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Lion Links: 5/14/21

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5 years ago

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How’s it going, Mane Landers? I hope you all are looking forward to a weekend filled to the brim with soccer. As of today, I’m fully vaccinated and will probably celebrate with a trip to my favorite local coffeeshop for some idle reading. Congratulations to any graduates out there as well since it’s that time of the year. Now, let’s jump into today’s links from around the soccer world.

Orlando City Player Salaries Revealed

The Major League Soccer Players Association released the 2021 salary information for every player in the league as of April. Orlando City is 16th in total player salary commitments and Nani is 15th among all players, with a guaranteed 2021 salary of $2,486,250. As for a few of the players who became Lions this off-season, Alexandre Pato has a guaranteed salary of $272,727, Silvester van der Water will make $325,750 this year, and loaned goalkeeper Brandon Austin is set to make $279,477 if he’s in Orlando all season.

Inter Miami, Toronto FC, the LA Galaxy, Atlanta United, and FC Cincinnati are the league’s five biggest spenders this year. I believe player spending shouldn’t be looked at too closely when trying to set expectations for a team or a player given the many variables in play such as performance bonuses or the length of a contract. That being said, here’s a fantastic visual guide that turns those numbers into something a bit more consumable.

Lions Will Face D.C. United On the Road

The Lions will take on D.C. United this Sunday for their second road game of the season. Despite multiple injuries and the absence of Daryl Dike, Orlando remains unbeaten after four games this season. Many players have stepped up to the plate, particularly in the midfield as Sebas Mendez and Junior Urso have done well on both sides of the ball. Nani leads Orlando with three goals and Antonio Carlos continues to impress in the center of defense. Evan Weston and Miguel Gallardo broke down what to watch for in Orlando’s upcoming match.

As for Orlando’s opponents, D.C. United won 1-0 over the struggling Chicago Fire last night. The last time Orlando and D.C. faced off was in June of 2019 when Wayne Rooney scored the game’s only goal in the 10th minute. Rooney can no longer torment the Lions, but Ola Kamara is still in D.C. and has a decent track record against Orlando.

Orlando Pride Start Season This Sunday

At Exploria Stadium, the Pride will host the Washington Spirit on Sunday at 6 p.m. Although this will be the first game of the National Women’s Soccer League season for both sides, the Pride won 1-0 against the Spirit in the group stage of the NWSL Challenge Cup last month. In that match, Alex Morgan connected with Sydney Leroux for the Pride’s goal while Ashlyn Harris made nine saves, including one from a penalty. Marta is excited to get the season started at home as the Pride aim for all three points against the Spirit once more.

Concacaf Gold Cup Schedule Unveiled

Exploria Stadium will host six matches for the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup this summer. The first matches in Orlando will take place on July 12 as Jamaica plays Suriname and Costa Rica takes on whichever nation advances from one of the preliminary matches. Those same teams will play again in Orlando on July 16, but July 20 will feature a clash between Costa Rica and Jamaica and then a match between Panama and Grenada.

The United States Men’s National Team will play all of its group matches in Kansas City, including a showdown with Canada on July 18. In the knockout stage, matches will take place in either Glendale, AZ or Arlington, TX and the final will be on Aug. 1 in Las Vegas.

Americans Abroad This Weekend

With seasons winding down across Europe, plenty of Americans have something to play for over the next few days. Orlando’s Dike and Barnsley FC will host Swansea City on Monday at 3:15 p.m. in the first leg of their English Football League Championship playoff matches. Elsewhere in England, Christian Pulisic and Chelsea will take on Leicester City in Wembley Stadium on Saturday.

Three teams are fighting over two Champions League spots still up for grabs in the Bundesliga, with Giovanni Reyna, John Brooks, and Timothy Chandler all in the mix. Near the bottom of the table, Werder Bremen’s Josh Sargent has an important match against FC Augsburg with relegation still a possibility for either side.

Elsewhere, Weston McKennie and Juventus will have their Champions League qualification hopes on the line against Inter Milan. Sergino Dest and FC Barcelona will need a win against Celta Vigo and other results in their favor to remain in the La Liga title hunt. Timothy Weah has featured here and there during Lille’s remarkable Ligue 1 campaign and the club can clinch the title if it beats Saint-Étienne. Whew, there really is a lot of soccer worth watching this weekend.

Free Kicks

  • Nani earned 25.9% of the MLS Goal of the Week vote to finish second behind Real Salt Lake’s Rubio Rubin’s stellar bicycle kick. It was Nani’s third consecutive nomination as he continues to find the back of the net in style.
  • In Pride defender Ali Riley’s last episode of her video series, she spoke to Ali Krieger about the team’s expectations this year and motherhood. The video also features Krieger swaddling Riley in a blanket on the locker room floor.
  • Former Lion Dennis Chin is retiring from soccer and his announcement included a compilation of moments that will definitely make you nostalgic.

