Scuffed | USMNT, World Cup, Yanks Abroad, futbol in America

We get a satisfying brace from Diego Luna, and then we turtle up. Greg and Belz talk it through. Greg mostly blames the midfield for not getting control of the game after the opening 15 minutes. Full timeline. On to Mexico in Houston on Sunday. Clip notes for patrons coming later tonight. Send us a voicemail: www.speakpipe.com/ScuffedPodcast Skip the ads! Subscribe to Scuffed on Patreon and get al...

Greg and Belz talk through the win in penalties last night in Minneapolis. Lots on the new look with both fullbacks high, Tillman, Arfsten, how Richards' protagonism helped create chances, a little cackling about Jesse Marsch's fate at the GC, and much more. Clip notes coming soon for patrons at $5 and higher level: patreon.com/scuffed Send us a voicemail: www.speakpipe.com/ScuffedPodcast Skip the...

Greg and Belz talk through ALL the details on the 2-1 win over Haiti. Malik and Chris continue to be a cut above. Big Pat is a phenomenon, in both negative and positive ways. Everybody else is pretty much failing to distinguish himself. Clip Notes for $5 patrons: https://www.patreon.com/posts/132197415?pr=true Send us a voicemail: www.speakpipe.com/ScuffedPodcast Skip the ads! Subscribe to Scuffed...

Vince and Belz react to and recap the 1-0 win over Saudi Arabia basically immediately after the final whistle. Richards comes up big. Tillman keeps building his NT chops. Most everybody else had a forgettable night and the Saudi opponents treated Arfsten like Shaq at the top of the key. Send us a voicemail: www.speakpipe.com/ScuffedPodcast Skip the ads! Subscribe to Scuffed on Patreon and get all...

Charles Boehm helps us once again, joining Belz and Vince to recap the 5-0 win over the Soca Warriors. We do a full timeline and several takeaways, bearing in mind the opponent "wasn't at the races," as Dwight Yorke put it post-match. Malik getting blooded as a goal-scorer and foul-sufferer in Concacaf was big. Poch still has a lot to prove. Freese does himself favors. Etc. etc. Send us a voicemai...

Not great! But Greg is typically even-keeled and there's plenty to talk through. Send us a voicemail: www.speakpipe.com/ScuffedPodcast Skip the ads! Subscribe to Scuffed on Patreon and get all episodes ad-free, plus bonus episodes. Patrons at $5 a month or more also get access to Clip Notes, a video of key moments on the field we discuss on the show: https://www.patreon.com/scuffed Check out our s...

The USMNT and Nashville SC centerback joins Belz and Sanjay Sujanthakumar to discuss how he practices attacking set pieces, aerial prowess in general, the differences in how centerbacks are instructed to operate under Poch compared to Berhalter, his mindset coming off the bench against Iran in 2022, that goal-line clearance, that penalty against Wales, his Christian faith, and much more. Skip the...

Belz and Vince walk through the timeline and some takeaways from a loss in Hartford, but easily the best loss of the past three, and there are some positive things to take away from it. Sanjay and I are going to interview Walker Zimmerman tomorrow. I will put a form in the shownotes, at which you can submit a question if you like. We will try to ask as many as we can: https://docs.google.com/forms...

Greg joins Belz to talk about who they're excited to see play over the next month, why Josh Sargent was left off, and respond to several listener questions as the USMNT embarks on the Gold Cup and the final 12 months before World Cup 2026. As usual, Greg zigs while most everyone else zags. He's not panicking. send us a voicemail we can play and respond to on the show: www.speakpipe.com/ScuffedPodc...

Schaerlaeckens, who writes for the Guardian and will soon publish a book titled "The Long Game" on the modern USMNT, joins Watke and Belz. We talk about what's happening with the USMNT these days, his access to Berhalter while he was working on his book, the ways the current generation is different from previous national team generations, and much, much more. Really good, lively conversation. Ther...

Jack, one of the hosts of the Five Year Plan, a Crystal Palace podcast, joins Belz and Vince for to talk about Crystal Palace winning its first-ever major trophy, with Chris Richards as one of its best players on the day. It's a celebration pod! FYP podcast on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fyp-podcast/id373306875 On Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5QGuFDpOw2fUBrnAhcTZKt Skip...

A bunch of our best players will be missing, and Sean Zawadzki will be there. We talk through the call-ups, the omissions, and what the hell is going on. Watke has some positive interpretations. See you in Nashville! Skip the ads! Subscribe to Scuffed on Patreon and get all episodes ad-free, plus bonus episodes. Patrons at $5 a month or more also get access to Clip Notes, a video of key moments on...

