Lion Links: 12/31/25

Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers, and Happy New Year’s Eve! Here we are at the end of 2025, and while I can’t say it was a great year in a lot of respects, I will say having you as readers, listeners of The Mane Land PawedCast and SkoPurp Soccer, founders, and subscribers has made a big difference in our lives. We can only do this because of you. So please be safe in your revelries tonight and let’s get to the links.

Eastern Conference Season in Review

It is tough covering every MLS team, but that’s MLSsoccer.com’s job. This 2025 Eastern Conference grade piece makes some good points about many clubs. I take issue with some of the points made about Orlando City, even though I agree with the grade. While the timing of Ramiro Enrique’s transfer didn’t help the Lions’ attack down the stretch, the idea that Orlando City shouldn’t take the money is ludicrous. Also, Pedro Gallese wasn’t a drag on the club because of his age.

MLS Transfer News

Let me say right off that bat that there’s no Orlando City transfer news in this set of links. If there was, it would have been at the top of the page. Also, you should know by now that the Lions take their sweet time on these things. With that out of the way, Atlanta United signed defender Tomás Jacob from Club Necaxa to a contract through the 2028-2029 season. CF Montréal acquired midfielder Ivan Losenko on loan from Ukrainian side FC Shakhtar Donetsk. Charlotte FC acquired USMNT midfielder Luca de la Torre from Celta de Vigo. D.C. United signed defender Keisuke Kurokawa from Gamba Osaka in the J1 League.

On the rumor front, former Real Madrid star James Rodriguez is reportedly close to a move to the Columbus Crew. D.C. United may acquire Romania international forward Louis Munteanu from CFR Cluj.

USMNT News

The 2025 calendar year was quite a ride for the USMNT. Highs and lows, drama on and off the pitch, and new stars emerged — like Orlando City’s Alex Freeman. Fortunately, it ended on a winning streak heading into 2026. There’s a lot to look at with the World Cup looming — which veterans will take the lead, which youngsters will contribute, and can Mauricio Pochettino pull off the unlikely on home soil? There were plenty of transfers for USMNT players in 2025, and now Ricardo Pepi might be heading to Fulham for upwards of $50 million.

USWNT Year in Review

The USWNT also had quite a year in 2025. We saw a ton of players get their first caps as Emma Hayes continues to expand the player pool. The team saw success even with having to deal without having Mallory Swanson, Sophia Smith, and Trinity Rodman consistently. And 2026 will be a big year for the USWNT, as the Yanks will need to qualify for the 2027 World Cup in Brazil.

Free Kicks

• It’s incredibly rare that I get to write that a player older than me has signed a new deal, but that is exactly what 58-year-old Kazuyoshi Miura has done. Miura signed a loan deal with J.League side Fukushima United.
• World Cup tickets are still stupidly expensive, and England fans are not purchasing the full ticket allocation.
• The teams for the knockout stage of the Africa Cup of Nations are set with Senegal and Congo making big statements.
• Russell Martin is one of the finalists to be come the new head coach of the Columbus Crew.

• FIFA might change the offside rule. This time for the better. All I can say is “please, please, please…”

• There is justice in Canada. Disgruntled fans filed a class-action lawsuit against Vancouver Whitecaps FC after Lionel Messi failed to show for a match. The parties have reached a proposed settlement.

That will do it for today. On behalf of all of us here at The Mane Land, we wish you a happy new year!