Local Grassroots Stories

Send a text The last few years have seem dramatic growth in women's professional sports. The NWSL and the USL Super League are growing and adding more teams.  The lower leagues of women's soccer (USLW, WSPL, UWS, UPSL) are all adding teams.  Will the women's game chart a new path forward and become the model for professional soccer in the U.S.? Or, is it more likely that the women&a...

Send a text After years of internal discussion, the MLS Board of Governors has voted to more closely align their calendar with many of the major European leagues.  While much of the discussion this past week has been laser focused on the pros and cons of this move for MLS proper, this change will undoubtably create a seismic shift in the entire US soccer ecosystem. Tonight, John and Dylan look bey...

Send a text The 2026 FIFA Men's World Cup is approximately 200 days away.  Forty-two teams have qualified.  Six additional berths will be determined in March 2026.  The draw will take place on December 5, 2025 in Washington D.C. Tonight John and Dylan attempt to look beyond the Trump/Infantino headlines and dig deeper into the sporting stories that are taking shape for this edition of the Wor...

Send a text This year marks the 40th anniversary of the 1985 NCAA Men's College Cup final between UCLA and American University that took EIGHT overtime periods to decide the winner.  It is usually referenced as the longest soccer match in college history.  However, that 1985 final was NOT the longest match in college soccer history but rather the longest match in *NCAA* history. The longest m...

Send a text Last week, John presented his Vision 2050 for the USL: four independent regional pyramids—East, Midwest, South, West—linked by a national, Champions League style tournament featuring the top first division teams across each of the independent pyramids . . . and why an independent pyramid approach could better satisfy our soccer needs over a more traditional single national pyramid. Ton...

Send a text Morning Kickaround ( https://www.youtube.com/@MorningKickaround ) asked and we delivered! On Oct. 1, the crew at Morning Kickaround published this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8l14J079nyQ&t=2s .  In it, they pose several "critical questions that USL must answer to successfully implement Pro/Rel in American soccer."  John and Dylan (well, John mostly) decided we...

Send a text Last weekend, was the premier of the brand new D2 Australian Championship (men only). Tonight (as we record our live stream) the USMNT take on AUS in a friendly.  This weekend marks the start of the A-League Men season.  At the end of the month the A-League Women will kick off their season. In many ways, Australia and the U.S are similar.  They each have closed leagues sitting atop the...

Send a text Last week, the NextGen College Soccer Committee in partnership with US Soccer dropped its new white paper: Ensuring College Soccer Thrives in the Modern Era of College Athletics and the Changing U.S. Soccer Landscape.  In it, the committee proposes some radical recommendations for the college calendar and the competitive structure of college soccer in the U.S. Tonight, John and Dylan w...

Send a text At the close of the 2012-2013 winter season, soccer was picking up in San Diego. Games were well attended and three locals teams dominated the adult scene: San Diego Soccer Football Club, the Nomads, and the team from Foster (the Fosters).  The San Diego champions (SDSFC) even took on the LA Champions, LA Rangers (comprised of several former Glasgow Rangers players) in a battle for the...

Send a text In regards to soccer, and specifically in regards to promotion and relegation, Canada is a country in transition.  For most of it's professional sporting existence, many Canadian professional teams have participated (or continue to participate) in American professional sports leagues - which, of course, do not have pro-rel.  However, the last couple of decades have seen a push for...

Send a text A 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup match night in San Diego isn’t a fantasy—it’s a math problem. Tonight, John and Dylan break down exactly how teams qualify for the 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup and why the SDFC matches over the next couple of weeks will define whether or not continental football comes to town.  . . . and, as always, we'll kick off the show with the latest cup, lower le...

Send a text On the heels of the 1998 Men's World Cup, US Soccer launches a bold initiative called Project 2010: an attempt to give the U.S. a realistic shot at winning the 2010 Men's World Cup. An ambitious vision for American soccer that never fully materialized. Tonight, the LGS Pod begins a new series called, "Project 2010." Over the course of this series, John and Dylan wil...

Send a text Last week, in Part 3 of our Pro-Rel Series, John and Dylan looked at how Japan went from ZERO professional football teams in 1990 to (in 2025) a fully functioning 7+ tier football pyramid, tied together by pro-rel. Tonight, the boys continue the discussion from last week and look at what the US might be able to learn from Japan.  Along the way they will look at some of the common count...

Send a text Who says you need 100+ years of culture to build an effective football pyramid that links your local leagues to the top tier professional league?  Don't tell that to Japan. They have managed to go from ZERO professional football teams in 1990 to (in 2025) a fully functioning 7+ tier football pyramid, tied together by pro-rel . . . in just 35 years. Tonight, join John and Dylan for...

Send a text What happens when your *community* is not recognized by FIFA, the IOC, or the UN?  Where do you play your international football? Recently, the Marshall Islands played their first international men's football match.  However, it was not played in the Republic of the Marshall Islands but rather in Springfield, Arkansas - home to about 15K members of the Marshallese diaspora.  But w...

Send a text Tonight, John and Dylan bring you Part 2 of our Pro-Rel series where we focus on the bottom half of the English football pyramid: the National League System.  We'll start in 1959 and highlight key events in the development of the (now) six STEPS of non-league pyramid and eventually wrap up our discussion with the 2024-2025 season. Like with PART 1 of this series, this is our attem...

Send a text As we all know by now, the USL looking to become the first professional soccer league in the USA to implement promotional and relegation.  Over the next few years we imagine their will be much discussion, debate, and disagreement regarding pro/rel and what system would work best for the USL . . . and maybe the USA as a whole. If we (here at the LGS Pod) are going to make an attempt at...

Send a text Tonight, John and Dylan look at world football over the past three decades (post-Bosman), the consolidation of money and power at the top of the global football pyramid (mostly in Europe), and what affect that is having on the teams/countries downstream from the global elite - those in the immediate lower leagues and those at the grassroots level. And, as always, you'll get the la...

Send a text John is flying solo tonight . . . so it's time for another deep dive into soccer history. After musing over the complicated MLS player acquisition rules surrounding the Müller, Vancouver, Cincinnati Discover Rules triangle (travesty?), John goes on a a deep dive into the history of player transfers in world football. And, as always, you'll get the latest cup, lower league, pr...

Send a text Tonight John and Dylan share their thoughts on the new media platform, "Kickback Soccer," and how it could change the soccer media landscape in the U.S. And, as always, you'll get the latest cup, lower league, pro/rel, San Diego, and soccer history news. LGS POD: WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU Use the SEND US A TEXT link at the top of the description to send us any questions,...