By Paul Nicholson
March 22 – The US is set to become the land of Europe’s giant clubs at the end of July in a pre-season football extravaganza that conceivably could feature at least three of Europe’s Big 5 league champions.
March 21 – Iraq wants United States-born striker Justin Meram to rethink his decision not to join up with the squad for their upcoming World Cup qualifier against Saudi Arabia.
March 14 – Two South American players with top Mexican clubs have been banned for a year by the country’s FA following a review of lesser punishments which sparked a referees strike.
March 13 – The 2017 International Champions Cup (ICC), the ad hoc tournament organised by US sports agency Relevant Sports (RSE), will have as its showpiece match an El Clasico match-up between Barcelona and Real Madrid in the newly renovated Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.
By Paul Nicholson
March 8 – The growth and interest in Major League Soccer in the US continued to hit new highs with record viewing numbers. and big crowds for the opening weekend of the season. This week the league renewed official airline sponsor Etihad Airways.
March 7 – The former president of El Salvador’s football federation (FESFUT), who is wanted in the United States for alleged corruption, has been sentenced to eight years in jail for labour fraud.
By Paul Nicholson
March 3 – CONCACAF has publicly taken the gloves off in its fight to take control of the Caribbean, announcing it will open its own office in Jamaica later this month. The move will effectively see the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) removed from all competition organisation of qualifying events for CONCACAF championships.
March 3 – A women’s team representing Tibet are upset and angry at having been denied visas to take part in a tournament in Texas. Most of the players were Tibetan refugees living in India and had applied at the US embassy in Delhi.
February 10 – MLS side New York City FC (NYFC) and USL club San Antonio FC have announced a partnership from the 2017 season that will make each club the other’s affiliate. The partnership will cover both playing and commercial departments.
February 8 – Howard Webb, one of the world’s most recognisable and respected referees who has recently been working as a television pundit, has been hired by the body overseeing officiating in MLS to manage the introduction of video assistant referees (VARs).
By Paul Nicholson
February 6 – The row between stakeholders in the US Virgin Islands that triggered a visit from a FIFA and CONCACAF delegation has calmed but the storm may not be over.
February 3 – Media group A+E Networks has bought a stake in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) in the US which will see its women’s entertainment brand Lifetime become a sponsor of the league in a three-year deal beginning in April. A+E will will also launch a joint venture company – NWSL Media – to market commercial rights.
By Paul Nicholson
February 1 – Hillaren Frederick, president of the U.S. Virgin Islands Soccer Federation, has hit back at the four members of his executive committee who tried to suspend him and two other exco members, saying that the allegations of financial negligence are untrue and that it is “merely an attempted coup”.
February 1 – Major League Soccer has announced that 12 new ownership groups submitted official applications by Tuesday’s deadline to land one of the four franchises that will see North America’s elite league expand to 28 clubs.
By Paul Nicholson
January 31 – U.S. Virgin Islands FA president Hillaren Frederick is fighting for survival as head of his federation after rejecting a suspension by his own executive committee, saying that they did not have the authority to suspend him. A delegation from FIFA and CONCACAF is expected in the islands this week to investigate the situation.