  • New York City FC and Valentin Castellanos agreed to a new contract that will keep the forward in the Big Apple through 2025.
  • The injuries just keep adding up for the Portland Timbers as goalkeeper Jeff Attinella is out for the season. The Timbers added Logan Ketterer on loan from the USL Championship’s El Paso Locomotive to help replace Attinella for the time being.
  • One of my favorite things in soccer is seeing coaches and players having fun and just being real people behind the scenes beyond what we get to see on television.

  • Let’s end our links with some training footage of Mason Stajduhar taking a blow of his own.

That’s going to be it for today, folks. Remember to stay hydrated out there and take care of yourselves and others. It should be a fun weekend, so enjoy the rest of your Friday!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 5/26/26

Martin Ojeda up for weekly award, lessons from MLS matchday 15, Phil Neville out in Portland, and more.

Published

33 minutes ago

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May 26, 2026

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Image of Martin Ojeda celebrating a goal against New England.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

It was another mixed bag for Orlando’s soccer teams over the weekend, as two out of the three sides came away with victories, only for Orlando City to lose in resounding fashion. Fortunately, we can put what’s been a torturous MLS season so far behind us for the time being, as the league is now on break for roughly two months. The big thing currently on the horizon is today’s World Cup roster reveal for the United States Men’s National Team, when we’ll see if the leak reported over the weekend was accurate or not. Then, it’ll be games on Friday and Sunday for the Orlando Pride and Orlando City B, respectively, with a USMNT friendly against Senegal thrown in on Sunday for good measure. Clearly there’s a lot to talk about today, so let’s attack those links.

Martin Ojeda Up for Weekly Honors

Martin Ojeda has been nominated for MLS Goal of the Matchday. Orlando City’s no. 10 has his second goal of Saturday’s match up for consideration, and it was a doozy. The Lions had a free kick on the edge of the box just a couple minutes into the second half, and Tincho stepped up and smashed a shot over the wall and into the top corner of Roman Celentano’s net. The strike leveled the game at 2-2, and although OCSC went on to concede a whopping four second-half goals to slump to a 6-2 defeat, we still have to celebrate the few bright spots to be found. Make sure you go vote for Martin’s strike.

Lessons from Matchday 15

Matchday 15 is now in the books for Major League Soccer, and the league now goes on sabbatical until the World Cup concludes. As for what we learned from the weekend’s action, for starters, it was the last time we’ll see Wilfried Zaha in a Charlotte FC uniform. The forward’s loan expires on June 30, and while his time in MLS certainly can’t be called a failure, it’s also understandable that neither side wanted to extend his stay, as things never seemed to fully click between the two parties. Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference, Jorge Ruvalcaba is starting to find a groove for the New York Red Bulls, and he’s helped the team to sit fifth in the East heading into the break. Finally, both Nashville SC and the Vancouver Whitecaps flashed some impressive depth as they picked up shorthanded wins over tough opposition.

Phil Neville Out in Portland

The Portland Timbers announced Monday afternoon that they have parted ways with head coach Phil Neville. Portland sits 13th in the Western Conference heading into the World Cup break, and Saturday’s 3-1 home loss to the San Jose Earthquakes was seemingly the straw that broke the camel’s back. Neville was in charge of Portland for two full seasons, and while the Timbers made the playoffs in each of them, they failed to advance out of the first round on both occasions. Portland is now on a three-game losing streak and will immediately begin its search for a new head coach, with no interim having been named. As for Neville, it brings an end to his second stint with an MLS team after he coached Inter Miami for two-and-a-half seasons.

Iran Moves Tournament Base to Mexico

Iran has officially moved its World Cup base of operations to Mexico. The Iranian federation announced news of the move on Saturday, with FIFA confirming the switch on Monday when it also confirmed the base camp locations for each of the tournament’s 48 teams. Iran will be based in Tijuana after previously choosing to stay in Tucson, AZ before the United States and Israel launched the Operation Epic Fury attacks. Mexico’s president Claudia Sheinbaum said Monday that she has “no issue” hosting the team and was told by a FIFA representative that the U.S. was reluctant for the Iranian team to spend time outside of games on American soil.

Free Kicks

That’s all I’ve got for you this morning. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 5/25/26

Lions fall to FC Cincinnati, Pride and OCB win, USMNT World Cup roster leaked, and more.

Published

1 day ago

on

May 25, 2026

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Image of Martin Ojeda fighting for the ball against LAFC.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Happy Memorial Day, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you down in Florida. I’ve been busy at work over the holiday weekend, covering high school lacrosse playoff games. The Lions, Pride, and OCB were all in action over the weekend, and the World Cup is less than three weeks away. We’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get into the links.

