Podcasts about backheeled

For the Glory KC is back with the 133rd episode of the show!Sporting Kansas City had a very heavy week. After the unexpected passing of former teammate Gadi Kinda, the team had to try to find a way to host the New England Revolution. It looked grim early as the team fell down 2-0 before staging a wild eight minutes in the second half where they scored three times to take the lead.Ultimately, the Revs stole a goal late to tie it, but the outburst of goals was the loudest I can remember hearing Children's Mercy Park in a very long time.Sheena and I break down key moments from the game from Daniel Salloi's standout performance to Zorhan Bassong lighting a spark in the midfield.Coursing through everything was the weight of Kinda's passing. From the pre-game warm-up tops to the "Gadi" armbands, video memorials, on field tributes and everything in between, his presence was felt in the stadium.We also got an injury update on Jake Davis, who popped back onto the injury report and showed up in a boot on Saturday. Don't worry, he said he doesn't even need it, so it's likely just a precaution.The KC Current continued their winning ways on Saturday night. They went to Illinois and dispatched the Chicago Stars 3-1 behind goals from Bia, Temwa Chawinga and Kayla Sharples. We also had to work through the news of the devastating injuries to Alana Cook and Debinha as well as the unbelievably positive news of Lo LaBonta's first call-up by the USWNT.The podcast also got off the rails more than usual. Did you ever want to know when boxed mac and cheese was invented? Well, we've got you covered for some reason.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:Bassong called upSKC II lose againVenezia relegated, is Busio available?Here is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):Sporting KC have a wild comeback - 10:52Gadi Kinda - 50:15KC Current win again! - 1:00:09Kansas City Current Injuries and Lo's Call-up! - 1:06:53Digital Crawl - 1:16:45Upcoming GamesUSWNT vs. China, Saturday, May 31st at 4:30PM CDTSporting KC at Houston Dynamo, Saturday, May 31st at 7:30PMSKC II vs. Colorado Rapids II, Sunday, June 1st at 12:00PMKC Current have a bye (International Break)As a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.

On today's show, Joe Lowery dives into some of the biggest hits from MLS's Rivalry Week, discussing Inter Miami's latest defeat at the hands of Orlando City, El Trafico and Greg Vanney's new LA Galaxy contract, Nashville SC's new era, Charlotte FC's problems, and more.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the Glory KC is back with the 132nd episode of the show after an unexpected week off. Sporting Kansas City had a very busy week loaded with (frankly, ridiculous) travel. After nearly 5,000 miles, they picked up two hard fought points against St. Louis City SC and San Diego FC. The draw against their cross-state rivals definitely felt like a victory as they snatched the point from the jaws of defeat. The San Diego game was more of a slog, as though a team had travelled a ton, heavily rotated their lineup, missed one of their two Designated Players and were playing a superior opponent at home. Despite that, they still earned a draw.Sheena returns after a brief hiatus, and we work our way through both of those games as well as a brief mention of the 1-0 loss to the Portland Timbers from last week we didn't get to cover.The theme of the three games was definitely defense, villains and goalkeeping. All three get high marks as Shapi Suleymanov and Jansen Miller tortured the St. Louis fans. Pulskamp also stood on his head across all three games. And Robert Voloder may have cemented himself as the starter next to Miller at center back, with a revolving door of fullbacks playing next to them.Since our last episode, MLS also released roster compositions for all 30 MLS teams. Sporting KC have no surprises with two open international spots and the ability to add a Designated Player along with a U-22 Initiative player, or two U-22 signings. To aid in that addition this summer is $1,928,679 in General Allocation Money (GAM), of which at least $500,000 is burning a hole in their pocket and has to be spent. Also, we get into the movement of the LAFC/SKC game from a crowded week to an international break weekend.The KC Current got back to their winning ways with us taking the last week off. They beat Bay FC 4-1 before heading on the road to take out the Orlando Pride 1-0. The biggest questions coming off the victory that further cemented their first-place status is, at what cost did it come? Alana Cook, Debinha and Temwa Chawinga all left the game injured.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:SKC II slightly improving on their strugglesFormer SKC player updates on CJ Sapong, Kei Kamara and Gianluca BusioGreg Vanney gets his contract extended after the worst start to a season in MLS historyHere is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):A Hard Fought SKC Point against San Diego - 6:36Sporting KC's big comeback vs St. Louis - 18:41A quick look at SKC vs. Portland - 48:10Sporting KC have room to spend - 52:17KC Current slip by Orlando and crush Bay FC - 1:06:28Digital Crawl - 1:14:33Upcoming GamesSKC II vs. LAFC2, Friday, May 23rd at 6:00PM CDT KC Current vs. Chicago Stars, Saturday, May 24th at 6:30PMSporting KC vs New England Revolution, Saturday, May 24th at 7:30PMAs a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.

