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Lion Links: 11/29/22

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Happy Tuesday, everyone. In case you’ve been living under a rock, the United States Men’s National Team has a seismic clash against Iran later this afternoon. The Yanks need a win to advance out of the group stage, and it’ll be a tough test against a well-drilled Iranian side that will likely be playing for a draw. There’s lots to discuss today, so let’s get into it.

Alexander Alvarado Leaves Orlando City

In a piece of news that slipped through the cracks of Thanksgiving and the World Cup, LDU Quito made Alexander Alvarado’s loan at the club permanent last Friday, meaning that the forward has left Orlando City. He signed a deal that will keep him at the club for the next five seasons. Alvarado made 12 appearances during his time as a Lion, and this piece of news is one that was fairly expected. It doesn’t really change anything for Orlando, as he wasn’t going to factor in the club’s plans moving forward, and his departure was always a case of when, rather than if. We wish him the best of luck!

Off Field Drama Continues Ahead of USMNT vs. Iran

Just when you thought the off-field drama couldn’t increase more ahead of the United States Men’s National Team’s match against Iran later today, that’s exactly what happened. First there was the tweet from U.S. Soccer that we covered in Monday’s links, which understandably drew the ire of Iranians, and bled over into yesterday’s pre-match press conference. The presser saw Iranian journalists ask Gregg Berhalter about the negative affects of inflation in the U.S., why he hasn’t asked the U.S. government to remove a naval ship from around Iran, and they asked Tyler Adams how he felt representing the USMNT given the country’s treatment of Black Americans, among other things. It’s going to be incredibly interesting to see how things play out later today.

World Cup Results Roundup

Monday was a busy and exciting day of World Cup action. Things started hot as Cameroon and Serbia played out a massively entertaining 3-3 draw, with Cameroon coming from two goals down to secure a point. The second match was equally exciting and saw Ghana blow a two-goal lead to South Korea before finding a winner with just over 20 minutes remaining. A Neymar-less Brazil snuck past Switzerland by a score of 1-0, and a Bruno Fernandes brace meant Portugal took all three points in its clash with Uruguay. Orlando City’s Facundo Torres again went as an unused sub for Uruguay. The results mean Brazil and Portugal will advance from groups G and H, respectively, with no one yet eliminated from either group. Group H will have a particularly tasty match-up on the final day of group play, as Ghana will have a chance to eliminate Uruguay and Luis Suarez 12 years after his handball against them in South Africa.

Juventus’ Entire Board of Directors Resigns

In a stunning piece of news Monday afternoon, Juventus’ entire board of directors has resigned. President Andrea Agnelli, and Vice President Pavel Nedved are now gone, with Agnelli leaving after over a decade in his previous role. On the face of things, the timing is extremely strange, and while Juventus put out a statement Monday afternoon, it’s filled with heavy legal and financial jargon and is a bit hard to sort through. It seems that the board’s departures are related to ongoing investigations into the club’s finances — specifically into false accounting during the pandemic. Either way, the board is now gone and an already difficult season for Juve just got even tougher.

Free Kicks

  • The good people over at Stars and Stripes FC have you covered with what you should watch for in today’s do or die match against Iran.
  • This was Gregg Berhalter’s response when asked about Eric Wynalda’s claims that the coach lied about Gio Reyna’s lack of playing time.


That’s all for me today. Y’all stay safe out there.

Lion Links

Lion Links: 7/17/25

Orlando City falls apart at home, Orlando Pride players in action abroad, Charlotte will host 2026 MLS All-Star Game, and more.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Sometimes the Cardiac Cats are fun to watch, and other times they really do just stomp your heart into pieces. We’re unfortunately in the aftermath of the latter after Orlando City’s rough defeat last night. The good news is that the Lions can’t lose today as well. Let’s jump right into today’s links.

Orlando City Beaten by New York City FC

The Lions’ summer struggles continued with a disappointing 2-1 loss at home to New York City FC. Robin Jansson scored his first goal of the season, but Orlando collapsed late at home yet again, suffering from an own goal and a winner from Alonso Martinez in stoppage time. Orlando City is now winless in its past four games and has not won at home since May 24. There’s not much time to shake off this loss, as the Lions are back in action on Saturday for a tough road match against the New England Revolution.

Keeping Up With the Pride Players Abroad

Marta came off the bench and provided a pair of assists in Brazil’s dominant 6-0 win over Bolivia in the Copa America Femenina’s group stage. Kerolin had a hat trick and the result keeps Brazil at the top of its group for the time being. The Brazilians will be back in action on Tuesday to face Paraguay.

The CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinals kick off on Friday with a great matchup between Zambia and Nigeria. Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda and Racheal Kundananji have each scored three goals this tournament and both were named to the Best XI of the group stage. Pride goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse likely won’t play, but England takes on Sweden today in the Women’s European Championship quarterfinals.

Charlotte Will Host 2026 MLS All-Star Game

MLS announced that Charlotte will serve as the host of the 2026 MLS All-Star Game, the 30th in the league’s history. Charlotte FC joined the league in 2022 and this will be the first time the event is held in Charlotte. It’s always nice to see a smaller market receive its day in the sun, and Charlotte has really embraced soccer over the years. But if Sir Minty doesn’t take part in the skills challenge next year, then what are we even doing?

