Photo Gallery: Minneapolis City SC vs Med City FC

by Seth Steffenhagen - June 11, 20210

Minneapolis City hosted Med City this past weekend in what was a match up between the two remaining undefeated teams in the NPSL North. The two sides were deadlocked at the break but the Crows were awarded a penalty kick early in the second half. Minneapolis City SC midfielder Max Stiegwardt scored the opening goal from the spot in the 56'. Fellow midfielder Kevin Andrews then extended that lead in the 75'. Minneapolis City SC forward Justin Oliver tried to sneak in a quick free kick in the 86' that beat Med City FC goalkeeper AJ Jarvis as he was setting up his wall but it was called back and Oliver had to make another attempt. AJ Jarvis parried the retake

NISA’s Chicago House AC pays groundbreaking solidarity payment

by Tim Abbott - June 9, 2021June 9, 20210

Six years after US Soccer and MLS went to court to defend their right not to pay amateur or youth clubs after their players are signed by professional clubs, Chicago House AC has decided to do things differently. The incoming NISA club announced today that it has paid a solidarity payment, believed to be the first in US soccer history, to Joliet, IL's Steel City FC (guests on a recent episode of our podcast) when their player Damien Almazan was signed by CHAC. Such payments are a universal and very much routine part of the global soccer landscape where players come through youth systems and clubs at lower levels of the pyramid before moving to larger clubs. The mechanism is slightly different,

The W League is back

by Tim Abbott - June 8, 2021June 8, 20210

Today, in a move which had been suggested by The Athletic, USL announced a new women's amateur league with an old name. The new USL W League was unveiled with a Selection Sunday-style stream, together with 8 founding members and a strong trend of organizations whose men's sides are within the professional tiers of the USL system. The old W League folded in 2015. The eight founding clubs are: Minnesota Women's Soccer, a brand-new club which will be more fully unveiled this weekend but which already promises "a women majority owner which will be paired with a unique element of community and supporter ownership" and ownership independent of current organizations. Kaw Valley FC will be debuting its women's side in USL W.

What is the Unity Cup? – A Q and A with MapleBrook’s Jean-Yves Viardin

by Tim Abbott - June 2, 2021June 2, 20210

The 2021 Unity Cup : MapleBrook 58ers and Friends vs Joy Athletic Club takes place at Maple Grove High School Stadium at 5pm. Admission is free. Q: What is the Unity Cup? A: Joy Athletic is coached by a friend of mine and I'm very familiar with the organization and I respect that organization. I run the youth club over here in Maple Grove called Maplebrook. We had a UPSL team. We took a year off because of Covid. Because it is Joy Athletic's first year in the NPSL. We share players. We had planned to have a game. A friendly game. When all the bad stuff happened in Minneapolis and then we decided not to play in our league it didn't look

Illinois State Cup Begins

by Ashle Norling - May 27, 2021May 27, 20210

The Illinois State Soccer Association's Open Cup begins play this week. In 2021 the Tony Dallas Cup will feature a total of 14 sides will competing for the trophy. The tournament begins tonight with two matches featuring a few Midwest Premier League clubs. Edgewater Castle will travel to Buffalo Grove and face Schwaben AC at 7:30. The other match will see DeKalb County United head to Bensenville to play Wisloka Chicago at 8 PM. State Open Cup? The Tony Dallas Cup is one of many open cups inside the State of Illinois. Others played are Men's Over-30, Over-40, Over-48, Under-23, and Women's tournaments. In fact many states across the country have their own open cups which serve to supplement lower league seasons