After the season's first set of midweek MLS matches, Joe Lowery dives into the latest and greatest from around the league. From Bruce Arena taking up impromptu body guard duties for Lionel Messi to Kei Kamara making his debut for yet another club, there was plenty to cover.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week's special episode of “This League”, the Backheeled crew was joined by Orange County SC head coach Danny Stone to talk all things Orange County and USL Championship.Want to watch this episode instead? Click here. You'll get to see smiling faces and neat graphics.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On today's show, Joe Lowery looks back at the latest action from around MLS, diving into new lows for Atlanta United and the LA Galaxy, a pair of contenders battling it out in both conferences, Minnesota United's statement win over Inter Miami, and so much more.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We were all locked in for a chance at up to 16 Cupsets in this round of the USOC action and boy were we disappointed. Just one lone upset (all hails the hounds) by a lower division team has David getting together with Tom & Joe Lowery (Backheeled.com) to discuss what we learned. Then they talk about their favorite stories so far, Daniel Gazdag's new contract, and look forward to an interesting weekend of action.5:30 USOC MLS vs USL Dominance13:20 Biggest Performances of The USOC Round25:25 Joe Lowery On Phoenix vs Houston36:50 Whitecaps & LAFC Recent Form w/Joe44:35 Celebrating San Diego w/Joe52:00 Tom On Gazdag's New Contract & CLB vs PHI57:35 MIN Getting Ready For Miami Test1:02:30 ORL & NER Elite Defensive Squads  Soccerwise Live 2pm ET Every Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday on Youtube/Twitch/Twitter

The U.S. Open Cup's Round of 32 wrapped up last night. What happened? And what did we learn? Joe Lowery breaks it all down before examining LAFC's path into the Club World Cup and the MLS weekend to come.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On today's show, Joe Lowery dives into the latest from around MLS. From the Columbus Crew continuing to handle whatever gets thrown at them to the West stepping up to give the Vancouver Whitecaps a run for their money to history being made on Sunday, there was plenty of ground to cover.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the Glory KC is back with the 131st episode of the show!Sporting Kansas City made Major League Soccer history this week. While it's not the history that anyone really wants to make, taking zero shots in a game, the part that is historic is they won. No team in the 30 years of MLS has ever failed to take a single shot and still found a way to win.The 1-0 win over the basement dwelling LA Galaxy wasn't easy. Los Angeles had two of their Designated Players in the starting lineup and arguably their strongest lineup since MLS Cup 2024. Despite that, they fell for Sporting KC's first home 1-0 win since August 27, 2022 against the San Jose Earthquakes. The Galaxy's own goal from captain Yoshida, left SKC with a 0.00 expected goals (xG) mark, in victory.The game featured an amazing defensive output from goalkeeper John Pulskamp and center backs Jansen Miller and Robert Voloder (earning Robi team of the week honors). It also featured a trio of injuries for Logan Ndenbe and LA's DPs, Gabriel Pec and Joseph Paintsil. On top of everything else it was Star Wars night and the Sporting KC media game. To cover all of that, guest host Kevin Ferstl of Seven.One Magazine joined me for the show with Sheena out of town (she's back next week).Despite the good results in Kansas City, the same wasn't present for the KC Current who lost 1-0 on the road to the Seattle Reign in controversial fashion.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:SKC II continue their strugglesVancouver Whitecaps make CCC finalDesiree Scott's first professional goal!Here is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):Sporting KC are breaking records - 9:12KC Current lose with controversy - 53:22Digital Crawl - 1:06:28Upcoming GamesSporting KC @ Portland Timbers - Sat. May 10th at 9:30PM CDTKC Current vs. Bay FC - Sun. May 11th at 11:50AM SKC II have an off weekAs a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.

