.
• Poaching of clubs by MLS/USL – The USSF argues it cannot intervene in this matter and that the issue is best left to individual professional leagues.
• Bidding process for licensing rights of the USMNT/USWNT – The USSF states the agreement with Soccer United Marketing (SUM) does not expire until 2022.

This morning, Soc Takes spoke to NASL interim commissioner Rishi Sehgal about the communication from the USSF. He said that due to that communication, the $500 million offer has now expired. This was confirmed by a letter released this morning by Commisso. This means the NASL’s future now hinges upon the two lawsuits they have filed against the USSF. In absence of success in those lawsuits — or a potential settlement similar to last November — the NASL’s future remains bleak.

“The whole thing is ridiculously disappointing,” Sehgal said. “What is the harm in allowing us to play? We didn’t ask for money, we just asked for a change of standards that have fostered no stability.”

Sehgal added that U.S. Soccer had communicated that the league would be able to apply for sanctioning under current USSF PLS standards in the future. That application would be reviewed by the Pro League Task Force currently chaired by Chris Ahrens, Lisa Carnoy and Dan Flynn.

As things stand, the NASL is not interested in availing that opportunity, as they believe the review process is not fair and as Sehgal puts it, “… full of conflicts of interest.”

(Update: An earlier version of this article, incorrectly identified Bylaw 413, Section 2)

Follow Nipun on Twitter: @NipunChopra7. 

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