How’s it going, Mane Landers? We’re only a week away from the World Cup and I’m pretty excited for things to get going after all this buildup for it. Until then, there are some friendlies ahead of us to enjoy and an Orlando City B game on Sunday to look forward to as well. Let’s get to the links!

Lions Receive U.S. Open Cup Honors

Orlando City players Tiago, Griffin Dorsey, Braian Ojeda, and David Brekalo were all named to the 2026 U.S. Open Cup Team of the Round for the quarterfinals, with Ivan Angulo also named to the bench. Martin Perelman was named as the Team of the Round’s coach for leading the Lions to a 4-1 win at home against Atlanta United. Tiago scored a brace and Ojeda contributed a pair of assists, with Brekalo and Dorsey scoring Orlando’s other goals. Hopefully the Lions can continue to impress in this tournament when they travel to face the Columbus Crew on Sept. 16 in the semifinals.

Audi Field Named 2026 NWSL Championship Venue

The NWSL Championship will return to Washington D.C. this year after the league announced that Audi Field will host the 2026 league playoff final on Nov. 21. The nation’s capital previously hosted the NWSL Championship only a short while ago in 2022, with the Portland Thorns beating the Kansas City Current 2-0. Along with the NWSL Championship, the city will also host the 2026 NWSL Awards and NWSL Skills Challenge. For those not making the trip, you can watch the NWSL Championship game on CBS or Paramount+ for the fifth consecutive year.

Sergino Dest Praises Home Crowd Ahead of Friendly

Only one friendly remains for the United States Men’s National Team before the World Cup, with the team set to take on Germany on Saturday in Chicago. It should be a tough test for a U.S. side that has some momentum behind it after a 3-2 win over Senegal. Defender Sergino Dest scored early in that match and spoke on the massive support from the home crowd in the win.

“We have also played in stadiums that we didn’t really have fans, but to have a stadium full with all USA fans that is special and that is also what we need,” Dest said. “So we appreciate that and we want that kind of support because that helps us and look what we guys gave you back…a winner against Senegal, so we need it.

“It’s great to have it like that,” he continued, “We want to have it always like that because it just helps us so much to win games. Even for the opponents, it just scares them as well.”

USWNT Aims to Make the Most of Brazil Trip

The United States Women’s National Team is currently in Brazil for a pair of friendlies against the reigning Copa America Femenina champion. Next summer’s World Cup will take place in Brazil, making this trip a great chance to get the lay of the land while also playing one of the best teams in the world at World Cup venues. Road trips are a bit of a rarity for the USWNT, as it’s only played two international games outside of the U.S. since winning gold in 2024. The U.S. will play Brazil in Sao Paulo on Saturday before another friendly between the two in Fortaleza on Tuesday.

Free Kicks

• American striker Folarin Balogun was named AS Monaco’s Player of the Season after he scored 19 goals across all competitions.
• Club America and Andre Jardine have parted ways, with the manager leaving the club after winning plenty of silverware since joining the club in 2023.
• Swiss forward Breel Embolo was denied boarding the flight to the World Cup due to a criminal conviction and he has since applied for a visa with only a little over a week to go before Switzerland’s first game. Embolo has scored 24 goals in 86 international appearances and is expected to be Switzerland’s starting striker.
• Napoli has signed Manchester United striker Rasmus Hojlund for a reported $58 million transfer fee. The 23-year-old was loaned to Napoli last September, scoring 16 goals in 44 games for the Italian club.
• Speaking of Manchester United, Atalanta has reportedly agreed to a $47 million transfer fee for United to sign Brazilian midfielder Ederson.

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

Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers. Usually when there are no Orlando City or Orlando Pride matches I worry that finding links will be a challenge. That was not the case today. I will also share that I’m finally starting to get excited about the World Cup. All the grifting and corruption has tempered my enthusiasm until now. I’m not going to forget about it, but darn it I do love this game. Let’s get to the links.