On today's show, Joe Lowery dives into the Vancouver Whitecaps' victory over Inter Miami in the Concacaf Champions Cup semifinals. What's been going right for Vancouver as they march towards continental glory? That -- plus a look at Inter Miami's latest failure -- on the show.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to This League!, our show covering the USL Championship's biggest stories, characters, and on-field action. Every week, the Backheeled crew runs the Championship's gauntlet to provide fresh observations from around the league. From the very first weekend of the expanded Jagermeister Cup to a data deep-dive, we covered a ton of ground.Want to watch this episode instead? Click here. You'll get to see smiling faces and neat graphics.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After another packed weekend of MLS action, Joe Lowery dives into the latest from around the league. The Vancouver Whitecaps won again! Minnesota United have officially signed Julian Gressel! Can FC Cincinnati keep winning with such fine margins? Oh, and Nashville SC just scored a touchdown! All that -- plus Paul Pogba to DC United?! -- on the show.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the Glory KC is back with the 130th episode of the show!Sporting Kansas City continued their up and down form with a loss to FC Cincinnati after a fun win last weekend against the San Jose Earthquakes. Even though the results didn't go their way, it was a pretty competitive game. Many pundits are picking Cincy to win the Supporters Shield, MLS Cup or both and Sporting KC hung right there with them. If not for a "goal of the year candidate," maybe they earn the result.We talk about all the key moments from the Sporting KC game, including Zorhan Bassong's first professional goal, why Jacob Bartlett is taking free kicks, Keven Denkey's ridiculous goals and other random observations.Beyond just the game, it was transfer deadline week for the Major League Soccer primary transfer window and Sporting KC were busy. They made a signing and a trade and set themselves up to be active in the summer transfer window (they have to spend the GAM they acquired).The signing is 22-year-old Mexican American striker Santiago Munoz (more on him here). His arrival cleared the way for Mike Burns to deal William Agada to Real Salt Lake. Willy isn't the only former SKC player to end up in Salt Lake City this week as Johnny Russell also made the move. We talk about RSL as a rival, worse potential destinations (there is only one) and everything else related to those moves.Usually, we count on the KC Current to lift our spirits but somehow nothing went right in KC soccer (including SKC II). The Current were stunned late against the North Carolina Courage, breaking all kinds of streaks.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:SKC II signing and a two-loss weekThe NWSL is trying to start a new second divisionHere is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):Sporting KC fall in a close one with Cincy - 4:52A signing, an Agada trade and goodbye Johnny Russell - 28:08KC Current lose a stunner - 52:01Digital Crawl - 1:08:58Upcoming GamesSKC II @ Austin FC II, Friday, May 2nd at 7:30PM CDTKC Current @ Seattle Reign, Friday, May 2nd at 9:30PMSporting KC vs. LA Galaxy, Sunday, May 4th at 6:00PMAs a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.

Welcome back to This League!, our show covering the USL Championship's biggest stories, characters, and on-field action. Every week, the Backheeled crew runs the Championship's gauntlet to provide fresh observations from around the league. From the sudden absence of pushover teams to the Charleston Battery's new look to Detroit City's goal threat, we covered a ton of ground.Want to watch this episode instead? Click here. You'll get to see smiling faces and neat graphics.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We are back with another episode of “How the West will be won” and Backheeled's Joe Lowery is again in the co-pilot seat. He and Jeremiah go through the most interesting stories in the Western Conference, one of which is the retribution of Zack Steffen who has been playing very well for the Rapids.Sponsors

On today's episode, Joe Lowery dives into the biggest news from around MLS. Why is Steve Cherundolo leaving LAFC at the end of the season? What's the latest on the transfer front ahead of tomorrow's deadline? And which teams are thriving on the field after this past weekend? All that -- and more -- on the show.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We are back with another episode of “How the West will be won” and Backheeled's Joe Lowery is again in the co-pilot seat. He and Jeremiah go through the most interesting stories in the Western Conference, one of which is the retribution of Zack Steffen who has been playing very well for the Rapids.Sponsors

For the Glory KC is back with the 129th episode of the show!Sporting Kansas City played a wild, eight goal thriller over the weekend against the San Jose Earthquakes. We celebrated the double KC win too hard and had to push podcast recording until Monday and it got weird. Welcome to For the Glory KC After Dark III.When we stayed on topic, we moved through all the delightful, exciting goals from Daniel Salloi, Manu Garcia, Logan Ndenbe and Erik Thommy. Plus, so many assists, including a goalkeeper assist by John Pulskamp (and a fun story from Salloi about it).But we definitely got off topic talking Sporting KC trialist Dru Yearwood, which led into Dru Hill, the "Thong Song" and Dejan Joveljic's inappropriate gesture.We also have to discuss the officiating that could have marred the results by Joe Dickerson. He was inconsistent and missed a foul that could have really injured Ndenbe. Chicho Arango's nonsense went basically unpunished, but at least Jansen Miller continued his "villain" role.The KC Current broke the record for the most wins in a row in NWSL history. It was so dominant it was almost a little boring (though we'll take boring!) with the thorough victory over the Houston Dash. The team was depleted and still looked pretty unstoppable. And the KC Current II are back and participating in TST.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:US Open Cupset UpdateCam Duke on the moveCeCe Kizer tooHere is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):Sporting KC win a Wild 8-goal Thriller - 3:18SKC Round-up - 37:33KC Current break the Wins Record - 51:41Digital Crawl - 1:05:20Upcoming GamesSKC II vs. Tacoma Defiance, Wed. April 23rd at 6:00PM CDTSporting KC @ FC Cincinnati, Sat. April 26th at 1:30PMKC Current @ North Carolina Courage, Sat. April 26th at 6:00PMAs a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.

