Sunday Cup-o-American Soccer: a new nickname, a look back at 2000, and standing up to injustice

This week was simply filled with more US Soccer news than we could jam into one website. Let’s catch up this morning on the happenings around the world of American soccer that caught our attention and enjoy a nice Cup-o-American Soccer.

USWNT players got a nudge to go abroad

It might not exactly have been a hard sell, but Lindsey Horan commented on the guidance she gave to Rose Lavelle and Sam Mewis ahead of their move to Manchester City. The WNT midfielder told Goal that there are a number of benefits to going outside of the US. Horan also commented about the 2020 season as the NWSL has split their season to adapt to the Coronavirus.

Gio has a new nickname

If Ivan Drago calls you “The American Dream” then you are “The American Dream,” it’s that simple.

The USMNT/Bundesliga connection explained

Under Jurgen Klinsmann it was clear why American players would pick Germany as a destination when moving abroad. However, that connection pre-dates Klinsmann and continues today. Tom Hamilton and Stephan Uersfeld of ESPN have a deep dive into why so many young Americans are heading to teams across the German soccer pyramid. One reason, and a much touted one leading up to the 2014 German World Cup victory, is that clubs are focused on youth development. Aside from that, the American mentality and example of Christian Pulisic make Yanks an attractive option for German clubs.

From triumph to heartbreak

2020 was supposed to be a year that the USWNT took the field once again in search of a world championship. That isn’t in the cards, but the team will be trying to avoid the fate of another legendary squad of WNT players, the 1999 World Cup champs. That team went to the 2000 Sydney Olympics searching for glory and only came home with a silver medal for their trouble. Julie Foudy spoke to ESPN about the 2000 gold medal game and what she remembers from that match and the tournament as a whole.

Landon Donovan proving to be a leader off the pitch too

Perhaps one of the overlooked qualities that Landon Donovan possesses is a willingness to stand up for what he believes in. Whether that is as a player when he advocated for himself by taking time away from soccer for his own mental health or when he un-retired to play in Mexico, this has been something that’s been a characteristic of Donovan over his career. That continued in recent weeks as the part-owner and head coach of the San Diego Loyal stood up for and with his players against injustice. In the last two weeks Loyal players have been subject to racial and homophobic slurs. The most recent incident came against Phoenix Rising and Donovan pulled his team off the field rather than complete the game. Brian Strauss of Sports Illustrated has commentary on what this means for sports and what it says about soccer in 2020.