By Paul Nicholson
August 14 – When Jeff Webb was president of Concacaf he was always a pretty cool cat – approachable, friendly, always reasonable, nice guy to be around and pretty generous with it. Since his US Justice Department indictment in 2015 on corruption chrages he has needed all of a cat’s nine lives to stave off sentencing.
August 13 – Kate Markgraf has been appointed general manager of the US women’s team and will immediately lead the search for a new head coach following Jill Ellis’ announcement last month that she is stepping down following the country’s World Cup victory last month.
August 8 – US Soccer has enlisted two Washington lobbying firms to argue that the women’s national team is not being underpaid.
August 7 – The United Soccer League (USL) which runs the second and a third tier league in the US, has announced plans for a USL Academy League and the criteria for its clubs to enter.
August 6 – Concacaf have released the schedule and venues for the first round group stage matches in the 2019-2020 Concacaf Nations League that will see 34 matches for Leagues A, B and C played in the September 2019 international window.
August 5 – Philadelphia Union captain and US international Alejandro Bedoya has called on US Congress to “end gun violence” after 29 people were killed in two mass shootings in Texas and Ohio over the weekend.
By Paul Nicholson
August 2 – The former president of the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA), Tim Kee, who left the federation with a crippling TT$40 million debt when he vacated the presidency in 2015, is making a bid to regain control as part of a group calling itself ‘United TTFA’ when elections take place later this year.
August 1 – He has become the most notorious ‘villain’ still at large in world football – if the US indictments of 2015 are to be taken a face value – Jack Warner has returned to the Trinidad and Tobago courts. This time he is not fighting his extradition to the US – still on-going – but battling the local FA for $2.3 million of loans he claims he provided but hasn’t been repaid.
July 30 – The festering row between the US women’s squad and the United States Soccer Federation over equal pay has intensified after the team ridiculed suggestions that they earn more than the men’s national side.
July 29 – Nine members of the Guatemalan under-15 team have been denied travel visas to the United States to play in a Concacaf competition according to reports.
July 19 – Concacaf has released a new set of numbers from the recently completed 2019 Gold Cup that show a host of tournament records being set from attendances to viewing figures.
July 19 – As the new League Cup to feature four MLS and four Liga MX teams gets ready to kick off next week, the two leading leagues in North America have announced that next season the fledgling competition will be expanded to 16 teams.
By Paul Nicholson
July 17 – Hilleran Frederick has won a third term as president of the US Virgin Islands Soccer Association (USVISA) following elections held in St. Croix. The congress also elected a new executive committee. The elections signify a new period of calm after storms that ravaged the islands and their football community.
July 15 – Major League Soccer and Liga MX will host the final of the inaugural Leagues Cup, the new continental club competition featuring eight teams from North America’s two biggest leagues, in Las Vegas.
July 15 – Cedella Marley, the driving force behind the funding of the Jamaican Reggae Girlz and their journey to the France 2019 World Cup, has said she is prepared to continue with the financing of the girls for the PanAm Games.