The latest round of the U.S. Open Cup is in the books -- and it wasn't short on storylines. Joe Lowery breaks down the Open Cup's third round and looks ahead to a big-time MLS matchup coming up on Saturday.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to This League!, our show covering the USL Championship's biggest stories, characters, and on-field action. Every week, Backheeled's John Morrissey, Peyton Gallaher, and Ryan Sýkora run the Championship's gauntlet to provide fresh observations from around the league. From the Tampa Bay Rowdies and Birmingham Legion firing their managers to a familiar face shining for New Mexico United, our trio covered a ton of ground.Want to watch this episode instead? Click here. You'll get to see smiling faces and neat graphics.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From MLS opting not to shift its calendar following the 2026 World Cup to some on-field surprises, there was plenty for Joe Lowery to dive into on this episode.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the Glory KC is back with the 128th episode of the show!Sporting Kansas City returned to their struggling ways, at least in terms of results. If Twitter were the judge, fire everyone, cut the whole team. But it's less than two weeks into Kerry Zavagnin being the coach and there was absolutely promise (at least on offence) in the second game under his leadership. Sheena and I work through the highs and lows from the game. The team showed good fight when they made two comebacks, but their third attempt didn't come off.They'll have to work on not falling behind. One reason they fell behind was all the defensive lapses. Jansen Miller actively asked to speak with the media and owned the team's failings. It was a big character moment for him on the heels of a really poor game for the defense. We also ask the question of if Miller deserved the own goal that was scored to him since Portland appeared to poke the ball into the net.In addition to that, we talked through some of the interesting refereeing decisions that kept it 11v11 for the whole 90 minutes. We debated who should take PKs after Dejan Joveljic made one and missed one and who should be the captain of this team since leadership isn't jumping out at anyone during these poor performances.Then we turn our attention to some fantastic reporting by Sam McDowell of the Kansas City Star. McDowell sat down with Mike Illig and we got a lot more information about Peter Vermes losing his job, some of the factors that went into it, what he's looking for in his next coach (and maybe Chief Soccer Officer) and a whole lot more. I highly encourage you to read Sam's work.Finally, the KC Current just kept doing what they do. They pulled off a convincing 2-0 win over the San Diego Wave on the back of goals by Debinha and Lo LaBonta. Temwa's goal scoring streak ended at eight games (again) and she won't break her own record quite yet. Plus, Vlatko Andonovski addressed the Sporting KC coaching rumor.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:USWNT 2-1 loss to BrazilUSMNT Gold Cup drawOlympic Soccer changes for 2028Here is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):Sporting KC lose a wild one - 6:04Illig talks to the KC Star - 42:58SKC Round-Up - 59:23KC Current remain perfect - 1:03:42Digital Crawl - 1:15:28Upcoming GamesKC Current vs. Houston Dash, Sat. April 19th at 6:30PM CDTSporting KC @ San Jose Earthquakes, Sat. April 19th at 9:30PMAs a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.

