Lion Links: 1/9/20

Good morning, Mane Landers! I hope the downward slope of the week finds you all doing well before the weekend. Let’s jump right into the links.

Orlando Pride Making Moves

The Pride made moves yesterday including the acquisition of Emily Sonnett from the Portland Thorns. Coming in at the bottom of the table for the 2019 season gave Orlando Pride the No. 1 draft pick in the 2020 NWSL College Draft. The Pride have traded the No. 1 pick to the Portland Thorns in exchange for defender Sonnett, the rights to Australian international Caitlin Foord, and two picks in the 2020 NWSL College Draft.

“I’m very excited to be able to acquire Emily, a young, World Cup-winning center back, and the rights to Caitlin, one of Australia’s most promising talents, for the Pride,” Orlando Pride Head Coach Marc Skinner said in the release. “Adding the No. 7 and No. 14 picks in the draft also, not only gives us two additional assets in the acquisition, but allows us to stay in the draft early on and bolster the roster.”

Portland then traded its first-round draft pick in next year’s draft and Midge Purce to Sky Blue FC in exchange for Raquel Rodríguez.

Orlando City Kit Reveal

With the league’s 25th season approaching, MLS has unveiled plans for the celebration. Included in those plans is the 2020 league-wide kit reveal on Feb. 5, just ahead of New York City’s Fashion Week. The new jerseys will feature a new font for names and numbers and the 25th anniversary crest.

“Our 25th season will celebrate our rich history by honoring the countless people behind the growth of our league and reflecting upon many of the memorable moments in our history,” said MLS Commissioner Don Garber in a league statement. “During this season-long celebration, we’ll also focus on our exciting future as we continue on our path to become one of the top leagues in the world.”

USMNT Questions Answered

The American Outlaws asked fans of the U.S. Soccer teams to send in their feelings on the state of U.S. soccer after the USMNT loss to Canada in November. Representatives met with the U.S. Soccer Board of Directors and other federation officials. They asked a selection of the most frequently submitted questions. The one question they couldn’t ask during their sit-down was regarding equal pay. U.S. Soccer provided a statement in response,

“There are many differences between our women’s and men’s pay structures and competitions that has made direct comparisons between their pay extremely difficult, and in the end there has been confusion about what our women’s and men’s players are actually paid by U.S. Soccer.”

The statement goes on to share that they will determine where they can improve and continue to have discussions about finding common ground.

MLS History of the No. 1 Overall MLS SuperDraft Pick

One might be inclined to believe that the No. 1 overall MLS SuperDraft pick goes on to find success in the league, but the fortunes of those players range wildly from making the national teams and seven-figure outbound transfers to bust. Only two former No. 1 picks have been named Rookie of the Year — Maurice Edu and former Lion Cyle Larin. In any case, MLS put together a breakdown of the history of No. 1 draft picks over the years as the league is set to hold its annual draft later today.

Free Kicks

• Former Lion Danilo Acosta is headed to the LA Galaxy.
• Nani took a trip to the new training facility in Kissimmee.

• The prize money total for the Women’s FA Cup in England is more than 100 times smaller than the men’s.
• The USL has unveiled the league’s 2020 national TV schedule.
• The USMNT U-20s are at training camp in Bradenton, as they prepare for two games against Mexico.
• Sky Sports is reporting that Borussia Dortmund officials are adamant that Jadon Sancho will not be leaving the club.
• Yesterday’s Links told you that Anthony Hudson was rumored to be the new coach of the U.S. U-20 Men’s National Team. It is now official.

That’ll do it for me today, Mane Landers! Be sure to check back in with TML for coverage of Orlando City’s picks in the MLS SuperDraft later today.