Concacaf nations unveil 40-player rosters for expanded Gold Cup
May 21 – Initial 40-player team rosters have been announced for the 16 nations playing at the Concacaf Gold Cup that kicks off at the Rose Bowl in Los Angeles June 15.
Football Americas
Concacaf to draw groups for restyled U17 Women’s Championship
May 9 – Concacaf have unveiled details of their restructured 2020 Concacaf Women’s Under-17 Championship which will be played over three rounds by 32 nations.
Valvoline becomes 8th official partner of Concacaf Gold Cup
May 7 – Concacaf has added car lubricants brand Valvoline as an official partner of the expanded 2019 Gold Cup.
Monterrey secure 4th Concacaf Champions League title with draw against Tigres
May 3 – Mexican clubs have kept their grip on the Concacaf Champions League trophy for 14th consecutive season with Liga MX side Monterrey taking the title for the fourth time after the 1-1 draw in the second leg of the final against Tigres.
Canada’s CPL kicks off first season with a local look and a passionate commitment
By Paul Nicholson
April 29 – The world’s newest tier 1 national league kicked off at the weekend with the Canadian Premier League (CPL) officially opening its inaugural season in Hamilton with a 1-1 draw between Forge FC and York 9 FC.
Relevent sues USSF over refusal to allow Ecuadorian league game in Miami
April 24 – Relevent Sports, the company behind the ultimately doomed ground-breaking plan to take a La Liga fixture to the United States, has issued a lawsuit against the US Soccer Federation for refusing to sanction a similar game from Ecuador’s league from taking place in Florida.
MLS to go to 30 teams with Sacramento and St Louis on pole to make the £200m buy-in
By Paul Nicholson
April 23 – Major League Soccer (MLS) has announced it will now expand to 30 teams rather than sticking at 28 as had previously been the plan. It also announced that the franchise fee for teams 28 and 29 will now be $200 million.
Concacaf sets stage for expanded Gold Cup action
By Paul Nicholson in Los Angeles
April 11 – The tag line is ‘This is Ours’ and yesterday in Los Angeles the full detail of how the expanded Concacaf Gold Cup is being shared across the US and for the first time into Jamaica and Costa Rica was unveiled.
Sacramento’s MLS bid boosted by city’s financial buy-in
April 9 – It is almost make or break for Sacramento and its longstanding Major League Soccer aspirations this month, but the California club has received a timely boost from the city, with local government proposing a financial package to support the team.
Beckham’s Inter Miami faces law suit from Inter Milan over use of name
April 4 – David Beckham’s dream of building an MLS franchise have hit a legal snag over trademark rights with reports from Italy that Inter Milan are planning to sue MLS over the name of Beckham’s proposed club – Inter Miami CF.
LUNA Bar brand steps in to pay US women’s team bonus to match men ‘s pay
By Samindra Kunti
April 3 – On Equal Pay day in the United States, the national women’s team received a financial boost through a pledge from LUNA Bar to pay each member of the World Cup squad a bonus to equal that of their male counterparts.
Jamaica to host Group openers as expanded Gold Cup spreads its wings
April 3 – Concacaf have officially announced Jamaica as one of the host venues for the 2019 Gold Cup this summer with the National Stadium in Kingston to host a double-header on June 17 that will include the Jamaican national team.
Mexico to host Concacaf Beach Soccer Championship; winners set for Paraguay World Cup
April 1 – Puerto Vallerta in Mexico will be the venue for the Concacaf Beach Soccer Championship, scheduled to take place May 13-19.
Montagliani returned for new term as Concacaf finds its happy place
By Paul Nicholson in Las Vegas
March 29 – Canadian Victor Montagliani has won a second term as president of the North and Central American and Caribbean confederation Concacaf. The congress in Las Vegas, US, also saw Sonia Fulford given another four-year term as Concacaf’s women’s rep on the FIFA Council.
US boss Cordeiro says door to Conmebol for 2020 is still open but sales windows are closing fast
By Paul Nicholson in Las Vegas
March 29 – US Soccer president Carlos Cordeiro says the invitation to Conmebol’s 10 federations to play in the US in a 16-team tournament in 2020 is still open, despite Conmebol saying it will host the 2020 edition of the Copa America in Argentina and Colombia.