Between a star player moving teams and a pair of MLS clubs heading for the Concacaf Champions Cup semifinals, it's been a busy week! Joe Lowery takes you through it all -- and looks ahead to the weekend's slate of games.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to This League!, our show covering the USL Championship's biggest stories, characters, and on-field action. Every week, Backheeled's John Morrissey, Peyton Gallaher, and Ryan Sýkora run the Championship's gauntlet to provide fresh observations from around the league. From Phoenix Rising's big win on CBS to Sacramento Republic and Louisville City battling it out, our trio covered a ton of ground.Want to watch this episode instead? Click here. You'll get to see smiling faces and neat graphics.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Following the news that Inter Miami are pursuing Kevin De Bruyne as his contract expires with Manchester City, Joe Lowery discusses how Miami could land him and what it might mean for the club's long-term identity. All that -- and takeaways from the weekend's action -- on the show.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the Glory KC is back with the 127th episode of the show!Our long national nightmare is over! Sporting Kansas City have finally won a game. New interim coach Kerry Zavagnin is a perfect 1-0-0 and he got the best of Sporting KC's rival, St. Louis City SC. It put an exclamation point at the end of a tumultuous and emotional week for anyone in and around Sporting KC.Sheena and I work through the big moments of the game. From our pre-game emotions and expectations to Dejan Joveljic's breakout performance. We also talked about John Pulskamp stepping up on the night Tim Melia retired. There were post-game antics with Jake Davis and the St. Louis players as well as Jansen Miller shushing the road support. Considering he's from STL, it's even more endearing to local fans.The week wouldn't be complete without going back and reflecting on all the change and the news we got from Mike Illig and Kerry Zavagnin's pressers. Weaved into that conversation is a mini dive into my editorial about how ownership may have still botched the Peter Vermes firing.We honor Tim Melia on the week of his retirement (listen to Thad's exclusive podcast with Melia) and discuss a trade that snuck under the radar potentially for Sporting KC fans.Finally, the KC Current had the week off, but still made a bit of news on the international front and with five (!!) of the 11 players of the month coming from KC: LaBonta, Temwa, Cook, Debinha and Lorena.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:The future of the Women's World Cup (USA & UK)The Des Moines Menace being bounced from the US Open CupAnd FC 25 jersey updates for SKC and the CurrentHere is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):Sporting KC finally win, and soccer is fun again! - 6:46Mike Illig and Kerry Zavagnin pressers - 40:19SKC Round-up - 1:08:33KC Current Round-up - 1:13:44Digital Crawl - 1:16:04Upcoming GamesUSA vs. Brazil, Tues. April 8th at 9:30PM CDTSKC II vs. Minnesota United 2, Wed. April 9th at 6:00PMKC Current @ San Diego Wave, Sat. April 12th at 9:00PMSporting KC vs. Portland Timbers, Sun. April 13th at 1:15PMAs a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.

On today's show, Joe Lowery discusses MLS's potential calendar shift that could see MLS mirror Europe's biggest leagues, the Philadelphia Union's hot start to 2025, and the latest and greatest from the U.S. Open Cup.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After more than 15 years as Sporting Kansas City's manager, Peter Vermes was let go earlier this week. Why now? What went wrong? What comes next? And what's Vermes' legacy? All that -- and so much more -- on the show.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to This League!, our show covering the USL Championship's biggest stories, characters, and on-field action. Every week, Backheeled's John Morrissey, Peyton Gallaher, and Ryan Sýkora run the Championship's gauntlet to provide fresh observations from around the league. From FC Tulsa's upturn to a slew of upsets to a tactical trend sweeping the league, our trio covered a ton of ground.Want to watch this episode instead? Click here. You'll get to see smiling faces and neat graphics.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the Glory KC is back with the 125th episode of the show!We were all set to talk about another Sporting Kansas City loss when Sunday the KC Cauldron and South Stand "demanded" Peter Vermes resigns his jobs. We started there and then moved into discussing another loss.In terms of the cries for Vermes' resignation, Sheena and I get into whether we actually think this will happen and the case to be made for and against him leaving. It's also worth remembering, he's just entering this second year of a five-year extension. That contract continues to age poorly, which feels like yet another indictment of ownership.Turning our attention to the game, despite a losing effort, Sporting KC actually showed some promise against FC Dallas. There were significant changes to the lineup that paid off immediately with another Daniel Salloi goal. He's scoring 0.71 goals per 90 after only scoring 0.13/90 in 2024. Another spark may have come from the first start of Jake Davis in the midfield. We also learn Davis' unique middle name during this week's podcast.Finally, the KC Current rescue the soccer weekend yet again with a great performance back home against the Utah Royals. While it was a great day for the Current, it was a tough outing for old friend Kate Del Fava who was involved in all three goals KC scored.In other KC Current news, they had an immense number of international call-ups, and we played a mini game about how they would fare with those nine players missing. Luckily, it was just a thought experiment, as the Current have the next weekend off since NWSL doesn't play through international windows. As for those call-ups, let's list them:United States: Claire Hutton, Michelle Cooper, Alana CookBrazil: LorenaCanada: Nichelle PrinceCosta Rica: Rocky RodriguezKenya: JerekoUS U-18s: Mary Long, Katie ScottIn the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:SKC II winning in penalty kicksBoston's NWSL rebrandDenver's NWSL side announcing new facilitiesUS Open Cup broadcast rights on Paramount+Here is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):Calls for Peter Vermes to Resign - 5:32Sporting KC make progress, but still falter against Dallas - 29:17The KC Current continue to dominate - 53:13KC Current round-up - 1:01:20Digital Crawl - 1:08:50Upcoming GamesDes Moines Menace vs. Union Omaha, Wed. April 2nd at 7:30PM CDTUSWNT vs. Brazil, Sat. April 5th at 4:00PMSporting KC vs. St. Louis City SC, Sat. April 5th at 7:30PMUSA vs. Brazil, Tues. April 8th at 9:30PM SKC II and KC Current have no gamesAs a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.

