Lion Links: 2/25/26

Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers. Between the rumors of Orlando City pursuing Antione Griezmann to the upcoming rivalry match against Inter Miami, its a busy week. I, for one, don’t believe that Lionel Messi has the guts to show up in Orlando to play. Of course, I’m only basing that on the fact that he has never done so. Sad, really. For now let’s get to the links.

Orlando City in the Spotlight

Orlando City supporters are all too aware that the season is underway. One point of interest is that those supporters sold out Inter&Co Stadium Saturday, helping make an MLS-record 387,271 fans attending matches on Saturday and Sunday. That makes it the best-attended weekend in league history. While the New York Red Bulls may have caught the spotlight on Saturday, all eyes now turn to Orlando as the Lions host Inter Miami on Sunday. I know that signing one Antione Griezmann would make the matchup even better. You might need to translate the following.

MLS News

While we wait hopefully for a Griezman signing, other teams are making moves. The Vancouver Whitecaps signed midfielder Andrés Cubas to an extension through the 2027-2028 MLS season. St. Louis City signed Venezuelan international forward Sergio Córdova on loan from Switzerland’s BSC Young Boys. Just like in the NWSL, MLS has more African players than in the past who will try to make an impact this season. Finally, if you didn’t watch the LA Galaxy’s match against New York City SC, you missed a doozy. Here is just the MLS disciplinary video from that match.

USMNT Notes

With the World Cup only months away, there is plenty to pay attention to regarding the USMNT. Fortunately, things are looking up for the squad. The depth at striker is as good as it’s been in a long time, with many players scoring goals in various European leagues. While he’s not a striker, here is Johnny Cardoso scoring an excellent goal for Atletico Madrid in the Champions League victory over Club Brugge.

Another piece of good news is the early return of Tyler Adams to the starting lineup for Bournemouth’s bench against Everton.

USWNT Roundup

Despite the lack of news concerning the Orlando Pride, other things are still afoot in women’s soccer. CBS Sports and Paramount+ will now be the official home of Concacaf Women’s competitions through 2030, including all matches of the Concacaf W Gold Cup, the Concacaf W Nations League, the Concacaf W Champions Cup, and the Concacaf W Championship. The SheBelieves Cup begins Sunday. Here is all the information you need on the 2026 edition of the competition.

Free Kicks

• It took all of nine matches for West Bromwich Albion to part ways with head coach Eric Ramsay. The club was seven points above the bottom three when he took over, but is now only one point to the good after not winning any of those nine matches.
• Do you like fashion? Do you like soccer? If you answered yes to both, then you are in for a treat with a look at soccer fashions including snoods.
• Host cities for the 2026 World Cup have warned the U.S. Congress that there are definite security concerns as the event approaches.
• If you are for some reason bored and want to know more about the expected goals statistic, you are in luck.
• Boston Legacy FC will have a halftime show featuring New Kids on the Block at its home opener against NJ/NY Gotham FC. Come for the soccer, stay for the choreography.
• Former Orlando City center back Thomas Williams got a start for his new club Nashville SC against Atletico Ottawa.

• Lastly, I’ll leave you with this as we attempt to influence things out of our control. Things like Griezmann getting here in time to play on Sunday.

That will do it for today. Check back as we get you ready for the next installment of Tropic Thunder on Sunday. Vamos Orlando!