USA Soccercast

The United States Men’s National Team are about to embark on a big week of World Cup qualifying, and we preview the upcoming matches against Mexico and Jamaica on Episode 65 of the SSFC Podcast. The USMNT enter this window in 2nd place in the Octagon, with their biggest home match looming on Friday against Mexico in Cincinnati. They then travel to take on Jamaica in Kingston next Tuesday.

We begin by previewing the latest edition in the USA-Mexico rivalry. We review the USMNT roster and discuss some of the players that could be called upon for this match. It’s a big time matchup, and it may mean that experience will win out in lineup determinations for head coach Gregg Berhalter.

After the break, we get into the Jamaica match, including fans being allowed to be in The Office on Tuesday night for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic. Jamaica finally has their full squad in camp, so this will be a different team than the one the USMNT faced in Austin last month. We discuss that matchup and the necessity for the team to bring the intensity to both matches.

Don’t forget to subscribe wherever you find your podcasts! We will be back after the close of the window to recap it all and see where the USMNT stands in the Octagon through 8 matches.

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With a nice break between international windows, this week was a great week to dip into the mailbag. So, we answer some of your USMNT questions on Episode 64!

With all of the questions centered around the U.S. Men’s National Team, we focus on that as we prepare for a huge World Cup qualifying window, at home against Mexico and away to Jamaica. Some of the questions target some of the questions we have at the striker position, whether we have a clogged midfield, and who the best centerback pairing should be. We also opine as to which players will not be able to travel with the squad to Jamaica due to Covid restrictions that have forced the match to be played behind closed doors. We end with a question about the best food city that the USMNT or USWNT have traveled to so far in 2021.

If you have questions or topic suggestions for future shows, send them to SSFC Podcast at Gmail dot com. We’re taking the week off next week, but a full preview of the World Cup qualifiers will come the week after that. Enjoy!

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The SSFC Podcast is back after the lengthy trip during the World Cup qualifying window with Episode 63! First up, the United States Men’s National Team are still in 2nd place in the Octagonal standings after 2 home wins and a road loss during the October international window. We quickly recap the three matches - wins against Jamaica and Costa Rica and a loss against Panama - and highlight two things that the USMNT went through that could be important the rest of the way.

After the break, we briefly discuss FIFA’s insane plan to convert the World Cup to every 2 years. Why does FIFA insist on doing this? Why are they watering down the competition. We have a mini rant on how wild this plan is and how it would hurt the prestige of the world’s most popular tournament.

The next episode will be a mailbag episode, so submit questions via Twitter using the hashtag #SSFCPodcast. You can also email questions to SSFC Podcast at Gmail dot com.

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The USMNT roster is here for World Cup qualifying, and it’s time to react to it on Episode 62. The roster was released this morning, and we go through it to highlight who Gregg Berhalter called in and who was not included.

There were several players who were included on this roster that did not make it in the September window: Paul Arriola, Tim Weah, Gyasi Zardes, Luca de la Torre, Matthew Hoppe, Shaq Moore, Yunus Musah, Chris Richards, and Gianluca Busio. While Gio Reyna and Christian Pulisic were not included due to injury, Jordan Pefok, Josh Sargent, Ethan Horvath, and Konrad de la Fuente were also left off the roster. There are also others who were not on either roster that fans may think should have been brought into camp. We discuss it all briefly on this episode.

We close out this episode with a personal tribute to Martin Huschka, an inspirational young boy in the American soccer family who passed away late last week due to complications from a neurodegenerative disorder that was so rare, there have been only 14 cases worldwide. I tell the story of Martin’s journey, what he meant to me and why he is the strongest boy that I’ve ever met. Martin is going to be missed by so many, but the joy that he shared is something that will remain in the hearts of all who were blessed to meet him or be inspired through his story.

If you are so inclined to also pay tribute to Martin’s memory, his family requests that you make a donation to Gilda’s Club of Metro Detroit, Angela Hospice, or Rainbow Connection.

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Now that the international break is over, it was a good time to discuss the World Cup qualifying matches that have occurred for the United States Men’s National Team. On the previous episode, we did a deep dive into the 3 matches, complete with an interview with Eric Schmitz of the World of Concacaf Podcast. On Episode 61, we dip into the mailbag to answer some of your questions about the three matches and what’s to come for the USMNT.

We have questions about the tactics of Gregg Berhalter, from why he decided to play Tyler Adams on the right against Honduras to what he needs to do in order to get the team to play at its highest level. We also discuss what the striker depth chart should look like as we move forward. Finally, we get into the real questions about food and beverages that were amazing in San Salvador, Nashville, and San Pedro Sula.

