Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers! Orlando City continues to see more departures than arrivals to the roster with the season opener looming this weekend. Sure would be cool if the Lions added an experienced MLS striker this week. Alas, I feel it’s not in the cards. I’m sure it’ll be fine.

In better news, it’s Marta’s 39th birthday! Happy nirthday to the captain from all of us here at The Mane Land. Let’s get to the links.

Lions Say Goodbye to Halliday, Lodeiro

Both Michael Halliday and Nico Lodeiro have departed Orlando City. Halliday was traded to the Houston Dynamo for a first-round pick in the 2026 MLS SuperDraft. With Dagur Dan Thorhallsson starting at right back and Alex Freeman moving into the number two spot behind him, it made sense for Halliday to try to get minutes elsewhere.

Nico Lodeiro mutually agreed to terminate his contract with the club. Lodeiro’s departure will free up $800,000 salary for the club and allow Lodeiro to pursue more playing time at another club. According to Tom Bogert, that club may also be the Houston Dynamo. Given Lodeiro’s role off the bench for Orlando City, this is a move that makes sense for both the player and the club.

Cartagena Out for the Season

While the news was expected, Orlando City officially placed Wilder Cartagena on the Season-Ending Injury list. The midfielder suffered the injury in the preseason match against Atletico Mineiro. The surgery on his left Achilles tendon was successful, but he will still be out for the remainder of the season. Fortunately, the Lions brought in Eduard Atuesta to shore up the midfield. While Orlando City may even be better with Atuesta on the pitch, losing Cartagena still hurts the team depth.

Orlando City in the Top 10?

The off-season was not as long as usual, thanks to Orlando City’s run to the Eastern Conference final. Despite the shorter time frame, I had forgotten how useless, dumb, and yet fun power rankings can be. I’d warn you against spoilers, but these rankings mean absolutely nothing — especially before a match has been played — so I’ll just tell you that the Lions came in at number nine. However, I won’t spoil why they made the top 10, nor which Ft. Lauderdale based club is in the top spot.

SheBelieves Cup Starts Thursday

The USWNT plays its first match of the 2025 SheBelieves Cup Thursday at 8 p.m. The match will take place at Shell Energy Stadium in Houston. Unless you plan on traveling to Texas, you’ll have to watch it on TV or streaming. The Orlando Pride’s Emily Sams is on the squad and will hopefully see some minutes for Emma Hayes.

Free Kicks

• The Philadelphia Union signed striker Bruno Damiani from Uruguayan club Nacional. At least one team playing at Inter&Co Stadium this weekend signed a striker.
• Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah are out of the UEFA Champions League thanks to AC Milan’s 2-1 aggregate loss to Feyenoord.
• In the “I can’t relate to that level of money but I still feel sorry for the guy” category, LAFC striker Olivier Giroud had approximately $500,000 worth of jewelry stolen when his Los Angeles home was burglarized.
• U.S. Soccer has reached an agreement with Westwood One Sports for the network to serve as their new domestic English-language audio partner. 

• In the “isn’t that mildly interesting” category, Pete Mangione will appear for FC Cincinnati.

• When Chase Adams scored 10 goals in the U-17 USMNT’s 22-0 victory over the U.S. Virgin Islands in the 2025 Concacaf U-17 qualifiers, he broke Erling Haaland’s international goal-scoring record. That’s just icing on the top of the 22-goal cake.

That will do it for today. Check back everyday as we get you ready for the season opener on Saturday. Vamos Orlando!

Happy Tuesday and happy Orlando City matchweek everyone! The season opener is almost upon us, and I couldn’t be more excited to get back into Inter&Co Stadium with all of you wonderful people. I’ll keep this brief because we have a whole glut of news to get to this morning. Let’s dive into these links.

Orlando City Signs Joran Gerbet

Orlando City announced Monday that the team has signed Joran Gerbet through the 2025 MLS season, with options for the next three seasons. The central midfielder was the team’s first-round selection in the 2025 MLS SuperDraft, and he’s done some good stuff during OCSC’s preseason preparations. The arrival of Eduard Atuesta means that Gerbet will be able to work his way into the team slowly without any undue pressure, although he’s shown enough during the preseason to expect him to start getting minutes from the bench much sooner rather than later. That will especially be the case if our next news item proves to be a reliable one.

Two Lions Reportedly on the Move

A pair of Lions could be on their way out the door very soon, as Tom Bogert is reporting that the Houston Dynamo are on the verge of signing Nico Lodeiro and Michael Halliday. He adds that the terms for Halliday’s signings are set, while the Lodeiro deal is likely to go through but is not quite done yet. There is no word yet on what Orlando will receive in return, but as Bogert doesn’t mention any players coming over in exchange, it’s likely that it’ll involve General Allocation Money, cash, a draft pick, an international slot, or some combination of those. We will bring you more on this story as it develops, so keep your eyes peeled.

Orlando Pride Celebrate 10th Year of Play

The 2025 season will be the 10th of the Orlando Pride’s existence, and the club will celebrate that fact for the duration of the upcoming campaign. Things will kick off on March 2 with the 10 Years of Pride Kickoff Party and continue from there with Pints With Pride, and the NWSL Challenge Cup. Pride Season Ticket Members will get a complimentary 2025 replica jersey as part of their STM package, and there will be numerous events hosted by the club throughout the season to celebrate the Pride’s 10th year.

