Concacaf unveil Guadalajara as host city for 8-team Tokyo 2020 qualifiers
August 22 – Concacaf have announced Guadalajara, Mexico, as the host venue for its men’s U-23 Championship, which will qualify two teams for Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Football Americas
St Louis wins 28th MLS franchise with female-led ownership group
August 21 – St. Louis was officially announced as the newest MLS expansion franchise on Tuesday, in what is the league’s first female majority-owned team.
Concacaf switch Honduran club last 16 games to San Pedro Sula after weekend violence
August 21 – Concacaf has moved swiftly to relocate two Concacaf League round of 16 matches scheduled to be played in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, to the northern city of San Pedro Sula following fan violence at the weekend that saw three at least three people were killed and 10 injured, three critically.
Poisoned pill? Beckham’s Miami stadium plans hit contamination snag
August 21 – The proposed stadium site for David Beckham’s Inter Miami franchise in the MLS has arsenic contamination levels more than twice the legal limit, according to an environmental report.
Honduran rioting leaves three dead, three critical and players needing hospital treatment
August 19 – Three people were killed and 10 injured, three critically, in rioting between fans of bitter rival clubs in the Honduran capital, Tegucigalpa, at the weekend.
ESPN digs deeper into women’s game with global rights for NWSL
August 19 – The US women’s national team may hold the attention and hearts of the nation but their women’s professional league has never enjoyed anything like the same profile. A new deal with ESPN could be a step towards changing that.
US women head for court as wage mediation talks with USSF break down
August 15 – Mediation talks aimed at securing a better pay deal for female players in the United States are over according to the players who say they will now go to court amid an increasingly bitter war of words.
Cats have nine lives, will Jeff Webb get 10?
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.
US Soccer appoint Markgraf as women’s supremo
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.
US women’s pay dispute gets political as federation hires lobbyists
August 8 – US Soccer has enlisted two Washington lobbying firms to argue that the women’s national team is not being underpaid.
USL outlines plans for a new-launch Academy League in the US
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.
Concacaf unveils opening Nations League match-ups. Cuba to face Canada in Cayman
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.
Bedoya calls for action on gun violence in US
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.
Warner acolytes battle for return to control of Trinidad and Tobago FA
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.
Jack is back…in court. But this time he is suing the Trinidad FA for $2.3m
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.