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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 21/05/2025

Personal Note: My father was moved to a hospice facility last week, so priorities are and will be elsewhere for the immediate future. Thus, the wsoccerexpress.bsky.social account and its associated website will most likely not have any new content for a while.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 10/05/2025

In CONMEBOL qualifying for the FIFA U-17 WWC, all five teams in Group A of the 1st round ended on 5 points. The top 3 teams in each group advance to the 2nd round. Of those 6, 4 will qualify for the U-17 WWC. Chile lost to Argentina, but a late goal (86') gave them the goal difference advantage.

Final standings of the first round of the 2025 CONMEBOL Sub 17 Femenina.

In Group A, Colombia, Paraguay, Chile, Argentina, and Venezuela all ended on 5 points (1 win, 2 draws, 2 losses). Colombia had a +2 goal difference, Paraguay at +1, Chile at zero, Argentina at -1, and Venezuela at -2.

In Group B, Brazil topped the group with 4 wins and a full 12 points, Ecuador had 3 wins and a loss, so 9 points. Peru finished third with 6 points via 2 wins and 2 losses. Uruguay had a lone win and 3 losses and finished fourth, while Bolivia went winless and finished last.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 05/04/2025

correcting myself: Riley Kennedy is listed as a midfielder

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 02/04/2025

Four NWSL pros — Barbra Banda, Prisca Chilufya, and Grace Chanda of the Orlando Pride and Bay FC's Rachael Kundananji — were withdrawn from Zambia's squad for a friendly tournament in China due to concerns over "additional travel measures introduced by the new administration in the [USA]."

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 20/03/2025

The USWNT will be playing on this temporary grass pitch for the April 5 friendly against Brazil.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 16/02/2025

Both Rodman and Wilson have "fitness" rationales for their absences, while Swanson's is due to unspecified "personal commitments", so there's not really any reasonable grounds to think that Hayes is omitting any of the trio primarily to try other players.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 01/12/2024

(5/5) Regarding when to blow the whistle, this "Ask the Ref" blog post may not be fully current (it's from 2007), but I think the basic sentiments expressed are still valid. asktheref.com/Search.asp?Q...

asktheref.com

Soccer Rules Q&A Search AskTheref.com

Search soccer rules question and answers provided by an international panel of certified referees

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 01/12/2024

Due to the VAR reversal, the USA effectively lost possession via a dropped ball to England's goalkeeper (Law 8.2). A more fair alternative would have been an indirect free kick for the USA, if not inside the penalty area, then just outside it. But that would require a change in the Laws. (4/5)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 01/12/2024

...which could penalize the attacking team, so different mechanics need to be used. E.g, a "slow whistle" or "silent advantage" to let the play continue a bit. Here, there doesn't seem to be any delay by the referee. So, I'm curious if that was an error or a difference in guidelines. (3/5)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 01/12/2024

Had there not been VAR, the penalty call most likely would not have been reversed, so the decision probably would have given the USA a better chance of scoring a goal versus a no-call. However, VAR greatly increases the chance of a reversal... (2/5) Screenshot Source: youtu.be/5GFMGVfSgSA?...

youtu.be

Inglaterra vs. USA | Highlights USWNT | Telemundo Deportes

YouTube video by Telemundo Deportes

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 01/12/2024

On the reversed PK decision in the USWNT-England friendly, this seems like a case when the call was made too quickly and actually "stopped a promising attack" (to borrow a phrase from Law 12), as three other USA players were open in the penalty area. (1/5)

Video still at the 63:34 mark, just as referee blows her whistle and points to the penalty spot.

#24 Yazmeen Ryan had control of the ball. #10 Lindsey Horan was open above the penalty spot. On the upper left of the box, #7 Alyssa Thompson was wide open. Also, #6 Lynn Williams was a few yards outside the 6-yard box and clear of her defender, so she could have received the ball as well. Additionally, #16Rose Lavelle was open outside the box, though just behind the referee,

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

(2/2) Here's a link to the full article and photograph. That page also has a text version (via OCR, not perfect). www.newspapers.com/article/the-...

newspapers.com

Young guns help keep UNC on top

Clipping found in The Chapel Hill News published in Chapel Hill, North Carolina on 9/29/1989. Young guns help keep UNC on top

