Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you down in Florida. I had a busy week at Under Armour and watched a Chicago Blackhawks game with friends. Besides that, I’ll be working the Christmas Winterland Event at Wrigley Field later this week. We have plenty to cover today so let’s get to the links.

Nani Announces His Retirement

Former Orlando City captain Nani announced his retirement from professional soccer on Sunday after a stellar career. The 38-year-old left a heartfelt message on social media to announce the news.

The Portuguese star spent three seasons with Orlando City after joining the club from Sporting Lisbon in 2019, scoring 31 goals across all competitions. Nani recently played for his hometown club, Estrela da Amadora, in Portugal. He also spent time with Manchester United, Valencia, Fenerbahce, and many other clubs over the span of his career. At the international level, Nani made 112 appearances for Portugal, scoring 24 goals and helping the team win Euro 2016 in France. We here at The Mane Land wish him all the best in his retirement.

OCSC U-19 Team Beats LAFC and FC Cincinnati

MLS NEXT Fest kicked off this weekend and Orlando City’s U-19 team has been on fire. Orlando beat LAFC 7-4 in its first game of the event, with Jack Basinet and Gustavo Caraballo each scoring two goals.

The team followed that up with a 4-0 win against FC Cincinnati on Saturday. The U-19 academy team will be back in action later today to face the LA Galaxy.

Orlando Matches Set for FIFA Club World Cup

The full schedule for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup was unveiled and we’ve learned which games will be held in Orlando’s two venues for the tournament.

Inter&Co Stadium will host two matches, with Ulsan HD of South Korea playing against South African club Mamelodi Sundowns on June 17 before Benfica takes on Auckland City on June 20. Camping World Stadium will host four matches. The first will be June 24 between Club Leon and Flamengo, and Juventus will play Manchester City on June 26. Camping World Stadium’s third match will be a round-of-16 matchup on June 30, while the fourth match will be a quarterfinal on July 4. MetLife Stadium will host nine matches, including the semifinals and final.

LA Galaxy Defeat the Red Bulls to Win MLS Cup

The LA Galaxy beat the New York Red Bulls 2-1 to win the MLS Cup at Dignity Health Sports Park on Saturday. It’s the sixth time that the Galaxy have won the MLS Cup. Joseph Paintsil and Dejan Joveljic put the Galaxy ahead 2-0 before the Red Bulls pulled one back in the first half with a goal by Sean Nealis. Despite missing their star player, Riqui Puig, the Galaxy held onto their lead in the second half to secure the win. The Galaxy snapped their title drought that had lasted since 2014, and Head Coach Greg Vanney became the fourth coach to win an MLS title with two MLS clubs. Gaston Brugman won the MVP honors for the match for his role orchestrating things in the midfield.

Free Kicks

• The Guardian named its 100 best female footballers in the world for 2024. Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda was seventh, while Marta was 27th on the list. FC Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati took the top spot.
• Christian Pulisic left the pitch in the first half of AC Milan’s 2-1 defeat to Atalanta on Friday due to a calf injury. However, AC Milan manager Paulo Fonseca stated after the match that the injury doesn’t look too serious.
• The San Jose Earthquakes are reportedly in talks to acquire Monterrey forward Brandon Vazquez.

• Here are the 10 MLS clubs that have qualified for the 2025 Champions Cup.

• Botafogo defeated Sao Paulo 2-1 on Sunday to win its first Brazilian league title since 1995. It secured 78 points and finished six points ahead of runner-up Palmeiras.

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

Happy Friday! I hope December has been going smoothly for you as we gear up for the weekend. Soccer here in Orlando may be finished for the year, but there’s still plenty of the beautiful game to enjoy thanks to the MLS Cup final and all of the action in Europe. Let’s dive right into today’s links.

Orlando City Announces Postseason Roster Decisions

With Orlando City’s season officially over, the club announced its roster decisions and the status of all players. Felipe is out of contract and won’t be returning, and Orlando declined the contract options for Gaston Gonzalez, Luca Petrasso, Abdi Salim, Jeorgio Kocevski, and Carlos Mercado as well. Defender Kyle Smith’s contract is also up, but the club is in negotiations with him for him to return next year. The club exercised the contract on Jack Lynn, Thomas Williams, Javier Otero, Rodrigo Schlegel, and Rafael Santos, so they’ll be around next year along with the 18 players already under contract for 2025. Performance-based options were automatically triggered for Nicolas Lodeiro, Pedro Gallese, and Cesar Araujo as well.

MLS Ranked Second in the World in Attendance

Among all soccer leagues in the world, MLS has the second-highest attendance according to Opta’s data. Over 12.1 million fans have attended MLS games this season, including the playoffs. That number is second only to the English Premier League’s 14.6 million, and it’s nice to see MLS putting plenty of butts in seats as it continues to grow. Liga MX is eighth on the list, with over 6.9 million in attendance.