We’ll be back next week with a new episode, but we will do another mailbag soon! Email any questions to SSFC Podcast at Gmail dot com, or on Twitter you can submit them using the hashtag #SSFCPodcast!

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The first three matches of World Cup qualifying are in the books for the United States Men’s National Team, and we recap it all on Episode 60 of the SSFC Podcast! The USMNT are currently in 2nd place in the Octagonal standings after a draw at El Salvador, a home draw against Canada, and a comeback win on the road at Honduras. I was in the building for all 3 matches, and we break down all the ups and downs from the window.

First, I give my take on what it was like to be in the stands for all 3 matches and how we played from that vantage point. Of course, there are topics that we dive into while discussing those matches, like the amazing reception we received from fans in San Salvador, Weston McKennie being removed from the team for violating team protocols, and even pushing back on disrespectful rhetoric surrounding the match in Honduras.

After the break, I welcome Eric Schmitz, co-host of the World of Concacaf Podcast, to the show to get his take on the three matches. He also traveled to each match and I ask him about his experiences not just traveling to El Salvador and Honduras but also his experience hosting the nation in Nashville for the match against Canada. He also breaks down the art that is Power Chicken, so you don’t want to miss that!

Don’t forget to subscribe to the SSFC Podcast, and 5-star ratings and reviews are very helpful! On Sunday, we will have a mailbag episode, so stay tuned for that as well!

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The Octagon is here! On Episode 59, we dive into the start of World Cup qualifying for the United States Men’s National Team, and we’re excited about the week to come!

First, we analyze the roster and where there could be some rotation for the USMNT. We have a legit goalkeeper competition, and the question will be who gets the start on Thursday against El Salvador, Sunday against Canada, and next Wednesday against Honduras. We also have a couple of guys on this roster that were not on the Nations League roster or the Gold Cup roster, Ricardo Pepi and Konrad de la Fuente. We’re excited about them as well. Finally, while Tim Weah had to withdraw from the roster due to an injury he suffered with Lille, Christian Pulisic has been cleared from his positive Covid-19 diagnosis and is in camp.

After the break, we go through the schedule, looking quickly at the teams that we will play during this window: on the road at El Salvador and Honduras and hosting Canada in Nashville. It should be a fun week, but the hard work begins now for our national team!

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Concacaf has launched a couple new women’s competitions, and we take a look at how they are set up on Episode 58. The USWNT will embark on World Cup qualifying next summer, as they compete in the Concacaf W Championship. That tournament will also serve as qualifying for the 2024 Summer Olympics and will also give one team an automatic spot in the other new tournament, the W Gold Cup.

The USWNT’s path to the 2023 World Cup hasn’t changed much, but with the expanded World Cup field, it has become slightly easier. We examine how it has changed for them. In any case, next summer has become super important for the USWNT, as they will seek to qualify for the two major tournaments on the FIFA women’s calendar in one shot: the 2023 World Cup and the 2024 Olympics. We also examine how this changes things for the other teams that also have dreams of qualifying for either the World Cup, the Olympics, or the new W Gold Cup.

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We’re back with Episode 57, and this is a funny one. We are joined this week by Alexis Guerreros and Christian Polanco. These two comedians form the dynamic duo The Cooligans, and they have created their own lane that mixes soccer news with stand up comedy.

They have a TV show that airs Thursday nights on Fubo Sports Network, they have a podcast, and have been able to mix the funny with the soccer in a way that no one else on this side of the pond dares try. But, on top of it, they’re fans of the game and that inspires them to talk about it in the best way. We start the interview with how The Cooligans came to form, and how they focus on being funny over bringing the stats to a conversation. They also get into how they’ve been able to interview so many athletes and how that shapes how they view the game. We also discuss the summer for the USMNT and the USWNT and the excitement they have for American soccer as a whole.

We then get into some soccer-adjacent topics, like the best pizza outside of New York/New Jersey, jersey swag, and who inspires their comedy. It’s a fun interview that is certain to make you laugh at times, but you will also be able to feel their emotion at times as they discuss their love for the game!

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The SSFC Podcast is back after a month of travel for the Gold Cup, and Episode 56 recaps the month of July and early August for both the USMNT and the USWNT! First, we discuss the Gold Cup for the USMNT, who worked hard to win their second trophy over rivals Mexico this summer. We go through the entire road to the Gold Cup championship and we discuss some of the players who could factor into World Cup qualifying when it begins next month.

After the break, we get into the Olympics for the USWNT, who got a bronze medal instead of the gold they were coveting. We discuss where they slipped up along the way and how they recovered to win bronze in Tokyo. We also discuss what they need to do in order to turn the page to World Cup qualifying, which will begin next year.

This week will be a double episode week (we have to catch up!), so look for a new episode on Thursday afternoon. It will be a fun interview that you won’t want to miss!

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