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

Before the Triple Espresso, there was the "Young Guns"... Alt text: 1989 photo of current England head coach Sarina Wiegman (R) plus USWNT legends Mia Hamm (L) & Kristine Lilly (C) in their UNC uniforms, cowboy hats, & bandanas. Two are holding firearms. (1/2) www.newspapers.com/article/the-...

newspapers.com

Young guns help keep UNC on top (cropped)

Clipping found in The Chapel Hill News published in Chapel Hill, North Carolina on 9/29/1989. Young guns help keep UNC on top (cropped)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 30/10/2024

To my knowledge, not recently. Szymanowski was on Argentina's Concacaf W Gold Cup roster in February, as a late replacement for Lorena Benitez, but did not play any minutes.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 15/10/2024

Looks like NWSL Boston first came up with the "BOS Nation FC" idea over 10 months ago. BOSNation[dot]com was registered on December 4, 2023, and redirects to BOSNationFC[dot]com, which was registered 10 days later. (see screenshots) www.cbssports.com/soccer/news/...

ICANN Lookup result for "bosnation.com". The domain was first registered on "2023-12-04" at "17:56:16 UTC".

ICANN Lookup result for "bosnationfc.com". The domain was first registered on "2023-12-14" at "20:21:28 UTC".

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 11/10/2024

Oof. Duke is up 2-nil against Stanford within 5 minutes. Maggie Graham with a 15-second brace (3:53, 4:07).

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 26/09/2024

My father's T-Mobile SIM card, which was newer ("micro"-sized), but on the same 'legacy' prepaid plan, also stopped working on the same day, so it appears that this was something on T-Mo's end. Moved both accounts to new SIM cards and everything's working normally. (2/2)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 26/09/2024

Had to retire a 16-year-old SIM card after it would no longer connect to T-Mobile's towers. It was for a prepaid line I used as a back-up, so temporarily losing service was just an annoyance. Except, it's the number I tend to use for 2FA. (1/2)

Back and front of a full-sized T-Mobile SIM card, "39.01a" vintage. The copper contacts have three wear lines and other scratches, plus some dust in the crevices. The SIM card number is blurred.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 26/09/2024

The final paragraph: "Therefore this book consists of Fitzgerald cleverness. So do Fitzgerald's other books. And perhaps the author can go on to the end of his career making books out of cleverness. But, if he does, the end of his career will be preceded by the end of his fame."

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 26/09/2024

Here's one for the "Takes That Aged Badly" file... "F. Scott Fitzgerald Pens New but Not Great Novel" (short review of 'The Great Gatsby') www.newspapers.com/article/the-...

newspapers.com

F. Scott Fitzgerald Pens New but Not Great Novel

Clipping found in The Plain Dealer published in Cleveland, Ohio on 5/23/1925. F. Scott Fitzgerald Pens New but Not Great Novel

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/09/2024

This match had way more drama than what I had originally budgeted for emotionally.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 04/09/2024

That Mexico-Australia U-20 WWC match was the soccer gods equivalent of "right result, wrong reasons". (AUS missed a PK, MEX's 1st goal was a wild deflection off a teammate that then hit a goalpost and went in.)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 13/08/2024

Update on that article about Major League Soccer starting a professional women's soccer league: The website "has decided to retract the story". Screenshot from X .com:

Combined text from four X.com posts:

Scarves and Spikes prides itself on being a reliable source of coverage for news about Atlanta United and MLS as a whole.

That said, we don’t want to be afraid to admit when we’ve missed the mark, and this is one of those times.

On Sunday night, we published a story from a writer who did his best to follow ethical reporting guidelines based on information from numerous sources he was in contact with. We’ve made the decision to retract that story.

We never intended to disseminate inaccurate reporting — our goal is to build your trust, and we are committed to improving our editing and fact-checking protocols to ensure the accuracy of our reporting.

We always strive to provide accurate reporting that meets long-standing industry standards and we will work hard to ensure our work better reflects that going forward.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/08/2024

Messed up the threading: bsky.app/profile/rd18...