2025 Club World Cup Draw Revealed

The draw for next year’s Club World Cup was completed and we now know which teams the two MLS representatives in the tournament will square off against here in the U.S. The Seattle Sounders will host all three of their group games at Lumen Field in a brutal group that includes Atletico Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, and Botafogo. Inter Miami dodged some of the toughest teams in the tournament but still has its work cut out for it in a group with FC Porto, Palmeiras, and Al Ahly. I think most of the groups should be entertaining and competitive, as this expanded format allows more clubs from around the world to showcase their talent on a big stage. We’re still waiting to learn which games will be held in Orlando’s two venues for the tournament, but hopefully there are some good games heading to the City Beautiful.

Boston’s NWSL Expansion Side Hires General Manager

The future NWSL club currently known as BOS Nation FC has hired Domenec Guasch as its first general manager. Guasch has been with Barcelona for 13 years and has been the club’s head of management for women’s football for the past two years. He’ll join his new club in January and will have a year and some change to get the team ready for its inaugural season in 2026. Hiring someone outside of the NWSL sphere is an interesting move, but may make sense considering the abolition of the expansion draft and college draft. No word yet on whether the team is going to stick with the announced name, but it has announced it is reconsidering the idea after a public backlash.

Free Kicks

• Here’s an interesting article in which ESPN‘s Gabriele Marcotti pitches the idea of the Orlando Pride facing off against the best team in Europe for bragging rights. I’m not a big fan of the proposal and would prefer more structured formats like the inaugural Women’s Club World Cup in 2026 to determine such things.
• With Alyssa Naeher’s international retirement, the United States Women’s National Team’s goalkeeping position is up for grabs. Former Pride goalkeeper Aubrey Kingsbury is one of many players who can step up to fill the role.
• The injury bug won’t leave American forward Folarin Balogun alone, as his shoulder injury may keep him out of Monaco’s Champions League match next week against Arsenal.
• Angel City FC and General Manager Angela Hucles Mangano have parted ways after the club finished 12th in the standings this past season. Assistant General Manager Matt Wade will take over in an interim capacity while the club searches for a permanent hire.
• Lazio beat Napoli 3-1 to eliminate the Serie A leader from the Italian Cup, with Tijjani Noslin scoring a hat trick in the match.

That’s all I have for you this time around. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday and rest of your weekend!

How’s it going, Mane Landers? It’s been a long week, but I’ve at least been able to get some errands knocked out. I’m looking forward to hanging out with friends over the weekend and getting some more reading done before the year is up. Let’s dive into today’s links from around the soccer world!

Sights and Sounds From Orlando Pride Title Win

The Orlando Pride made history by winning their first NWSL title last month and the club provided an awesome look behind the scenes of the big win in Kansas City. The video covers everything from Marta’s pre-game pep talk that will have you willing to run through walls to the final whistle that wrapped up the greatest victory in club history. It’s also great to see Barbra Banda’s winning goal from even more angles.

Orlando City’s U-19 Team Stands Out

In MLS NEXT, Orlando City’s U-19 squad is the only undefeated team remaining in its age group and was noted as one of the top performing teams of November. The Baby Lions won all four of their games last month, including a pair of big 6-2 wins against both CF Montreal and Charlotte FC. Justin Ellis had a hat trick in the match against Montreal and scored seven total goals last month. It’s been a great year for the 17-year-old, as he also scored in each of the United States U-18 Men’s National Team’s friendlies against Peru and Japan in September.

Don Garber Signs Contract Extension

MLS Commissioner Don Garber won’t be leaving the league anytime soon after signing a four-year contract extension. The 67-year-old has been the league’s commissioner since 1999 and the league has experienced plenty of growth over the course of his 25-year tenure. He also negotiated the $2.5 billion broadcasting deal with Apple that will last 10 years. Only time will tell if Garber will stay on as commissioner once this extension ends following the 2027 season.

Referees Speak On PRO Interference

You will need to get through the paywall for the full details, as The Athletic published a great article regarding the interference from the Professional Referee Organization in MLS and NWSL games. Matches already get disrupted by VAR checks, but officials have also had to deal with PRO managers weighing in on their decisions. A transcript provided by a video assistant referee who requested anonymity showcased one such incident in a regular-season game, with the PRO manager wanting another look at a play to be made. The delays not only disrupt the flow of things, but it opens the door for others to cast suspicion on the process as well.

Free Kicks

• FIFA announced DAZN as the exclusive global broadcaster for next year’s FIFA Club World Cup. The platform will stream all 63 games of the tournament at no cost for those watching.
• The Seattle Sounders confirmed that Raul Ruidiaz is leaving the club after seven seasons. The 34-year-old is the club’s all-time leading scorer with 86 goals across all competitions. This move opens up a Designated Player spot for a Sounders side that reached the Western Conference final.
• Liverpool managed a comeback but gave up a late equalizer in a 3-3 draw with Newcastle that allowed Chelsea and Arsenal to close the gap to seven points.
• In a moment reminiscent of Rodrigo Schlegel’s heroics, 19-year-old left back Pol Arnau stepped up as an emergency goalkeeper for fourth-division side Lugrones against La Liga’s Girona in the Copa del Rey. Arnau made saves to send the game to a shootout and then stopped a penalty en route to victory.

That’s all I have for you today. I hope you all have a wonderful Thursday and rest of your week!