NEW FIFA plan to prohibit the pre-revolutionary Iran flag - often used as a statement of identity and protest by Iranian diaspora against the theocratic Iranian regime - in their venues at World Cup this summer. Free to read www.nytimes.com/athletic/728...

Good art starts a dialogue.

Gotham and the Spirit head to Pachuca on Wednesday in hopes of setting up a 2nd straight all-NWSL CONCACAF Final. I took a look at Gotham's recent run and ranted more than I expected about the Chicago Stars, among other NWSL musings, in today's newsletter. www.talkinsoccer.com/gotham-dream...

Angels Appearing before the Shepherds, by Henry Ossawa Tanner, 1910

It was great talking NBA with everyone here on Bluesky, The Sports App.

"What if our best athletes played soccer?"

Space Jam, 1996. (Colorized.)

Sending wellness checks to the Spurs and Thunder fans in my life

BA BA BA BA BA BASKETBALL

If the Alton Giant was actually Steph Curry.

He's actually an alien. Oh my god.

Simon Becher fan ties the game.

Wemby blocked?!

How does OKC convince everyone to wear the shirts?

Clean hit.

The basketball AND the hockey tonight

Tage had to get that shot off…

Game 7 overtime:

Houston, Bay, Louisville, and Chicago have been the 4 genuinely bad teams since the international break. Funny/Sad: The stars have a -4 xGD even compared to Louisville's -4.33 xGD over the last 5 matches. They've created more in the attack, but it's opened them up to even more dangerous attacks.

Snapdragon before they rebuilt the drainage system

Gotham have improved post-break, but IMO this speaks more to a weak schedule. Gotham's opponents in the time span, their per-game xGD, & where that ranks league-wide: Bay FC (-0.78, 15th) Chicago (-1.51, 16th) Louisville (-0.44, 14th) Boston (-0.17, 12th) Seattle (-0.12, 10th)

We are (mostly) 10 matches into the NWSL season broken in half by the way too long April international window, but looking at how teams have performed post-window could give us a look into what to expect following the summer break. And I bad news for everyone. Gotham FC.

Futi is now just WEEKS away from launching for the World Cup, which is exciting and terrifying. If you want to be one of the first people to get the app join our waitlist here

San Diego Wave coach Jonas Eidevall said there are no updates or details to share right now on a timeline for a potential debut for Catarina Macario, who signed in March. Macario has been listed as out with a heel injury since arriving in San Diego. #NWSL #USWNT

Huge!

Can’t wait to see the FCC complaints about this game

Luckily, Ermedin Demirović has 3 goals in the last 4, as Stuttgart look to secure Champions League qualification, and Edin Džeko refuses to age. Still, not ideal.

Where is VARsenal?

Immediately starting the Pep to Miami rumor.

@ Tim Weah, we’re counting on you.

Adeniran is on one of those runs again. 5 goals over LASK’s final 4 games. 20 goal contributions for the big man across all comps (14g, 6a), getting back to the promise he showed during the 2023 season.

MLS US u22 Players with the most 8+ Fotmob matches through week 14 7 matches: Gozo 6: 5: 4: Mehmeti 3: Hall, Tsakiris, Habroune, Ferree 2: 1: Hezarkhani, Hopkins, Ellis, Norris, Westfield, Orozco, Vazquez, Bombino, Soma Gozo having half of his matches with an 8+ rating is crazy.

“Well I’m not watching the Premier League.” - Timo Baumgartl, pushing the Bundesliga agenda

Some US Open Cup prep ASMR for your Monday afternoon

The whole bit about Borrell not understanding GAM was funny for a while until he repeated it every off-season. At that point, it stops becoming a bit and it starts becoming “Do you even understand the rules of the league your team you run is in?”

Of import to #allforcity ahead of Saturday’s 1st half finale.

Most soccer stats are focused on results, but at @futi.live we've been developing new ways to measure tactical context, like phases of play and team style metrics. For The Guardian, I showed off some of our Premier League data for the first time with one way every team's tactics stand out.

St. Louis drew DC United in the club's final away match before the break. On paper, it's a good result behind a rotated squad, but in reality, it's a big missed opportunity. On the match, Fallou, Roman Bürki's uptick, and Tuesday's Quarterfinal. #allforcity www.talkinsoccer.com/st-louis-cit...

The Sunday night column is up! Rydström out in Columbus, attrition crushing Colorado & more | Matchday 14 tacticsfreezone.ghost.io/rydstrom-out...

If Madrid actually cared about revenues then they’d livestream Mourinho’s first meeting with Mbappé.

James Pantemis has prevented around 5 goals over the last 4 games. Timbers have rewarded him with just 1 win and 1 draw over those 4 matches. Great news for Canada though.

What could possibly be more important than who won the Liga MX Femenil trophy?

That’s now 6 wins and 2 draws for Utah since Manaka and Miura returned from the Asian Cup.

NWSL announced attendance Portland 20,652 Denver 16,974 (sellout) San Diego 12,810 Bay FC 12,533 Kansas City 11,500 (sellout) North Carolina 10,023 Utah 6,514 Seattle 6,046

What are we calling Denver-Utah?

Kayla Fisher breaks Utah’s shutout streak *ducks*

What a scene at the CU! It's on Pumas to match the energy of their fans and earn a place in the final. #LigaMX

For all the conversation about his salary, as of late Bürki has been playing very well. Four consecutive performances with positive PSxG numbers. Per @hornekerjustin.bsky.social, he has been the 3rd best shot stopper in MLS since 4/29.

The warmest welcome back to Providence Park for Hina Sugita 🥹🌹