Vince, Watke and Belz reconvene after the trip to Rome. Lots of celebrations from the weekend to recap, plus we talk about Rome and the football we saw there a bit, Milan's struggles, and the USMNT roster coming out tomorrow. Skip the ads! Subscribe to Scuffed on Patreon and get all episodes ad-free, plus bonus episodes. Patrons at $5 a month or more also get access to Clip Notes, a video of key m...

Belz and Vince (and Goerge Quraishi) record their second episode from Rome, the morning after Bologna's 1-0 win over Milan in the Coppa Italia final, which we miraculously were able to attend. Quraishi, the founder of Howler magazine and the guy helping us navigate Rome, joins in. Pulisic had a night to forget, but we did not. Skip the ads! Subscribe to Scuffed on Patreon and get all episodes ad-f...

Coming to you from a 4th-floor apartment next to the Tiber River, Belz and Vince talk through their takeaways from the Stadio Olimpico on Saturday -- the intensity of the match, the scene outside, Wes's assist, a theory of what supporters groups are doing when they chant, what it's like in Rome right now, and much more. We take a handful of questions from some of the fine people traveling with us,...

Polis was at the scene for Paul Caligiuri's shot heard round the world, he was also (for Umbro) the English language press liaison for the Brazilian national team (Romario, Bebeto, Dunga) in 1994. Polis joined Belz for a 75 minute conversation. He was prepared and he has a good memory and he brings a lot to the table, including a more relaxed perspective about the USMNT heading toward next summer...

Charlie Boehm joins Vince and Belz to talk through the weekend action, he lends his MLS expertise to the discussion. Balogun starts and scores for the first time since October. Good game from him. Dike's back on the scoresheet too. Wrexham is headed to the Champo, Leeds is headed out of the Champo and Brendo is looking for a home. Vince and Belz are headed to Rome on Friday. Send us a voicemail ww...

The guy behind Sounder at Heart and SB Nation's soccer coverage is running an independent shop in Seattle now. He joins to talk about that, about the real Brian Schmetzer, how pro/rel might play out in the Pacific Northwest, his grandmother's high school career in South Dakota, and much more. Send us a voicemail: www.speakpipe.com/ScuffedPodcast Skip the ads! Subscribe to Scuffed on Patreon and ge...

We start off with MLS because it feels more interesting right now. But also Pulisic makes scoring look easy vs Venezia, Malik’s teammate says “one man’s death is another man’s bread” after he’s late to something and has to sit, Tyler gets away with an orange-ish challenge, and much more. Send us a voicemail www.speakpipe.com/ScuffedPodcast Skip the ads! Subscribe to Scuffed on Patreon and get all...

Wiebe's a feature and sideline reporter for Major League Soccer, talks about learning the art of sideline reporting which is fascinating. Also discusses Extra Time Radio, the show that got inexplicably binned by the league earlier this year. Good young MLS players, the Sullivan bros, meeting Luca de la Torre's parents, buying boots with Brandon Vazquez and going to a rodeo with Jack McGlynn. Plus...

Vince, Watke and Belz work their way through the news of the weekend. Red cards for Chris, Mark and Diego. Big win for Utrecht and a goal for Paxten. Leeds wins promotion. Lots more. Send us a voicemail: www.speakpipe.com/ScuffedPodcast Skip the ads! Subscribe to Scuffed on Patreon and get all episodes ad-free, plus bonus episodes. Patrons at $5 a month or more also get access to Clip Notes, a vid...

El Paso-based Dan Vaughn, the founder of Protagonist Soccer and one of the most knowledgeable people in the country when it comes to lower-league American soccer, joins Watke and Belz for a wide-ranging conversation that often circles back to the CFC-Red Wolves rivalry, geography, and Ricardo Pepi. Relevant links... Protagonist Soccer: https://www.patreon.com/protagonistsoccer Protagonist podcasts...

Larsen, a former NASL Sounders ballboy and co-chair of the Congressional Soccer Caucus, sat down to talk about border challenges, drone defenses, getting visas and some of the other work that's ongoing in preparation for World Cup 2026. Vince and Belz and George Quraishi are definitely taking a group to Rome from May 10-18, here's some detail, including a rough itinerary: https://earthlydelights.n...

Ley ran the PA system for the Cosmos in the late 1970s, was one of the earliest anchors for Sportscenter, hosted several World Cups on television and has been one of American soccer's great advocates. He sat down with Belz and talked about what he tells college kids about the future of sports journalism, the state of the USMNT, the potential impact of the 2026 World Cup, what pro/rel might mean fo...

Vince and Belz wrestle with the implications of that last window, weigh whether USL's pro/rel gambit will move the needle, recap the weekend action and answer voicemails from listeners in Forth Worth and Chicago. Here's where you can send us a voice message for future episodes: https://www.speakpipe.com/ScuffedPodcast Vince and Belz and George Quraishi are definitely taking a group to Rome from Ma...