Pasalic, Ojeda, and Crepeau, Oh My!

Orlando City has three players representing their respective countries at the World Cup this summer: Marco Pasalic for Croatia, Braian Ojeda for Paraguay, and Maxime Crepeau for co-host Canada. Fortunately, we didn’t have to wait for the tournament as there are friendlies to watch. Pasalic played about 30 minutes in Croatia’s 2-0 loss to Belgium on Tuesday. Croatia will play Slovenia in its final friendly before the World Cup on Sunday. Ojeda’s Paraguay has a friendly against Nicaragua Friday and will be the USMNT’s first opponent in the group stage.

The Canadian Men’s National Team defeated Uzbekistan 2-0 in a pre-World Cup friendly Monday evening. Maxime Crepeau was between the sticks for the Canucks at the start of the game and made a good reaction save on a header. He also made a nice one-on-one save against Eldor Shomurodov.

It was a good performance for Orlando City’s keeper. Canada will play Ireland in its final friendly Friday before the start of the World Cup.

Banda-mania Continues

It’s unsurprising that Barbra Banda is getting love all over the place following her two goals and one assist against Bay FC. Banda was a unanimous pick on offense and as captain on the team of the week for The Attacking Third at CBS Sports. She was not alone, as Cori Dyke was also a unanimous pick for her goal and defensive play in the match. Banda also got some love from the official NWSL website and from The XI Sports.

OCB Climbing the Ranks

Thanks to a second win in a row for Orlando City B, the club has jumped up to sixth in the MLS NEXT Pro power rankings. Pedro Leão and Harvey Sarajian led the way for the Young Lions, scoring three of the five goals against Chattanooga FC. Zakaria Taifi occasionally appears for OCB when not with the senior team. Now, he’s been called up to Morocco’s U-23 National Team for training camp in Salé.

USMNT News

There’s one more friendly against Germany on Saturday and then we can turn our full attention to the World Cup. Mauricio Pochettino is trying to balance pragmatism and a quest for greatness in his team.

Former Orlando City defender Alex Freeman is the only player from Florida on the USMNT World Cup roster. At 21 years old he is also the youngest ever. I know he doesn’t play for Orlando City anymore, but I think it’s okay for us to still claim him. Did you know that Matt Freese is a Harvard grad? Me neither, but it is pretty cool that he did a research paper on penalty kicks.

Of course, the oldest player on the team is also the captain. Despite his showing against Senegal, I’m not the only one that is happy Tim Ream is on the squad and wearing the armband. That is a lot of pressure for anyone, but evidently Ream deals with the stress by building with LEGOs, and I love it. Speaking of stress, two years ago Brenden Aaronson scheduled his wedding for May 30, 2026. That was two days before the start of the USMNT World Cup camp. That camp was moved back a week. Fortunately, both the families and the team were understanding.

If you haven’t yet figured out how Mauricio Pochettino is employing his team, here is a pretty good breakdown. Interestingly, it’s sort of like how Orlando City has played, using right backs Ruan, Freeman, and Griffin Dorsey as the high player when the defense pivots to three at the back while in possession.

Free Kicks

• Here is the updated list of every squad and player participating in the World Cup. There are a record 44 players from MLS this time.
• NBC has put out its Top 25 Players in the World Cup. It’s no surprise that no USMNT players made it onto the list, but perhaps that can be some extra motivation for the team.
• FIFA — yes that FIFA — launched a women’s health and performance project on Monday. Perhaps the sport’s governing body could take some of the billions it extracts all over the world and do some good with it.
• Former Orlando Pride defender Brianna Martinez is retiring from professional soccer. She was last with Carolina Ascent FC of the Gainbridge Super League.
• If Giorgian De Arrascaeta isn’t able to play in the World Cup there is a possibility that former Orlando City attacker Facundo Torres could be his replacement.