On today's show, Joe Lowery dives into five eye-catching topics from around MLS, ranging from CF Montreal's odd choice to fire Laurent Courtois to a new playmaker coming to Texas to a big tactical shift out West.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to This League!, our new show covering the USL Championship's biggest stories, characters, and on-field action. Every week, Backheeled's John Morrissey, Peyton Gallaher, and Ryan Sýkora run the Championship's gauntlet to provide fresh observations from around the league. From Oakland's historic outing to Rhode Island's sophomore season to the USL's historic pro-rel vote, our trio covered a ton of ground.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The USMNT suffered the first two competitive defeats of the Mauricio Pochettino era over the last few days. What went wrong for the U.S.? And what did we learn about this team? Joe Lowery dives in.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since our last show, the Chicago Fire went on a three-game road trip and returned to Chicago with a maximum nine points! Led by goal-a-game striker Hugo Cuypers, the Fire now sit tied for second place in the Eastern Conference despite continuing to deal with injuries and absences. Alex breaks down the last few weeks and what Gregg Berhalter has this team doing so right, before being joined by Joe Lowery of Backheeled and the Total Soccer Show to discuss his Hugo Cuypers stock increasing in value, Berhalter's success amid USMNT struggles, and the biggest takeaways from the first month of the MLS season.

For the Glory KC is back with the 124th episode of the show!Sporting Kansas City dropped their most recent match with LAFC 2-0. It was their 11th loss in their last 12 games with the only other result being last week's draw against Minnesota United. Of course, we have to discuss what happened in the game and what needs to change. But the biggest question, other than the job security of Peter Vermes (which we address), is 'When will Sporting KC win again?'The upcoming schedule has games that appear more winnable than others, but nothing about recent trends suggest Sporting KC are in a good position to win. Here are the next 10 games and the team's current point total:@ FC Dallas (7 points)vs. St. Louis City (8 points)vs. Portland Timbers (7 points)@ San Jose Earthquakes (6 points)@ FC Cincinnati (7 points)vs. LA Galaxy (2 points)@ Portland Timbers (6 points)@ St. Louis City (8 points)@ San Diego FC (8 points)vs. New England Revolution (1 point)When do you realistically think Sporting KC can win a game? Let us know in the comments.Beyond the abysmal current state of Sporting Kansas City, Sheena and I delve into the results of the US Open Cup against the Des Moines Menace, talk about the Johan Ortiz signing and Alenis Vargas finds a new home.Finally, the KC Current had themselves another delightful week. They went on the road and beat the previously perfect Washington Spirit, leaving just KC and Orlando Pride as perfect teams. We delve into some bright spots in the game that included VAR (seriously), Lorena and of course Temwa, including a fantastic Temwa Chawinga stat. Then we talk about the low key signing of Friday Mukoma.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:CF Montreal fire their coachExciting MLS kit newsUSMNT's double lossPro/Rel in the USLand Denver NWSL's stadium plansHere is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):Sporting KC return to their losing ways - 3:47SKC II vs. Des Moines in the Open Cup - 32:43SKC Round-up - 40:13KC Current win a big road game - 45:10New KC Current signing - 53:59Digital Crawl - 55:59Upcoming GamesSKC II @ North Texas - Fri. March 28th at 7:45PM CDTKC Current vs. Utah Royals - Sat. March 29th at 6:30PMSporting KC @ FC Dallas - Sat. March 29th at 7:30PM As a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.

