World Football: Erasing the Stigma of Playing (and Living) with Concussions

"They still can't say what's going to happen to me when I'm 50." Can you imagine going through life not knowing what will happen to your brain over the next 15 years? The number of athletes, at all levels, who suffer through post-concussion complications is staggering. Thousands of athletes—many who continue to play without any medical treatment or diagnosis—struggle through simple, everyday activities because their brains have been battered and bruised for far too long.  Thankfully, people are starting to address the rising concern about concussions head on (please pardon the pun). In soccer, the issue is as serious as ever.Former MLS Defender of the Year Jimmy Conrad is one of a growing number of soccer players in the United States—and around the world—who had to end his career prematurely because of concussions. (That's his quote at the start of the article.) Conrad was smart, though. He got out when he could live a pretty normal life, suffering from occasional headaches but still able to work out and play pickup games without any serious day-to-day medical concerns. Other players aren't so lucky. Take Taylor Twellman, for example. The former U.S. International and MLS Most Valuable Player hasn't been able to ...

New York Cosmos’ Dream Is Slowly Becoming an MLS Reality

The New York Cosmos are making a comeback to the MLS. On July 12, the Cosmos were introduced as the 10th franchise, returning to play in the North American Soccer League (NASL) in 2013.  At the same press conference, they made it no secret of the fact that their aspirations were to return to the top flight of American soccer.  On the same day mlssoccer.com reported that MLS Commissioner Don Garber was looking to put a second team in New York City.  He mentioned the New York Cosmos as one potential team, but did not delve into the topic any further. All signs point to the Cosmos looking to be that team. In 2009, The London Daily Mail reported that former owner, G Peppe Pinton, had sold the club's image rights to Paul Kemsley, former vice president of Tottenham Hotspurs.  During his tenure, Kemsley, hired an All-Star front office, including former United States player Cobi Jones and former Cosmos legend Pele. Yet no one has been more vocal about the club's direction than former French international Eric Cantona, who was named director of soccer in January 2011.Cantona has quickly become the face of the Cosmos resurgence, making no secret of his ...

MLS Playoff Predictions: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not

As the MLS season begins its stretch run, a unique dimension about the league takes shape.Unlike so many other major sports, MLS teams jockey for position and yet remain fairly close in the standings.Months of league play have done little to separate many of the teams, a sign of effective parity.So with the playoffs now beginning to emerge on the horizon, many squads still have a decent chance at postseason play.Here's a look at some of the hotter teams, and conversely some that are downright gruesome.Begin Slideshow

San Jose Earthquakes Throttle Colorado Rapids 4-1, Increase Lead Atop West

Two goals apiece from Simon Dawkins and Alan Gordon fired the San Jose Earthquakes to a 4-1 victory over Colorado Rapids Saturday on an abnormally breezy late summer evening at Buck Shaw Stadium.The win exacted a fitting measure of revenge for the Quakes, who had not lost at home since last season against—fittingly enough—Colorado. Their current unbeaten streak at Buck Shaw now extends to 14 games (10-0-4). San Jose was playing without three of its normal starters, with striker Steven Lenhart and central defenders Victor Bernardez and Jason Hernandez sitting out due to one-game suspensions incurred during last Sunday’s match against Montreal Impact. Save for a span of 10 or so nervy minutes in the second half when Colorado pulled a goal back to make it 2-1, the makeshift central defense of Ike Opara and Justin Morrow held strong.The Earthquakes didn't miss a beat. San Jose were dominant throughout, producing a vintage display that coach Frank Yallop called “one of the best” he’d seen in his almost eight seasons of managing the club (2001-03, 2008—). The win took San Jose to a league-best 15 wins and pushed their lead in the Western Conference standings to seven points over Real Salt ...

Lance Armstrong’s Problems Do Not Affect Sporting Kansas City

When the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) announced that they were charging cycling legend Lance Armstrong with taking performance-enhancing drugs, I honestly wondered if they had found something new.After all, Armstrong has never failed a drug test. Considering how long the rumors have been floating around about him, you know that he was tested. A lot. During his run of seven consecutive wins in the Tour de France, I'm sure he couldn't even look at a bathroom without some guy in a lab coat trying to hand him a plastic cup.That changed when I read the letter the USADA sent to Armstrong, his lawyer, the RadioShack cycling team and the governing body of cycling (reproduced here).The letter starts out by talking about the agency wanting to talk to cyclists about doping in the sport. They indicated they had wanted to speak with them face-to-face and have them be truthful about their experience with doping in cycling.The key, for me, was the fourth paragraph of the letter. It says:With the exception of Mr. Armstrong, every other U.S. rider contacted by USADA regarding doping in cycling agreed to meet with USADA and to truthfully and fully describe their involvement in doping and ...

