Lion Links: 11/6/26

Good morning, Mane Landers. It’s Friday and I feel fine. Probably because I’m off today and actually have an entire weekend off work, which is really rare for me. I’ll be riding in a Gravel bike race and seeing Hamilton all in the same day. What a long, strange trip it will be. Sadly, I won’t be able to make the match on Saturday due to these events, but that doesn’t mean you can’t go to the stadium. I’ll feel better knowing you’re there. Now, let’s get to the links.

Orlando City’s Day of Decision

Orlando City hosts the New England Revolution on Decision Day at Inter.co Stadium. The Lions have a chance to move back up to seventh in the Eastern Conference and out of the play-in match if they defeat the Revolution and get a little help from the teams above them in the standings. To be fair, it’s pretty astounding that Orlando City even made the playoffs, given how the season started, but adding Antoine Griezmann will do wonders for a struggling club. Here are the scenarios for all the Eastern Conference teams.

Ellis Climbs the Ranks

Justin Ellis is one of the young players making a name for himself on the USMNT. His stock has risen due to his performances for both club and country. While Ellis is poised to get more playing time, other older players may see less of the field as these younger players see more minutes. In fact, Ricardo Pepi was not called up for the roster, although it is in part to recover fully from a knock.

Orlando Pride Needs Abound

With the off-season kicking off for the Orlando Pride, there are plenty of questions to address if the club is to get back to 2024 levels. Obviously, Barbra Banda is the foundation, though Haley McCutcheon is also a player that can be foundational. In fact, McCutcheon is now the youngest player to reach 15,000 regular-season minutes in NWSL history. The Orlando Pride defensive midfielder is 30 years old.

Of course, we’ll be waiting for a coaching decision before most of these needs can be addressed.

Women’s Soccer Roundup

ACL injuries are too common in women’s soccer and the FA and WSL have launched a research project into why they happen and how to reduce them. Sadly, female players are two to six times more likely to suffer the injury than male players. Elsewhere, FIFA is in talks about restricting Olympic squads to U-23 players. Finally, as the NWSL playoffs approach, we take a look at how the teams that made it stack up.

Free Kicks

• Portugal legend Cristiano Ronaldo is retiring from international football. He is doing the honorable thing by returning the number seven for the next generation.
• Angel City FC has signed 17-year-old U.S. U-17 Youth National Team star forward Maddie DiMaria through 2030. DiMaria is the type of young talent that the Orlando Pride should be trying to find.

• Kohzo Tashima intends to run for FIFA president, challenging Gianni Infantino for the position.

• Concacaf is revamping the Gold Cup. The big change is that the group stage will now feature two eight-team groups instead of four groups of four.

That will do it for today. Check back as we get your ready for Orlando City’s match this weekend. Vamos Orlando!