D.C. United Hires Rene Weiler

Rene Weiler is officially the next head coach of D.C. United and will take over once he receives a U.S. work permit. The 51-year-old brings plenty of European experience to the nation’s capital and won the Swiss Cup with Servette FC last year. He replaces Troy Lesesne, who was fired by the club after its exit from the U.S. Open Cup earlier this month. It’s a new era for one of the league’s older clubs, and it will be interesting to see how aggressive D.C. will be to bring in talent during the upcoming transfer window.

Free Kicks

  • Argentine midfielder Rodrigo De Paul has reportedly agreed to terms with Inter Miami and could be with the club in time for the Leagues Cup. He also reportedly won’t need to take up a Designated Player spot this year, because of course.

That’s all I have for you this time around, Mane Landers. Stay hydrated and have a great Thursday!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 7/16/25

Orlando City faces NYCFC, Marco Pasalic is an All-Star, OCB’s Jhon Solis transfers out, and more.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers. It’s matchday in the City Beautiful as Orlando City hosts New York City FC in a crucial Eastern Conference bout. I know I’m in the minority, but I love Wednesday matches since I’m off work on Thursdays. That being said, if you have the opportunity, you should definitely head down to the match tonight. For now, let’s get to the links.

Lions Host the Pigeons

Orlando City welcomes New York City FC to Inter&Co Stadium tonight. The midweek match comes after a short turnaround following Saturday’s draw against CF Montreal. The Lions will need to get the offense back in gear to take all three points from NYCFC. Our own Ben Miller joined Hudson River Blue to answer questions for the opposition. Check back later today for our detailed preview of the match.

Pasalic is an All-Star

Marco Pasalic was named to the MLS All-Star squad by coach Nico Estévez. Pasalic joins Alex Freeman as the second Lion to represent Orlando City in the match. The MLS All-Stars will play a team of All-Stars from Liga MX. Pasalic is tied with Martin Ojeda for the team’s goal-scoring lead with 10. He also has four assists for the Lions. Pasalic is a worthy addition to the MLS All-Star Team, but it does beg the question why Ojeda didn’t also get an invitation.

So Long, Solis

Orlando City B has transferred midfielder Jhon Solis to Fortaleza C.E.I.F. of Liga BetPlay Dimayor — Colombia’s top tier. Solis made 70 appearances for the Young Lions since joining prior to the 2023 season. As a native of Medellín, Colombia, the 26-year-old is returning to his home country to continue his career. Solis wasn’t able to make the jump to Orlando City’s first team, but he was a consistent starter for OCB.

U.S. National Team News

Fresh off his appearances in the Concacaf Gold Cup, Patrick Agyemang has been transferred from Charlotte FC to Derby County in the English Championship. In sadder news, Aaron Long is out for the season after having surgery to repair a ruptured left Achilles.

On the women’s side, USWNT coach Emma Hayes has great praise for Sam Coffey and her presence in the U.S. midfield.

Free Kicks


That will do it for today. Check back later as we prepare you for tonight’s match, and don’t forget to follow The Mane Land on Bluesky to get match updates. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 7/15/25

Lions earn weekly recognition, United States Men’s National Team announces friendlies, talking points about the women’s Euros, and more.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Good morning, everyone. I write to you all from the great state of South Carolina, as I continue my summer of frequent and widespread traveling. We have a lot to talk through this morning, so let’s wish a happy birthday to Orlando City B’s Tristan Himes and get into today’s links!

Lions Earn Weekly Recognition

A pair of Orlando City players have earned some recognition for their contributions during the Lions’ 1-1 draw with CF Montreal on Saturday. First up is Martin Ojeda, who garnered a nomination for the MLS Goal of the Matchday for this pinpoint, low free kick he scored which gave Orlando a lead in the first half.

We also can’t forget about Alex Freeman, who got a shoutout as a well-performing young player due to another solid performance at right back. Here’s hoping both men keep up the good work!

USMNT Announces October Friendlies

The United States Men’s National Team has announced that it will play friendlies against Ecuador and Australia during the October international window. The USMNT will face Ecuador on Oct. 10 at Q2 Stadium in Austin, TX, before playing Australia at Dick’s Sporting Good Park in Commerce City, CO. Both opponents are ranked in the top 25 in the world, and have already secured qualification for the 2026 World Cup. The games are exactly the sort of contests that the U.S. should be scheduling in the buildup to the tournament, and it’ll be interesting to see the performances of whatever roster Mauricio Pochettino chooses to deploy.

Women’s Euro Talking Points

The group stage of the women’s European Championship has come to an end, and there are plenty of things to talk about while we wait for the knockout stages to start later this week. Teams like Italy and Sweden have exceeded the expectations that many people had for them ahead of the tournament starting, while others like the Netherlands and Denmark had poor showings compared to what was expected of them. Alexia Putellas has unsurprisingly shone, and the quarterfinal matchup between France and Germany is the one that many people will have circled on their calendars.

Club World Cup Takeaways

Now that the Club World Cup has come to a conclusion, what did we learn from the tournament? For one, the quality of play was mostly good, as teams certainly took the competition seriously. Lessons need to be learned when it comes to pricing tickets appropriately and not kicking games off in the middle of the day during the heat of summer, but if the right adjustments are made, it could grow into a really fun competition to look forward to. Brazilian fans were one of the highlights of the tournament, while extremely low attendance numbers for some games were more of a blemish. Overall, the tournament is probably a net positive, but there are absolutely things that can and must be improved upon if it’s going to continue in this form.

Free Kicks

  • Martin Ojeda has now gone seven straight matches with a goal contribution, which is a new club record!

That does it for me this morning. Vamos Orlando!

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