David Beckham Scores Directly from Corner for LA Galaxy

David Beckham has had an interesting few weeks.Left out of Stuart Pearce's Team GB squad for the 2012 London Olympics, the former England captain played a huge role in the stunning festivities of the opening ceremony.Speeding up the River Thames, Becks delivered the torch to Sir Steve Redgrave, and the rest is history.On Thursday night, Beckham delivered again.He provided two assists and a goal in the CONCACAF Champions League against an Isidro Metapan side that couldn't contain his passing brilliance.The team from El Salvador gave it a good go, but fell 5-2 to the MLS outfit.Just before halftime, Beckham stepped up to take a routine corner. Swinging the ball near to the front post, the closest defender and keeper were caught off guard. Eventually, the ball was fumbled in for a rather strange goal.A tad fortuitous for the Manchester United legend, but remarkable nonetheless.Such a strike has been reminiscent of Beckham's recent form, where he's contributed five assists and six goals to L.A. Galaxy's difficult season.His performances continue to question whether Pearce was correct to leave him out of the Team GB's squad.Ryan Giggs only started two of four fixtures at the tournament. Beckham's current fitness would have afforded him ...

San Jose Earthquakes Top MLS Power Rankings

Every now and again, it's a good idea to take a look at how all the teams in a particular league stack up against each other.With about a third of the season left, I thought it was time to rank all the MLS teams 1-19. I have to say "about a third" because the Philadelphia Union and Chivas USA both have 12 games left, but the Montreal Impact and FC Dallas each have seven remaining.For the purposes of placing the teams on the list, I used points per game (PPG). The teams will not necessarily be ranked where you would think based on the conference standings. PPG is the fairest way to do this, considering not all teams have played the same number of games.In the case of two teams with the same PPG, goal differential will break the tie.Begin Slideshow

Ranking the MLS Home Kits from Crummiest to Coolest

The Major League Soccer season is now well past the halfway point with some teams separating themselves at the top of the pack, others struggling for those last few playoff spots and some clubs already giving up and preparing for 2013. As we hit the home stretch, let’s take a look at every MLS home kit, working our way from worst to first.Begin Slideshow

LA Galaxy Star David Beckham Gets Sculpted with H&M Sexy Statue Release

David Beckham as a chiseled Adonis gets a whole new meaning, as H&M stores will adorn their locales with sexy statues of Mr. Posh Spice. Men, you should probably expect to get dragged to an H&M at some point soon, because the David Beckham statues will attract your better halves like In-N-Outs and Fatburgers attract yours truly. Consider them something of a spiritual journey for the Beckham lover in your household. Yahoo Sports (h/t BuzzFeed) reports the Becks lookalikes were first spotted at the Regent Street store in London. From there, men across the world will get firsthand knowledge of what a man looks like. Whatever. Not seeing the difference between my sexy body in tighty whities and the Galaxy star midfielder's. Sure, he may have less in some places and more in others, but whatevs. If I run, do I not wheeze? If I kick a ball, does it not sputter a few yards before coming to a stop?Oh, I get it. For those interested in the human form without the complement of love handles or mustard stains, Glamour reports the 11-foot statues will get face time in these locations: New York City: South Street SeaportFlatIron, 5th Avenue & 23rd StreetFifth Avenue between 58th Street & 59th StreetH&M Store at Lexington Avenue & 59th ...

MLS: 5 Big Questions Heading into the Final Weeks of the Season

We are finally into the final third of the MLS season, and there are a lot of things to look forward to. Once we get to this point in the season, the stakes rise and the competition often increases as teams try to make a late-season push with the hope of eventually being crowned champions.From the playoff race to the Supporters' Shield battle, there are so many different stories to follow and questions to be answered. Here are five big questions that we should recognize as the end of the regular season approaches. Enjoy!Begin Slideshow