Earlier this week, the USL announced a successful vote to implement promotion and relegation across a newly designed three-tier men's professional league system. Joe Lowery dives into the news, breaking down the specifics of what happened, what it means, and what big questions remain.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to This League!, our new show covering the USL Championship's biggest stories, characters, and on-field action. Every week, Backheeled's John Morrissey, Peyton Gallaher, and Ryan Sýkora run the Championship's gauntlet to provide fresh observations from around the league.Want to watch this episode instead? Click here. You'll get to see smiling faces and neat graphics.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's MLS review time! Joe Lowery looks back at all 15 games from the weekend and asks: which teams stood out? Which teams struggled? And which games were the most entertaining? All that -- and more -- on the show.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the Glory KC is back with the 123rd episode of the show!Sporting Kansas City came back to life on Saturday night. When it looked like they were dead and destined to extend their 10-game losing streak, they clawed back for a 3-3 draw against Minnesota United. A draw isn't a win, but it's a step in the right direction. That first point of 2025 also keeps them out of the basement of the league (on goal differential, but it counts).Sheena and I work through our thoughts from the game. We talk about John Pulskamp's performance (and awful new scar).We also talk about the performance of Robert Voloder, Daniel Salloi being a spark (and giving the team wings), Memo Rodriguez, Dejan Joveljic's stunning goal and of course all the bad that led to Minnesota being up 3-0 in the first place. Overall, let's hope this is some positive momentum for Sporting KC as they host LAFC next week.And let's hear it for Kansas City weather. Wait five minutes, right? Sleet. Snow. An Orange ball. Wild times.In the SKC round-up, we talk about more signings coming to Sporting KC, Dany Rosero's injury situation, Ian James getting an important international call-up and Memo expecting his second child.Finally, the KC Current do what they do and play beautiful soccer to start the 2025 season. In a single game, they have more points than Sporting KC and it felt like more great chances created. From the glorious goal and hair of Temwa Chawinga, to the golazo of Michelle Cooper and 'the best version' of Debinha, the team showed up at Saturday's opener against the Portland Thorns.Also, we have KC Current injury updates for Bia, Gabby Robinson, Alex Pfeiffer, Regan Steigleder and Mallory Weber's situation with the team. Plus, the team made a new signing.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:SKC II vs. Des Moines MenaceFelipe Hernandez's returnTony MeolaAD Franch's new teamAnd an NWSL rebrand in BostonHere is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):SKC w/ a wild 3-3 Draw against Minnesota United - 3:16SKC round-up - 35:23KC Current win big to start 2025 - 41:25Digital Crawl - 1:03:00Upcoming GamesSKC II vs. Des Moines Menace - Wed. March 19th at 6:30PM CTKC Current @ Washington Spirit - Sat. March 22nd at 6:30PMSporting KC vs. LAFC - Sat. March 22nd at 7:30PMSKC II @ St. Louis City II - Sun. March 23rd at 4:00PMAs a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.

On today's show, Joe Lowery looks around the wide world of MLS and digs into a handful of early season takeaways. From the value of having a club-wide identity to the impact new tactical styles are having for a pair of perfect teams, there was plenty to discuss.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With Matt Doyle on vacation, Backheeled's Joe Lowery joins Jeremiah on the latest episode of “How the West will be Won.” Joe has been particularly impressed by San Diego FC and is still quite down on Austin FC. But more than anything, he thinks the West is about as wide open as it's ever been.***If you like what Joe has to say, consider becoming a Backheeled.com subscriber. You can also support Backheeled by becoming a Sounder at Heart Advocate, which comes with a complimentary subscription to Backheeled.Nos Audietis is the flagship podcast for Sounder at Heart, which became a reader-supported website on Aug. 21. You can support us by becoming a paid subscriber, learn more here. You can also watch many of their shows on YouTube.“Diversions” audio provided by Sounder at Heart subscriber Lars; find more of their music here.

The USMNT will face off against Panama next Thursday, March 20th in the Concacaf Nations League semifinal. Who did Mauricio Pochettino call up for that match and the rest of this March window? Joe Lowery breaks it all down.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With Matt Doyle on vacation, Backheeled's Joe Lowery joins Jeremiah on the latest episode of “How the West will be Won.” Joe has been particularly impressed by San Diego FC and is still quite down on Austin FC. But more than anything, he thinks the West is about as wide open as it's ever been.***If you like what Joe has to say, consider becoming a Backheeled.com subscriber. You can also support Backheeled by becoming a Sounder at Heart Advocate, which comes with a complimentary subscription to Backheeled.Nos Audietis is the flagship podcast for Sounder at Heart, which became a reader-supported website on Aug. 21. You can support us by becoming a paid subscriber, learn more here. You can also watch many of their shows on YouTube.“Diversions” audio provided by Sounder at Heart subscriber Lars; find more of their music here.