Americans in Midweek Action

Plenty of Americans will take part in games during the working week, and UEFA Champions League play once again features heavily. Things start later today when Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah, and AC Milan try to overturn a 1-0 first leg deficit against Feyenoord. They’ll be followed by Cameron Carter-Vickers, Auston Trusty, and Celtic as they try to likewise come back from a 2-1 first leg deficit against Bayern Munich. Wednesday sees Gio Reyna, Cole Campbell, and Borussia Dortmund host Sporting CP, which holds a commanding 3-0 lead after the first leg, while Weston McKennie, Tim Weah, and Juventus have a more precarious 2-1 lead against PSV Eindhoven and its quartet of injured Americans.

MLS Transfer Roundup

Monday saw some big transfers completed in Major League Soccer, so let’s get all caught up. FC Cincinnati set an MLS trade record by sending $12 million in cash, and $150,000 in incentives to the Portland Timbers in exchange for Evander, who joins FCC as a Designated Player. In order to replace the outgoing Brazilian, Portland signed David Da Costa from Ligue 1 side Lens. The fee is said to be in the region of $6 million and he’ll join the Timbers as a DP on a four-year deal. The Vancouver Whitecaps completed the signing of striker Daniel Rios on loan from Chivas de Guadalajara for the duration of the 2025 season, with the deal also including a purchase option. Finally, the Columbus Crew signed goalkeeper Patrick Schulte to a contract extension through the 2027 season with an additional option year for 2028.

Free Kicks

• It’s matchweek and the boys are happy to be back.

• In case you forgot, Seb Hines is still that dude.

• The Concacaf Champions Cup match between Sporting Kansas City and Inter Miami has been postponed to Feb. 19 due to anticipated adverse weather.
• Real Valladolid has fired manager Diego Cocca after eight games in charge.

That’s all I have for you today. Vamos Orlando!

Hello, Mane Landers, and happy President’s Day! I hope you all are doing well down in Florida over the holiday weekend. I’ve been covering high school playoff basketball and hockey over the past week. Orlando City’s home opener is coming up Saturday, and like many of you, I look forward to seeing what the Lions can do during the 2025 MLS season. We’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Lions Draw Inter Miami 2-2 in Final Preseason Match

In its final preseason match, Orlando City could not hold onto the lead and got out of Tampa with a 2-2 draw against rival Inter Miami Friday at Raymond James Stadium. The Lions were up 2-1 with goals from Martin Ojeda and Ramiro Enrique, but Fafa Picault scored the equalizer in stoppage time. Orlando finishes its 2025 preseason without a win for the first time in club history. The 2025 MLS season will kick off this weekend as Orlando City will face the Philadelphia Union on Saturday at Inter&Co Stadium.

Orlando Pride Add Defender Oihane Hernandez

On Friday, the Orlando Pride announced a new addition as the club signed defender Oihane Hernandez from Real Madrid Femenil for an undisclosed transfer fee. The contract is a two-year deal through the 2026 season with a mutual option for 2027. The 24-year-old right back played two seasons with Real Madrid Femenil, notching two assists in 31 appearances. Hernandez also brings international experience playing with the Spanish Women’s National Team and was part of the squad that won the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup. Hernandez’s joins a growing right back position group, which includes Brianna Martinez and…

Orlando Pride Sign Cori Dyke to Contract Extension

The Orlando Pride extended the contract of defender Cori Dyke after a stellar rookie year last season. Dyke’s new contract is through the 2027 season. The 24-year-old defender made 26 appearances, started 21 matches, logged 1,095 minutes, and stepped up to play right back to help Orlando win the NWSL Shield and NWSL Championship last season. It’s the third contract she has signed with the club in less than a year. Dyke’s role with the club for 2025 remains to be seen, but she has proven to be a versatile player.

MLS Transfer Roundup

We are four days away from kicking off of the 2025 MLS season, and there are still some notable transfer moves happening across the league. The Colorado Rapids have reportedly acquired midfielder Josh Atencio from the Seattle Sounders in exchange for $1.3 million in General Allocation Money plus add-ons. Atencio will be an MLS U22 Initiative player on the Rapids roster. Meanwhile, Brazilian side Botafogo is reportedly finalizing a deal to sign Santi Rodriguez from New York City FC.

Toronto FC has signed forward Ola Brynhildsen on loan for the 2025 season from Danish side FC Midtjylland, which includes a purchase option. LAFC has transferred forward Cristian Olivera to Gremio in Brazil for a reported $4.5 million, which includes a sell-on fee. Lastly, Palmeiras is reportedly finalizing a deal with the Houston Dynamo to sign center back Micael for a club record fee.

Free Kicks

• The District Press released its 2025 MLS jersey rankings, and Orlando City was ranked 19th on their lists.
• Former Lion Daryl Dike returned to the pitch for West Brom over the weekend, coming off the bench in the second half against Millwall after being sidelined for over a year dealing with multiple injuries. The match ended in a 1-1 draw.

• Former Orlando Pride defender Carrie Lawrence has found a new role after retiring from professional soccer at the end of last season. She was named the director of global women’s soccer recruitment for Young Money APAA Sports.

• Check out this article from Goal.com on how Orlando has established itself as a soccer city over the years.
• Bay FC goalkeeper Katelyn Rowland announced her retirement from professional soccer after a 10-year career in which she won four NWSL championship titles.
• Manchester United forward Amad Diallo suffered an ankle injury while training and will likely be out for the remainder of the season.  
• New York City FC midfielder James Sands, who is on loan at St. Pauli, underwent surgery on Sunday to repair a serious right ankle injury he suffered during their match on Friday against Freiburg that will keep him sidelined indefinitely. No timetable is set for his return.
• The U-17 U.S. Men’s National Team defeated Cuba 2-0 to wrap up Group F play and has qualified for the U-17 FIFA World Cup, which will take place in November in Qatar.

That will do it for me today, Mane Landers. Enjoy your Monday, and I’ll see you next time.