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/08/2024

Also, the NWSL could end up partnering with the MLS for a women's equivalent of the MLS Next Pro and perhaps a girls youth league, which would finally give all of the NWSL teams a youth academy and reserve teams. (12/end)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/08/2024

Bonus thoughts... The USSF can help secure the NWSL's standing as the top women's professional league by increasing the standards for a Division I league (namely stadium size and financial requirements) to effectively exclude the USL Super League and a potential women's MLS Next Pro. (11/?)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/08/2024

Wrapping it up... Until more verified information comes to light, there's not really any hard evidence that this proposed women's league from MLS would be an NWSL competitor or cannibalize teams from the league. (10/?)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/08/2024

The article does have a mention of MLS Next Pro, but the context supports the idea that the MLS's proposed women's league will not be on the same level as the NWSL. The WPSL PRO discussed in the article is expected to be sanctioned as a Division III league (the lowest). (9/?)

Multiple sources have also stated that the Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL) will be involved in this new league in some capacity. While WPSL leadership has directly informed Scarves and Spikes that the third-division WPSL Pro (launching in 2025) is not involved with the league, the amateur-level league — which began play in 1998 — has been in negotiations with MLS, per sources. The specifics of these negotiations are unknown at this time, but sources told Scarves and Spikes that they would not be surprised if the league is used as a reserve league similar to MLS NEXT Pro.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/08/2024

It would make much more sense that the NYCFC and NYRB would be on a lower tier like the USL Super League's Brooklyn FC. (8/?)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/08/2024

A women's MLS Next Pro would compete on the same tier as the USL Super League. With the caveat that the list of potential teams is almost entirely speculative, I don't see how the NYC area could support 3 major women's pro teams: Gotham FC plus women's teams of NYCFC and NYRB. (7/?)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/08/2024

The article notes the part of the reason for the new league is the USL Super League (a new women's pro league that starts its inaugural season this week). The Super League is essentially a level below the NWSL on the U.S. pyramid, although it is sanctioned as a Division I league. (6/?)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/08/2024

Outside of the paragraph about the NWSL clubs, the proposed "professional women's soccer league" discussed in the article seems to be a better fit for a women's MLS Next Pro than a NWSL direct competitor. (5/?)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/08/2024

Second, MLS Commissioner Don Garber has openly discussed women's versions of MLS Next (which was created in the wake of the demise of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy) and MLS Next Pro (mostly farm teams with some independents). (4/?)

Garber also left open the possibility of building out a women’s counterpart to MLS Next Pro, Major League Soccer’s developmental league.

“With MLS Next Pro, we’re building a third division in our country,” said Garber. “(Soon,) we’ll have a hell of a lot more teams than we have today. And as we’re going out and building professional soccer at that level, in many, many markets outside of the MLS world, there’s no reason to think that at some point that there shouldn’t be an MLS Next Pro women’s division. Whether we do that on our own or whether we do that with the NWSL is still to be seen. But it makes sense, as we think about ‘the MLS way’ that is all about efficiency and productivity, and trying to lead, and lead with our resources, we ought to be able to figure out a way to further the growth of the women’s game. We have no plans on doing that today, but we ought to be thinking about how to do that tomorrow.”

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/08/2024

This paragraph is the only indication that the proposed league would be a direct competitor and cannibalize teams from the NWSL. First, the article is based on anonymous sources, so it's unclear how in the loop the sources are. (3/?)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/08/2024

Here's the most concerning paragraph from the article: "...NWSL clubs under MLS ownership would be part of the minimum ten inaugural teams. Like MLS, the NWSL is a single-entity league, so there would be a buyout/liquidated damages clause for release from the league." (2/?)

Along with the cities mentioned above, NWSL clubs under MLS ownership would be part of the minimum ten inaugural teams. Like MLS, the NWSL is a single-entity league, so there would be a buyout/liquidated damages clause for release from the league. However, the exact details of that clause these clubs would need to use are unknown.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 12/08/2024

So, this article was posted about an hour ago about Major League Soccer planning to launch "a professional women’s soccer league". Here's why I don't think there's enough evidence yet to think that this will be a direct competitor of the NWSL. (1/?) scarvesandspikes.com/2024/08/11/e...

scarvesandspikes.com

Exclusive: MLS planning launch of women’s league after 2027 Women’s World Cup

A new professional women's soccer league operated by Major League Soccer is planned to begin after the 2027 Women’s World Cup.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 11/08/2024

Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised to learn that there was pressure from the athletic dept to resign. Also, this wouldn't be the first time that Dorrance suddenly resigned to allow his preferred successor to take over. The below excerpt is from a post that I wrote: wsoccerexpress.com/2012/10/18/u...