• Flamengo is allegedly scouting Martin Ojeda. I say this with all sincerity — back off! But seriously, who isn’t keeping an eye on Tincho?

That will do it for today. If you’re not watching OCB, I can’t recommend it enough. And not just because it’s the only Orlando team still playing. Vamos Orlando!

Good morning, everyone. It was a great weekend for Orlando’s soccer teams, as both the Orlando Pride and Orlando City B picked up convincing wins. The club soccer scene will now quiet for a bit as both Orlando City and the Pride will be off until July, but there’s still plenty going on with the World Cup right around the corner. We’ve got lots to talk about today, so let’s get into the links.

Braian Ojeda to Represent Paraguay

Monday morning started off on a bright note for Orlando City fans, as Braian Ojeda was officially called up to represent Paraguay at this summer’s World Cup. It was a piece of news that was to be expected, as Ojeda has been a mainstay in Paraguay’s squad since September of last year, but it’s still nice to get confirmation of what we suspected. Fans of the United States Men’s National Team may get to see Ojeda in action sooner rather than later, as Paraguay will open its campaign against the USMNT on June 12. The team will play Turkiye second, and finish group play against Australia. More immediately, Ojeda and Paraguay have a friendly on Friday against Nicaragua in Asuncion. Congratulations, Braian!

Pride Players up for Weekly Honors

The Orlando Pride picked up an emphatic 3-1 win over Bay FC in the team’s final game before the NWSL break, so it’s no surprise that several Pride players have been nominated for weekly honors. We start with Barbra Banda, whose brace and assist have her nominated for the NWSL Player of the Week.

Orlando’s other goal scorer, Cori Dyke, has been nominated for the NWSL Goal of the Week. Dyke unleashed a 55th-minute rocket from just inside the edge of the box that went off the underside of the crossbar and in past a helpless Emmie Allen. Make sure you go vote for her!

Young Lions Shine

Orlando City B also picked up a lopsided win over Chattanooga FC, as the Young Lions squandered an early lead but scored four second-half goals to come from behind and win 5-2. The performance earns OCB its first MLS NEXT Pro Team of the Matchweek award, and it’s hard to say it wasn’t justified. Ignacio Gomez got things going after just six minutes when he scored from a tight angle, and Pedro Leao bagged a brace to help the kids pick up their second high-scoring win in as many games. Keep up the good work, guys!

Real Salt Lake Sued by Former Player

Former Real Salt Lake goalkeeper Jeffrey Dewsnup is suing the club and has alleged that he experienced hazing at the hands of four former teammates. Despite being 16 when he joined the team, he was allegedly required to use the same locker room and showers as his adult teammates without anyone supervising the interactions. Aaron Herrera, David Ochoa, Tate Schmitt, and Justen Glad are all named in the lawsuit, and accused of varying types of inappropriate conduct. The suit also alleges that then-goalkeeping coach Ignacio Hernandez accused him of faking an injury in 2021 and forced him to train through an injury to his shoulder. Dewsnup retired from playing professionally in 2022.

Free Kicks

• The Pride rose two spots to no. 9 in ESPN.com’s NWSL power rankings.
• Ricardo Pepi says that being left off the USMNT’s World Cup roster in 2022 helped him grow and be ready for the upcoming edition of the tournament.
• Houston Dash goalkeeper Jane Campbell is replacing the injured Phallon Tullis-Joyce on the United States Women’s National Team roster for its upcoming friendlies against Brazil.
• New rules at this summer’s World Cup will include red cards for players that cover their mouths in confrontational situations, red cards for players leaving the field to protest a referee’s decision, and countdowns for throw-ins, and goal kicks.
• Plymouth Argyle has informed most of its women’s first team players that their contracts will not be renewed this summer.
• Thousands of unsold World Cup tickets have suddenly disappeared from FIFA’s sales website in what surely is not an effort to create artificial scarcity and drive up prices. FIFA would never do such a thing.

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