Beyond the 90 Podcast

Another week of USL Championship action is in the book and we deconstruct it all. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit beyondthe90.substack.com/subscribe

On the late week edition of The Third Half: I’m sure some have been waiting for one but after Tuesday and Wednesday I let loose on the USL and USL Championship and how poor they were in the US Open Cup Round of 32. USL Dallas has a name. We take a look at the announcements made at their unveiling. USL’s League Discipline Committee came out with upgrades to red cards and suspensions from last week’...

While there were two snoozers on this second day, we had moments where the USL Championship sides did threaten MLS teams, including the last third division team in AV Alta FC of USL League One. El Paso had a lead, but sadly lost it late in the back end of the second half to Austin FC. Only the Pittsburgh Riverhounds are the sole surviving lower division side advancing to the next round. But once a...

While there were no cupsets on the first day of the fourth round of the 2025 US Open Cup, three of the five matches nearly had some, as the first two matches were pushed into Extra Time. One barely edged the other in the Tennessee Derby, the visitors dominated the home side in the Rocky Mountains and in the final one of the night a penalty thwarted the last MLS Next Pro side in the Pacific Northwe...

On the early week edition of The Third Half: Mark Briggs was announced Head Coach for Birmingham Legion. We talk about the hire and the draw in St. Pete with the Tampa Bay Rowdies. Rhode Island finally has their first home game at Tidewater Landing, at least the opening ceremonies were good? El Paso Locomotive and North Carolina run their opposition off the pitch. Sunday was not a good day for the...

The video gives details about a prospective project that we’ve been floating to a number of people in the game. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit beyondthe90.substack.com/subscribe

Chalk this one up to constantly learning things and seeing new things happen when actions are taken. We’ve theorized for years about how promotion and relegation would help the game in the United States, but one piece that I never thought about was the potential consolidation of independent youth clubs, and strong standalone academy structures to professional clubs in their area to create a direct...

Beyond the 90 is a reader supported publication where the majority of our community members have significant involvement in the domestic game here in the United States. We never had problems until the last few weeks in our comment section and unfortunately I’ve had to take action as a result. I’m very sorry I dropped the ball on this- I should be monitoring the comments more carefully I admit. Ple...

Going from supporter to writer. Some tips from personal experiences and some of the mistakes I’ve made in the past. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit beyondthe90.substack.com/subscribe

The situation is fluid, but there are some conclusions that can be drawn from what has transpired in the last few months. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit beyondthe90.substack.com/subscribe

On this late week edition of The Third Half: We take a look at the Gainbridge announcement and I give my thoughts on this massive news for the USL. Buffalo has announced a stadium site for their home ground. Lets take a look at the pluses and minuses. Louisville City and Lexington have announced partnerships. What do they mean? Louisville City and Lexington also announced what they will be playing...

How should the USL professional ecosystem be structured with PRO/REL? Some ideas here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit beyondthe90.substack.com/subscribe

President Trump is unlikely to have a huge impact on whether people travel to World Cup 2026 or not as many of the concerns I have heard about coming to the United States predated his election, but the immigration and tariff situations as well as the uncertainties created by Trump’s policy meandering about are already negatively impacting the sport in this country. One potential positive is that a...

Sorry for the delay this week - life happens. But we got around to recording on Monday afternoon and covered all the Loudoun United situation news and analysis as well as digging into the weekend’s USL Championship action. The Third Half Podcast is available via the Beyond the 90 stream on Apple Podcasts , Spotif y and wherever you get podcasts This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss th...

While, the financial arguments do deserve more critiques (next video in this series) the player development benefit around promotion and relegation are painfully obvious. But for those still unconvinced we dive into it here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit beyondthe90.substack.com/subscribe

When we launched Beyond the 90’, we made a commitment to avoid political discussions as political polarization is tearing apart much of the citizenry in western democracies. Football/Soccer should be release from this. But times unfortunately require us to pivot and the subscriber mailbag is filled with questions which relate to politics and public policy- questions which I hear being talked about...

This is the Day Two review of the third round in the 2025 US Open Cup. We had plenty of thrills, chills, and excitement galore as we had six of the eight matches head into extra time, and four of them finished in a penalty kick shootout. While the majority of the club had USL Championship sides from the second division advancing, the Chattanooga Red Wolves gave us another cupset by knocking off th...

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit beyondthe90.substack.com/subscribe

Billy Corben whose production credits include Cocaine Cowboys, Dawg Fight, The U, and The U Part 2 needs no introduction to most of you. For those who don’t know, he’s a relentless advocate for government efficiency in southeast Florida and regularly discusses these topics on the Dan LeBetard Show. Today he joins us to discuss the soccer stadium hustle in southeast Florida and why Inter Miami CF w...

Robbie Nelson Sacking Does No Good, Does in Birmingham, Entertaining Monterey Bay/Colorado Springs Match, Charleston Righting Ship and More. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit beyondthe90.substack.com/subscribe

On this Friday Edition of The Third Half: We look in depth at the departure of Tom Soehn at Birmingham Legion FC. Detroit City announces friendly with Santos Laguna. welcome Santos Laguna for friendly (June 25th) The Tampa Bay Rowdies bring in familiar face Yann Ekra as assistant coach. Rhode Island FC announces The stadium at Tidewater Landing officially has a name. We also look at the recent sig...

In this video, I will be discussing the Quarterfinals of the 2025 CONCACAF Champions Cup. Inter Miami defeated LAFC, Tigres defeated LA Galaxy, Cruz Azul defeating club America & the surprise win on away goals by the Vancouver Whitecaps at Pumas This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit beyondthe90.substack.com/subscribe

Our new series. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit beyondthe90.substack.com/subscribe

Beyond The 90' is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit beyondthe90.substack.com/subscribe

Michael Hitchcock needs no introduction to the vast majority of our readers and listeners. Widely acknowledged as one of the sharpest business minds in the game in this country, Hitchcock’s career in the game spans back to the early days of MLS. After serving as President of FC Dallas for many years, Hitchcock launched Playbook Management International in the late 2000’s and was instrumental in th...