The Immigration Issue, starring Diego Fagundez

All we know currently is that Diego Fagundez received permanent resident status in 2013, and he is currently 19 years old, playing for the Uruguay U-20s. His parents emigrated from Montevideo, Uruguay, when Diego was 5 years old. Under federal law, this begins a 5-year (3-year if he marries an American citizen) wait for citizenship, time a soccer player does not have if he wishes to represent his adopted home at international competition. The worst part is that Fagundez cannot leave the Revolution to develop as a player even further due to a residency requirement as part of his citizenship application. A citizenship application takes months to complete, and some people (clearly not Diego) can fail the English test as part of the exam.

So, for the purposes of this blog, let us assume that Diego's parents did everything they were supposed to do to get citizenship. Even with the 5-year wait period, Diego would have become a citizen at age 10, and we wouldn't even be discussing this issue. Now, we have to assume that his parents faltered somewhere along that line of citizenship application or were not interested in becoming citizens themselves. If that is the case, they (and Diego) should have been deported once it was discovered that they had either overstayed their visa or, even worse, arrived illegally. Now, if I am missing key facts of the case, please let me know so I can correct this blog at a later date with the facts of the case.

In both scenarios I just described, we should not be having this discussion, but we are. This is a subject of President Obama's amnesty proposal that was declined by Congress, providing relief to those people who have stayed a considerable amount of time in America after being brought over by their parents at a young age. Amnesty would definitely help Diego out, but there is no guarantee that he would even become a US citizen even with Obama's amnesty. So, let us propose a new, radical solution to the problem: change US soccer policy to match the policy of FIFA for their international eligibility requirements. According to the nationality requirements, Diego would fit letter d because he has lived continuously in the United States since the age of 5. That is plenty of time for Diego to get scouted by the US national team and to receive US call-ups. Now, he could have rejected those call-ups in order to wait on Uruguay, but that would have been his decision, not our government's. I can fully understand him not wanting to wait 5 years to play for the country he's lived in for most of his life. Bottom line: we need immigration reform, and we need it now!

(Most of the info in this blog is taken from this article. Now, am I a proponent of amnesty? No, but that is a solution to Diego's issue.)

What the Cosmos Give NY Right Now... and What Other NASL Clubs Could Offer

Stability.

That's it. Stability.

The Red Bulls have just fired the heart and soul of their team Mike Petke after 2 pretty successful seasons with the MLS outlet as manager. New York City FC has what is being called "Lampardgate", the Frank Lampard situation. In contrast, the Cosmos give New York stability in time of chaos. They have just signed Giovanni Savarese and his assistants to contract extensions. They have recently signed former MLS player Adam Moffat to a deal, but, due to club policy, the terms were undisclosed. If undisclosed deals are the only thing holding the Cosmos (and the NASL) back from as much transparency as can be allowed, I think we're in for a revolution.

Oh, and go check out Chris Kessell's pro/rel blog for more pro pro/rel articles in this US soccer offseason.

One more thing: Fox Sports 2 is not available on Comcast... at all. So, for those of us that can't get
FS2 on their TVs, I'm not sure that there is an online option for viewing the US-Chile game later this month.

Happy New Year... NYCFC Liars

According to numerous media outlets, Frank Lampard was never owned by New York City Football Club, despite reports in July that he was their property on loan at Manchester City. In no way am I directing any blame at Mr. Lampard... this will be my biggest rant to date. The Third Rail, NYCFC's supporter's group, has released a very tame statement "denouncing" City Football Group and their handling of the Lampard business. This is how I would have done things:

Dear Members,


As you well know, we have been lied to by our "club", New York City FC, about the very reason we are all season ticket holders and once-proud supporters of this joke of a club. From henceforth, we will not be affiliated with New York City FC, nor will we give them another second of our time or money. In fact, I will be in touch with our ticket rep on January 2nd to demand answers about the Lampard situation. If I do not hear an acceptable answer, I will ask all of you to turn in your tickets for your money back. You will then be free to support whatever other club you wish to support. This has been a good 6-month ride, but don't blame me, blame NYCFC.

Statement:

We at the Third Rail are disgusted and appalled at the mishandling of the Frank Lampard situation by New York City Football Club and City Football Group. Beause of this, we will no longer affiliate with New York City FC. We apologize for any inconvenience to all of you, and we will attempt to get your money back if you hand in your season tickets to us.