Lions Suffer Heavy Defeat at FC Cincinnati

Orlando City fell 6-2 to FC Cincinnati at TQL Stadium Saturday in another embarrassing road display. Martin Ojeda scored the opener for the Lions in the first half before Cincinnati scored twice to take a 2-1 lead into halftime. Ojeda equalized for Orlando early in the second half. However, it was all Cincinnati from that point as Evander scored his second goal of the match and added three assists as Orlando suffered a heavy defeat on the road for the fourth time this season. The loss snapped the Lions’ three-match unbeaten streak. Orlando City will be off until late July due to the MLS World Cup break. The Lions’ next match will be on the road against the San Jose Earthquakes at PayPal Park on July 22.

Payne’s Goal Lifts Pride over San Diego Wave

The Orlando Pride defeated the San Diego Wave 1-0 at Snapdragon Stadium Sunday and snapped their two-match losing streak. Nicole Payne scored the lone goal in the match for Orlando, which moved above the Seattle Reign on goal difference to eighth in the NWSL table with 14 points. The Pride will return home Friday to take on Bay FC at Inter&Co Stadium.

OCB Beats Inter Miami II

Orlando City B defeated Inter Miami II 4-1 at Osceola County Stadium on Sunday. The Young Lions got off to a flying start in the first half as Ignacio Gomez scored the opening goal. Bernardo Rhein added another, and OCB got an own goal by Miami defender Daniel Sumalla to take a 3-0 lead into halftime. In the second half, Zakaria Taifi scored for OCB and Miami pulled one back, but the Young Lions had the match wrapped up by then. OCB will take on Chattanooga FC Sunday at Osceola County Stadium.

USMNT World Cup Roster Leaked

According to Jeff Rueter and Pablo Maurer at The Guardian, the full 26-man U.S. Men’s National Team roster for the 2026 FIFA World Cup was leaked over the weekend, just days before the official announcement. Former Lion Alex Freeman, Christian Pulisic, Tyler Adams, and Tim Weah were notable mentions, while other players reportedly making the cut include Alejandro Zendejas, Gio Reyna, Sebastian Berhalter, Brenden Aaronson, Mark Mackenzie, and goalkeeper Matt Turner. Diego Luna, Tanner Tessmann, and Aidan Morris were left out of the squad. The U.S. Soccer Federation will officially announce the USMNT roster Tuesday, while the final deadline to submit the roster to FIFA for the World Cup is June 1.

Free Kicks

  • Wilfried Zaha will reportedly depart from Charlotte FC this summer when his loan deal expires.
  • Josef Martinez will reportedly become a free agent after reaching an agreement to part ways with Liga MX side Tijuana.

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

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 5/22/26

Orlando City prepares for FC Cincinnati, Angelina receives an additional suspension, Orlando City B signs Albright Chikamso, and more.

Published

4 days ago

on

May 22, 2026

By

Image of Angelina launching a long pass.
Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

Happy Friday, Mane Landers! There’s a smorgasbord of Orlando soccer waiting for us this weekend and I’m looking forward to it. Along with enjoying the games, I plan on spending the weekend tearing my way through the rest of Kristen Perrin’s murder mystery series after devouring “How to Solve Your Own Murder.” I highly recommend it if you’re a fan of whodunits. Now, let’s get to the links!

Orlando City Prepares for FC Cincinnati

The Lions are back in action on Saturday with a road match against FC Cincinnati in the last match for both clubs before the World Cup break. Orlando enters this match with plenty of momentum after beating Atlanta United 4-1 in the U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals, but the team has struggled playing away this year and Cincinnati is a tough opponent. Both offenses are flying high as of late, and the only team in the league that has conceded more goals this season than Cincinnati is Orlando, so a high-scoring affair might be in the cards for us before the break.

Angelina Suspended for an Additional Game

The NWSL Disciplinary Committee handed Orlando Pride midfielder Angelina an additional one-game suspension for a violation of “Major Game Misconduct.” Angelina received a red card following video review in Orlando’s 3-1 loss to the Denver Summit after she pulled Delanie Sheehan’s hair. The Pride will now be without her for both Sunday’s game against the San Diego Wave and the game on May 29 against Bay FC, meaning she won’t be available for selection until after the summer break.

Orlando City B Signs Albright Chikamso

Defender Albright Chikamso has signed an MLS NEXT Pro contract with Orlando City B that will last through 2028. The academy product has made four appearances with OCB already and scored in his first start with the team on Oct. 10 of last year. It’s nice to see the club’s youth program continue to develop players so that they can move up the pipeline. Hopefully Chikamso can continue to impress with the Young Lions this season.

Chris Richards Injury Update Before World Cup

American defender Chris Richards tore ligaments in his ankle according to Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner, who confirmed that he won’t be available for the team’s season finale on Sunday. There’s notably still a chance that he plays in the UEFA Conference League final on Wednesday. However, the World Cup is only a few weeks away and United States Men’s National Team Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino will announce the team’s roster on Monday. Richards has been a critical part of the U.S. defense under Pochettino and we wish him a speedy and smooth recovery.

Free Kicks

  • MLS players will wear personalized jerseys this weekend in recognition of the upcoming World Cup, with an auction to follow.

That’s all I have for you this time around. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday!

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