3/19 Boot Spy: Clint Dempsey

Dempsey helped Nike unveil the Superfly III on Saturday. The boot doesn't seem all that different from the previous model, so it will be interesting to see how it is received by the soccer market. Clint was able to bury a sweet left footed shot past fellow American Tim Howard in the new cleats. The goal was his 10th of the EPL campaign, making him the first American in history to reach double digits in a season.

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No Gold Cup in Portland...Yet

The wait will be a little bit longer for all you Portlanders excited about the possibility of USA National team games. The venues for the upcoming 2011 Gold Cup were announced and the Portland is out of luck. For a full list of the locations to watch games click over to SoccerByIves. It's bound to happen eventually, but I think the US soccer federation will wait to see the response the Timbers have in their inaugural season before gifting our city a fixture.

Qatar Wins 2022 World Cup

It's a sad day for US soccer fans. I was really looking forward to having the World Cup back in the United States. FIFA voted today and announced Qatar will be the first middle eastern country to host the event.

At least we will get to see the island stadium get built

Bring the World Cup Back to the States

On Thursday FIFA will announce the homes of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. The United States is the front runner to host 2022 while Russia looks like the favorite to win the bid for 2018. Having the World Cup back in the US will be huge for the sport. The US soccer federation will have 11 years to prepare for the event and young players will have dreams of playing for the National team on home soil. I plan on visiting Brazil in 4 years for the 2014 cup, and to have a second opportunity to watch World Cup games in Seattle 8 years later would be another great life experience. Be sure to check the news on Thursday for the announcements!

Dempsey Scores for Fulham

Watch as Dempsey rises above the crowd to nod home the equalizer. He has now poured in 5 goals in league play this season. Anyone want to take a guess at how many he will have at the end of the year? I'll go with 9 goals in league play.

March 26: USA vs. Argentina in Seattle?

Rumor has it ESPN Deportes is confirming an upcoming friendly between the United States and Argentina to be played at Qwest Field in Seattle on March 26th.

Who is up for a road trip?

Vancouver Whitecaps Set to Sign Jay Demerit

The Vancouver Whitecaps have called for a 10 AM press conference Thursday morning to unveil their first player signing. From the looks of it Jay Demerit will be joining the expansion side. Signing a national team star with their first announcement is a solid move and will certainly catch every teams attention. Most clubs in MLS can only dream of having a star center back as experienced as Jay.

It will be interesting to see what Jay's pay will be this season. I doubt he has been signed as a designated player for the Whitecaps, but I can't imagine he would have signed for anything less than $300 thousand.

Hopefully the Portland Timbers will make some big announcements in the next couple months. The coaching staff has been traveling the globe extensively looking for raw talent. We will definitely need some strong attacking players to deal with Demerit and the rest of Vancouver's back line.