Open Letter to New York City's Political and Business Leaders

To Whom it May Concern:

Your newest soccer team, New York City FC, has made a tremendous PR blunder by writing a check their mouths couldn't cash: signing Frank Lampard... only to have him stolen by Manchester City FC until the end of the Barclays Premier League season in May. I do not need to tell you how special New York is as a city to the United States and to the world, and your sports teams should be some of the best in the world at their sports. With that said, I think it is time that you publicly condemn every fan of NYCFC and the owner of City Football Group, the parent company of NYCFC, Manchester City, and Melbourne City in Australia, for taking an action in tremendous bad faith to the city that deserves (and needs) the best players in the world playing in Yankee Stadium (for the time being, until they get a stadium of their own). Even though this may be hard for most of you, I would also like a few words said against the Yankees for not showing any spine in their part of the deal to bring a soccer team to the New York city limits. In response to the disrespect, I would urge you strongly to support the one soccer team in New York that bows to no one, and the one that has brought the likes of Pele, Beckenbauer, and Chinaglia to New York to finish their soccer careers: the New York Cosmos. Yes, they play on Long Island, but if New York City got behind them and supported them without fail, they could get the first modern-day soccer-specific stadium in the city limits. Yes, they play in the "second division", but there is no second division without a system of promotion and relegation to define the divisions.

I hope this letter finds you well, and may all of you have a wonderful holiday season and a prosperous New Year.

J.T. Dulany

You Start the Hype Train, I'm Not On Board

Did GedionZalalemjust become a USA citizen? #USMNT http://t.co/lgkzrxQlnL pic.twitter.com/uQuab3lfmw
— Stars and Stripes FC (@StarsStripesFC) December 23, 2014

I sincerely think this tweet means absolutely nothing unless it had been paired up with a press release. Zelalem would be a great addition to the US squad for the future, but overhyping him as the next big thing is misguided. And to think that an emoji of an American flag is enough to cause this much uproar over a subject? That's ludicrous. Again, let's wait for an official announcement before getting behind this tweet and running with fake headlines.

Reaction to the MLS State of the League Address

First of all, I'll provide you with a link to the video at the end of the blog for all of you to watch it.

First, Don Garber touched on the MLS Cup Final to be played on December 7 between New England and LA. Next, he talked about Landon Donovan retiring and Thierry Henry leaving MLS and how thankful he is to have had such great players playing in MLS. Not surprised, given that this is a State of the League address. However, He also said that Henry was "the first person who believed" that MLS would become "one of the rising leagues in the world." More reaction later.
Next, he talked about the World Cup and how MLS benefitted from it. However, the MLS World Cup bump was almost non-existent when it comes to butts in the seats. He also talked about MLS players in the development system and how that is the backbone of the national team. He also said that if Canada fails to qualify for the World Cup during his tenure as commissioner, he'll feel like he failed in his job. It is NOT the responsibility of MLS to develop players. That belongs to the clubs themselves. That's one part he fails to recognize.

Anyway, Twitter user @SomeCosmosFan has more reaction to this in his Twitter timeline, so I will direct you to him.

Here is what I would've said:

"Thank you to our teams, sponsors, and supporters. Major League Soccer has failed you all in the way we do business. I promise as commissioner that will change immediately. No, allocation money is NOT a hard concept to understand, and all of you should see what goes into the money. Secondly, I will ask the MLS accounting team to open our books... all of them, so all of you supporters can see our financial statements, and I welcome all clubs to do so as well. 2014 was a great year due to the World Cup, let's make 2015 even better. And, by 2020, MLS will turn over a new leaf and establish promotion and relegation, giving back all franchise fees and allowing clubs to be clubs. Thank you."

My Fox World Cup 2018 Announcing Team

As the news trickles in about recent contract discussions with Lalas, Twellman, and McBride, here is my dream team for the 2018 World Cup: (assuming all contracts are up)

Studio Hosts
Bob Ley, Gary Lineker, Rebecca Lowe
Studio Analysts
Alexi Lalas, Gary Neville, Michael Ballack, Tim Howard, Franz Beckenbauer, Robbie Earle, Robbie Mustoe, Kyle Martino, Colin Udoh, Mario Kempes
Sideline Reporters
Geoff Skelling, Monica Gonzalez, Landon Donovan
Announcing Teams
Ian Darke/Steve McManaman (A team; used for all US games)
Jon Champion/Craig Burley (B team)
John Strong/Graeme le Saux (Overflow team for the times when there are 3 WC games/day)

Announcing teams are no-brainers. Darke/Macca for their years of experience commentating EPL games to a US audience. Champion is (I think) the B guy for Sky, and I wanted to pair him up with someone with whom he has good chemistry, and I wanted the American voice as a 3rd wheel.

As for everyone else, I think this gives a nice worldly perspective on the tournament with lots of Americans.

Let me know what you guys think of this World Cup dream team.