MLS All-Star Game: More Exciting Ideas Than Chelsea

I will start this off by saying this is not an anti-Chelsea article, but rather an article about what would be more exciting than another English Team. If you look at the past All-Star games, they have had a decidedly English flavor to them. While the EPL is arguable the most popular league in America, it's time for something different, something that will add a little more flavor to the game.American soccer fans deserve a little diversity in their All-Star game.Begin Slideshow

Star Players on the Way to MLS

It's not only on silly season in Europe, but also in the United States in MLS. A lot of rumors will be flying around about the coming and goings of players in and out of the league. It's important during this time to separate the fiction (Samuel Eto'o—come on, he is on like €385,000 a week) from the not so fiction (you're going to have to keep on reading to find those out).While a lot of the rumors will not come to pass, some will, so follow your favorite teams' transactions close as one of these players could be coming to a club near you.Begin Slideshow

Philadelphia Union 2011: End of Season Awards

With the disappointment of the postseason still lingering, it is easy to forget just how much of an improvement this season was for the Philadelphia Union. The team made a 16-point increase and moved up in the East standings from 7th to 3rd in the matter of just one season.The offense and defense both improved, increasing the team's goal differential from minus-14 to plus-8. Also, the Union were able to make PPL Park a fortress, conceding just one loss at home. Only the L.A. Galaxy, who were not defeated at the Home Depot Center, had fewer home losses.The players really stepped it up this year, and these particular players were the best of the best.Begin Slideshow

MLS Playoffs: Sizing Up the Eastern Conference Contenders

It's that time of the year again—the business end of the season. One week left and teams are scrambling to find their way into the postseason. It will be an exciting end to the season as there are are seven teams in the East still alive in the playoff hunt.So without further ado, here are the Eastern Conference contenders listed from bottom to top. All numbers are courtesy of playoffstatus.com.Begin Slideshow

David Beckham: Why Leaving the Galaxy Is Good for the MLS

From London to Paris to Leicester? With David Beckham's contract set to run out at the end of the year there have been many suitors lining for his signature. While there is no doubt that Beckham has done great things to advance the league and soccer in America as a whole, what is best for the league is for Becks to move back to Europe. While there are many reasons for this, two big ones stand out and that is the development of the league, and the image of the league. When Becks first arrived on the scene, the league was desperate to bring in star power to gain attention and a better reputation. While that worked for a while, the number of older players joining the league garnered a somewhat negative reputation—that of a retirement home; a place where European players can gracefully live out the rest of their career still on high wages, and without the embarrassment of being out of place in a top league. For the league to continue to develop, it must shed its image as a retirement home and work towards being a viable option for international players to grow and develop in. If Becks leaves the league, the figurehead ...

Philadelphia Union 2011: 5 Bold Predictions for the Rest of the Season

A tale of two seasons would be the best way to explain the current Union season. They have gone from battling the New York Redbulls for first in the East to battling in third. The wins have dried up with the leaving of Ruiz, but there is still cause for optimism. They have enough talent to get back to the top of the East. Here are 5 Bold predictions for the rest of the season.Begin Slideshow

Philadelphia Union 2011: 4 Players with Potential To Play Internationally

The goal of any professional soccer player is to one day suit up for their national team. Whether it be for a youth team, B team or the senior team, playing for your country is an honor and privilege. On the Philadelphia Union there are four players who, with some hard work and determination, will one day be on the pitch for their respective nation.  Begin Slideshow

Get out of the Way Here Comes the MLS

The Big Four—and no we are not talking about the impending college football super conferences.It's the traditional and socially accepted number of major sports in America today, MLB, NFL, NHL and NBA. Is it time for a fifth? Can America handle MLS?Before the anti-soccer crowd starts to yell and complain about how it's not American, it’s not a suggestion that we adopt it as our country’s sport, start roaming soccer gangs or slowly work back to being an English colony. I am saying it's time to accept it as a legitimate sport rather than an outsider biting at the ankles of true American sports. MLS is on its 15th-plus year and still going strong. The league is ever-expanding, adding two new teams this season and planning to add a 20th team in the near future. Our national team is growing towards international respectability and more and more of the MLS players are on top European radars. If there was ever a time to jump on the soccer bandwagon, it is now. The MLS is shedding its image of retirement center ages and starting to evolve into a place that is viable for young promising stars from around the world (as ...