HIRING PROCESS — Dorrance, concerned that U.S. Soccer would choose the next head coach based on politics rather than what was best for the USWNT, groomed DiCicco to be his heir apparent and planned to used his last set of the matches, the 1994 Chiquita Cup, as DiCicco’s unofficial trial run as head coach. Two days before the tournament, and only sixteen days before CONCACAF qualifying for the 1995 Women’s World Cup, Dorrance informed U.S. Soccer of his plans to let DiCicco be acting coach. However, the next day, it was reported that Dorrance had resigned and DiCicco had been named the next head coach. But, the day after that, it was clarified that Dorrance would stay on through qualifying in a nominal capacity.

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Reposted by RD Welch

Women's Soccer Express @wsoccerexpress.bsky.social · 09/08/2024

⭐Reminder⭐ The women's soccer ⚽🥇gold medal match between the USWNT and Brazil is on Saturday and kicks off at 11:00 a.m. EDT (8:00 a.m. PDT). 📺TV: NBC / Telemundo 💻Streaming: Peacock (sub req'd), NBC Sports app, NBCOlympics.com (latter two require cable/satellite/etc. log-in)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 31/07/2024

Coffey is very, very lucky to not have been given a second yellow for that last foul (56'). #USWNT

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Reposted by RD Welch

Corey @coreyjrowe.bsky.social · 26/07/2024

If anyone's wondering how things are going on the hellsite: This setting was just turned on by default for everyone. if you still have an account with content, go log in and disable this so Grok can't use your tweets as training data. Direct link: twitter.com/settings/gro...

"Allow your posts as well as your interactions, inputs, and results with Grok to be used for training and fine-tuning"

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 25/07/2024

And that's why you don't do zonal marking on a corner kick. And, now Germany is 3-nil up.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 05/07/2024

⚽ #NWSL Referee Assignments Sunday (7/7): •Courage vs. Racing: Anya Voigt (VAR: Shawn Tehini) •Reign vs. Royals: Matt Thompson (VAR: Alexandra Billeter) Source: proreferees.com/2024/07/03/2...

proreferees.com

NWSL Assignments: Week 15 - Professional Referee Organization ®

The assignments for Week 15 of the 2024 National Women’s Soccer League regular season.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 05/07/2024

⚽ #NWSL Referee Assignments Saturday (7/6): •Red Stars vs. Dash: Abdou Ndiaye (VAR: Kevin Broadley) •Current vs. Pride: Joshua Encarnacion (VAR: Kevin Broadley) •Angel City vs. Gotham: Ekaterina Koroleva (VAR: Shawn Tehini) •Bay vs. Spirit: Matthew Corrigan (VAR: Alexandra Billeter)

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 05/07/2024

⚽ #NWSL Referee Assignments Friday (7/5): •Thorns vs. Wave: Alexandra Billeter (VAR: Adorae Monroy) Source: proreferees.com/2024/07/03/2...

proreferees.com

NWSL Assignments: Week 15 - Professional Referee Organization ®

The assignments for Week 15 of the 2024 National Women’s Soccer League regular season.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 05/07/2024

Excel achievement unlocked! So, VBA it is...

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 28/06/2024

#NWSL ⚽ Referee Assignments Sunday (6/30): •Gotham vs. Reign: Elvis Osmanovic (VAR: Kevin Broadley) •Angel City vs. Pride: Elijio Arreguin (VAR: Shawn Tehini) Source: proreferees.com/2024/06/26/2...

proreferees.com

NWSL Assignments: Week 14 - Professional Referee Organization ®

The assignments for Week 14 of the 2024 National Women’s Soccer League regular season.

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RD Welch @rd1899.bsky.social · 28/06/2024

#NWSL ⚽ Referee Assignments Saturday (6/29): •Racing vs. Bay: Laura Rodriguez (VAR: Kevin Broadley) •Spirit vs. Courage: Rebecca Pagan (VAR: Shawn Tehini) •Royals vs. Thorns: Sergii Demianchuk (VAR: Kevin Broadley) Source: proreferees.com/2024/06/26/2...

proreferees.com

NWSL Assignments: Week 14 - Professional Referee Organization ®

The assignments for Week 14 of the 2024 National Women’s Soccer League regular season.

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