For the Glory KC is back with the 122nd episode of the show!Sporting Kansas City played their first game on full rest for the 2025 MLS season, and it seemingly didn't matter. D.C. United pulled off a 2-1 come from behind victory at home. Maybe it's rest plus chemistry that Sporting KC need. Plus, Jake Davis in the midfield. Plus... something else?Sheena and I open the episode looking for positives from Saturday's game before inevitably turning to the negatives. One list did outweigh the other, sadly.In a more fun story, we spend some time talking about what's happening at our neighbors to the north. The Des Moines Menace are signing all kinds of retired MLS players to bring some positive attention to the 2025 US Open Cup. Among those signings is Sporting KC legend and former SKC II coach, Benny Feilhaber. He'll be joined by at least eight other retired MLS players as they take on Sporting KC II in the opening round of the US Open Cup on March 19th.After that, we blitz through the Sporting KC round-up which includes an injury update for Andrew Brody, last week's SKC penalty maybe being the wrong call and why Erik Thommy is only the captain "right now," according to Peter Vermes.Finally, the KC Current get to bring us some joy with their season getting started next week. We take a quick look ahead to the season opener against the Portland Thorns.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:MLS Next Pro looking for more teams out of their primary markets ("2" teams included)Chris Rindov finds a new clubSophia Smith Wilson is pregnantand upcoming goalkeeper rule changesHere is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):Sporting KC lose their 10th straight - 1:35Benny Feilhaber is back (sort of) - 28:56SKC Round-Up - 41:10KC Current season is starting - 48:29Digital Crawl - 56:17Upcoming GamesSKC II vs. STL City II - Fri. March 14th at 6:00PM CSTKC Current vs. Portland Thorns - Sat. March 15th at 11:45AMSporting KC vs Minnesota United - Sat. March 15th at 7:30PMAs a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.

For the Glory KC is back with the 121st episode of the show!Sporting Kansas City had another poor week with two more games played and two more losses. Sheena and I try to work through if the team is truly bad or if it's a combination of a lot of other factors. Sporting KC did play four games in 11 days, and two of the games were against Inter Miami who are loaded with stars. The team also just signed three of its more critical offseason additions in Dejan Joveljic, Manu Garcia and Shapi Suleymanov. Their chemistry will take time.The good news with 32 games to go there is very little congestion the rest of the way for Sporting KC. That excuse will mostly vanish and SKC just to start talking steps in the right direction. We worked our way through the bad and the good from both games, with a greater focus on the 2-1 loss to the San Jose Earthquakes. The discussion really started around the lack of rotation, despite the short rest between the 3-1 loss to Inter Miami and the SJ game. The tired legs really seemed to be a problem, despite being up a man for over 40 minutes.The CONCACAF Champions Cup game with Miami didn't get much time this episode since no one really expected KC to advance when the game was announced. That said, we had to talk about the defensive blunders that ended the first half.There was plenty of other SKC news this week too. William Agada was rumored to be part of a trade with Real Salt Lake. Benny Feilhaber popped up in a UMKC/SKC II game as a guest player and gave us a hint about his future. Andreu Fontas retired officially. Sebastian Cruz found a new home. SKC executed a minor trade, and some other roster news came out.Sheena and I also watched the Sporting KC/St. Louis City episode of Onside, the new Apple TV+ show. It's good, we definitely recommend it.Finally, the KC Current had a slightly louder week with the release of the Teal Town secondary kit. They also made a minor trade, played a couple preseason games and made some news with the USWNT.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including: SKC II updates Jaylin Lindsay finds a new home Seattle Sounders running a "first match on us" free game promo The ref who took Messi's jersey got suspendedHere is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times): SKC lose their home opener to San Jose - 6:01 SKC bounced from CCC by Miami - 46:24 RSL called about William Agada - 53:24 SKC Round-up, Including a Benny Feilhaber update - 58:37 KC Current news - 1:13:11 Digital Crawl - 1:17:57Upcoming Games Sporting KC @ D.C. United - Saturday, March 8th at 6:30PM CST As a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.

A big show with Joe Lowery (Backheeled) joining Tom & Gass to talk through all the best stories around MLS. First they run through what we have seen so far in CCC action for the MLS sides. Specifically how worried should we be for RSL coming off the defeat to Herediano and still searching for help up top. Next Joe & Tom give their biggest Week 1 reactions, and then they preview the weekend with the storylines they're most focused on. 6:00 RSL Loss & Striker Search29:00 Tom's Week 1 Reactions39:40 Week 2 Preview Soccerwise Live 2pm ET Every Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday on Youtube/Twitch/Twitter

It's a trio of topics on today's show! Joe Lowery digs into the MLS roster profiles released by the league earlier today, looks ahead to the 2025 USL Championship season, and peers into the U.S. men's national team's player pool prior to the next month's Concacaf Nations League finals.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The first weekend of MLS's 2025 season is in the books! On today's show, Joe Lowery looks back at all 15 games from Saturday and Sunday. Which teams stood out? Which teams struggled? And which games were the most entertaining? All that -- and more -- on the show.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're just two days away from Saturday's 2025 MLS season kickoff! Over on Backheeled.com, we're dropping in-depth season previews for all 30 MLS teams. Go check those out! Here on the feed, we're hitting you with the need-to-know information for each team in the West in short-form fashion.If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a rating and subscribe to Backheeled.com for more American soccer coverage! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.