It’s me writing about Fjords and strikers.

"How did Norway come to possess these three immense physical specimens? One explanation is simply that Norway itself is massive and mythic." @kkoczwara.bsky.social on Erling Braut Haaland, Alexander Sørloth, and Jørgen Strand Larsen goldengoal.world/2026/06/22/n...

Good time to read @kkoczwara.bsky.social on giant striker, giant fjords, and Norse gods

It’s me writing about Fjords and strikers.

Wait until they find out about Foxborough and Boston.

Ahead of today's Argentina game, Sergio Levinsky has a great essay on the complex and long-running fight over the future of the country's powerful football association, involving Javier Milei, Mauricio Macri, Chiqui Tapia and, of course, a lot of corruption goldengoal.world/2026/06/22/o...

Oh god, I can't wait to see what Ronaldo does tomorrow on the bench (if Portugal is smart).

Egypt playing like every Sunday league team I’ve played on and spending way too much time yelling at each other and passing the ball into dead ends or trying to take five too many touches.

It’s Father’s Day and that means I’ll leave you with this essay I wrote a few years ago about my son and books. lithub.com/finding-the-...

“There’s a mismatch between soccer as it actually exists throughout the US and the red-meat Americana of Fox’s World Cup coverage, and no one better embodies this incongruence than the network’s resident carrot” Aaron Timms on Alexi Lalas. For @theguardian.com www.theguardian.com/football/202...

The Muppets and Margarita.

The correct answer is The Three Musketeers, but I would pay any price you care to name for a ticket to Muppet Middlemarch

Never forget where we’ve come from. (From The Ball is around by David Goldblatt)

Every Thursday I meet up with the same crew of guys to play soccer and this week some of our kids came. This game is so wonderful. (Warms up before pick up.)

What’s your favorite looking school? In Worcester, for me, it’s Thorndyke.

Tried to take the kids to the park and nope. Not today. Then hit the libraries and nope not today they’re closing early.

this is just crushing a beautiful tribute www.theplayerstribune.com/yan-diomande...

The amount of MLS slander I hear — it’s easy, Messi can take games off — is amazing from people who don’t watch it or understand the league. Watch a few games and let me know how easy it is. The pace of play is so fast and physical.

I think there’s an essay to write about how modern pop owes a lot to Azure Ray.

Ornstein on the call. To the Victor go the Reds.

That Ronaldo isn’t the real Ronaldo still bothers me but not as much as this Ronaldo being a terrible person and not that interesting to watch.

I interviewed Joe Bond about his debut novel Hope House, which is about a group of young men living in a treatment home, something he saw up front and personal growing up with a dad who ran similar homes. open.substack.com/pub/kevinkoc...

In case you still haven't made the jump to Telemundo -- Maxi Rodriguez doing the highlights. Huge upgrade on the performative asshats in English.

Messi may not run often but I appreciate any player who tracks/chases down their mistake like he does.

Hearing British journalists talk about America’s extreme weather and the heat/humidity on podcasts when talking about the World Cup means it’s a good time to remind everyone why MLS is so frenetic and difficult to play in and why it’s not a retirement league. It’s a punishing league.

I interviewed Joe Bond about his debut novel Hope House, which is about a group of young men living in a treatment home, something he saw up front and personal growing up with a dad who ran similar homes. open.substack.com/pub/kevinkoc...

Everyone there is a hydration break I stop watching and forget the game is or was on and need to come back to it many minutes later and two goals scored.

frustration with France playing terrible football in a tournament under Domenech

Honestly, we all knew this was going to happen.

Imagine signing up to go to the Boston Stadium only to find it’s in Foxborough the day of a World Cup game and experiencing the traffic.

Is there more than one world that I am not aware of? I thought we were all on this same rock called Earth and the world.

Today is the day we get to see all the big boys trying to score goals for Norway and I’m excited to see if this can actually happen. By this I mean all the giants on the field at once.

Guardian live blog learning all about Miami and local fandom is a real treat.

That Uruguay decided not to play into Darwin's love of mayhem has made me hate this World Cup.

The fascination with showing us that celebrities also like SPORTS has worn me thin, especially with soccer in America. It's forced validation that isn't needed. Yeah, they get special privileges, can afford those (comped) seats that normal fans can't. We get it.

That’s insane.

Apparently, if you don’t take your opponent seriously , you can throw away World Cup games.

[turning on a world cup match] oh wow, cape verde, i wonder where that is [55 minutes later] if cape verde wins it will be the greatest day of my life

Bought this at a used bookstore and I thought the Costco thing was a sticker. It is not. This is the perfect “wait for an oil change” book because Tobin has the breeziest prose that hold all the weight of a keg of Murphy’s.

Zlatan and Alexi’s politics align more than everyone thought and it’s not the way we wanted.

Seeing Virgil Van Dijk, Ryan Gravenberch and Cody Gakpo play together in a slow, ponderous team that keeps moving the ball sideways in an increasingly futile attempt to break down a low block is giving me terrible flashbacks.

Imagine if the Dallas Mavericks didn’t low ball Brunson.

I love that ESPN brought in Klinsmann to do post-game hits in his t-shirt and sandals.

another secret to the USMNT's success imo is that Mauricio Pochettino is the first big time soccer coach to get on trend with his fits he's got drape

I mean, what Poch has done tactically is really interesting and effort is there but there is no replacement for when you have a dude who can score goals and break defenses.

Capitalism always wins.

Boston Magazine asked me to write about Boston as a soccer city and I’m here to tell you that the city has always been a soccer city no matter what the radio pundits and newspaper editors tell you. www.bostonmagazine.com/arts-enterta...

This magazine is a beautiful thing with so much value and reminds me of what George built at Howler and how much I miss writing for and reading that magazine. This gives me hope. (Also, if you get a digital edition of the magazine be on the lookout for a bonus essay.)

Boston Magazine asked me to write about Boston as a soccer city and I’m here to tell you that the city has always been a soccer city no matter what the radio pundits and newspaper editors tell you. www.bostonmagazine.com/arts-enterta...