What's in a Playoff Format? (And a Brief International Review)

Our neighbors in Central America have been devastated by two horrific hurricanes in as many weeks. Before reading this post, please consider donating to one of the relief efforts linked in this thread.

Now that the international break has ended, football fans in Concacaf turn their focus towards two major events: The Liga MX playoffs and the MLS Cup playoffs. The region's two largest leagues will both resume this weekend with new play-in rounds that have expanded each tournament beyond what it has been in previous years.

This prompts the question among fans: How big is too big for the playoffs? Of course, these expansions were supposed to be a measure to make up for lost revenue during the pandemic, but I don't think fans of either league would be particularly surprised if the changes are here to stay.

Let's start with Liga MX. As a Tigres fan, my first thought upon seeing the expansion to 12 teams (up from 8) was that this change was awful. Tigres already rarely missed the liguilla, and while I don't ever actually want that to happen, there has to be a chance that it happens, or what fun is the regular season? Even during our terrible stretch in the beginning of the year, the fans joked about how it was fine because there was no way we finished outside the top 12.

But as the season went on and the race for the top 4 (and a precious bye) heated up, the idea grew on me a little. That first wildcard round or play-in round or whatever you want to call it is one leg and is going to be very random. Teams want to avoid it at all costs, which makes the race for the top 4 the compelling part of the regular season, while even the bottom half of the table now feels like they're in the playoff hunt for most of the year. And of course, we do get extra playoff games now. As much as expanded playoffs can potentially ruin a regular season, more playoff matches is always a lot of fun.

I still prefer the old 8/18 system (8/20 was even better!) but I can live with the change. Will it be permanent? This is not actually the first time Liga MX has done more than 8 teams in the postseason. For much of 2000s there used to be 10 playoff teams every season, but eventually the idea was scrapped when the league moved away from divisions and just did a single table. So maybe they actually will reduce it back down when fans are allowed back into the stadiums.

MLS loves their playoffs. For much of the league's existence the regular season has been a complete snoozefest for many fans because the playoffs are so inclusive. In 2020 that remains true, but obviously much moreso because of a certain global pandemic than anything the league decided on back in January. 10/14 teams in the Eastern Conference will head to the postseason, while 8/12 will qualify in the West. Again, I want to stress that MLS was put in a tough spot with so many games being cancelled that I can't blame them for putting almost the entire league into the playoffs.

And the playoffs, if they run smoothly (let's hope they do), will be a ton of fun! MLS is an anybody beats anybody league, and with every round being a one-off now this will have a real US (and Canada) Open Cup feel. I think this was ultimately the best solution for the strange 2020 season.

But, when there is a somewhat normal season next year, I think this number needs to come way down. In 2019, 7 teams from each conference qualified to the playoffs. I have expressed in the past that I still think that's too many, and especially so with the single elimination setup they have now. I don't really like that a team can fight for the #2 seed over a long 34-game season and then go home in the first round on a 0-0 draw where they lose the penalty shootout. I think in a season that long (remember Liga MX plays two short seasons instead) you need to have your playoffs be 2-legged or even revive the old 3 game series idea of MLS' past to give the better team more time to separate themselves. If they insist on the single-game format (and it is a lot of fun most of the time, I can't deny) then the playoffs should be shrunk way down so only the truly deserving teams have a crack at the title.

Anyway, enough about playoff formats, I also wanted to do a quick thought dump on the international break. Most of Concacaf's top teams were in action this week in some capacity, so I'm just going to run through each of them real quick.

Mexico have climbed into the top 10 in the FIFA rankings after comfortably beating South Korea and Japan. It's hard to argue that they aren't top of the region at the moment, and in both games they really turned it on in the second half. Tata Martino is doing a great job.

USA are an interesting one. The game against Wales was meh, and the game against Panama saw pockets of absolute brilliance but also some moments where they looked shaky. Obviously it was a very young and new team playing in a neutral site and I don't really know how much there is to glean from either of these games, but we can definitely all agree there is good reason to be excited about the future of the USMNT.

Costa Rica played very well against Qatar (a much tougher opponent than you may think), drawing 1-1 and completely controlling the second half. They dropped the second game of the window 2-1 to the Basque Country, meaning they finish 2020 winless. Not great. Costa Rica are definitely in the process of finding themselves, and while I expect them to get back to the World Cup I'm not convinced that they'll reach the heights of the 2014 and 2018 cycles.

Panama lost 1-0 to Japan in a game I admittedly did not watch, and then got shelled by the US 6-2. But they did have the lead against the Americans early, and pulled it back to 3-2 late before giving up another flurry of goals in the final 10 minutes. And that was the story for Panama. Two complete collapses where they were overwhelmed for a short stretch and paid dearly for it. Besides those two glaring weak moments, they looked decent enough. Panama are no longer a top 5 team in the region, but making the Octo is definitely doable.

Jamaica played Saudi Arabia twice, getting cleaned up the first game but bouncing back with a 2-1 victory in the rematch. I'm pretty sure the team was discombobulated and jet-lagged and out of practice leading up to the first game, and Saudi Arabia are a good team, so I won't hold it against them too much. Daniel Johnson scored a beauty in the second game, and Jamaica looked a lot more like the Jamaica we know can be one of the best teams in Concacaf.

I did not watch Honduras vs Guatemala :( 

As always, thank you for reading and stay healthy out there!

 

Motagua Squeezes Past Comunicaciones in Penalty Marathon

I just posted about why I love the drama of this tournament not two days ago, and just 48 hours later we are gifted with an all time classic. The Concacaf League is a young tournament, but this has to be the wildest game in its history. Motagua trailed 2-0 in the 48th minute and looked absolutely toasted, but quickly fired back with two quick goals and looked to be en route to a furious comeback. The winner never came, and instead the teams went to penalties. About 35 minutes later, after 36!! spot kicks were taken, Motagua came out on top. Watch the whole thing here, if you'd like.

I have watched a lot of soccer in my time on this earth. I have watched plenty of penalty shootouts. And this was not only the longest I had ever seen in my life, this was the longest I had ever even heard of! 18 rounds?!? I recall Liverpool went something like 14 or 15 in the League Cup a few years ago, and that was the longest I knew of. And perhaps the title of craziest I've ever seen still goes to the 2015 AFCON final, when Ivory Coast's backup goalkeeper made a few huge saves and converted the winner in the 11th round, but I think last night's shootout has a case.

Gerardo Gordillo, a fine player on the Comunicaciones back line, had a chance to clinch it in the 7th frame. No luck. Oh well, it happens. What doesn't usually happen is getting a chance at redemption. He came up again in the 17th frame, with another chance to clinch it. Oh. My. Goodness. You already know what happened.

I did a little research on where this ranks among the longest shootouts of all time. I found that the 2005 Namibian Cup final went an impressive 24 rounds, apparently the world record. Now this is one I wish I could have seen; after 24 rounds KK Palace won it 17-16! How the heck did they miss that many and it still wouldn't end?

I also found that while that Namibian Cup game is the professional record, two teams in the Czech 5th Division final went on for 52 kicks back in 2016. Madness. Gordillo is certainly not the first player to miss twice in the same shootout, though maybe he is the first to miss two game-winners. But I wonder if anyone in either of these marathons actually missed three times? 

Anyway, penalties are pretty great. Are they the best way to settle a game? Maybe not. But are they the most fun? Oh yes, yes indeed.

You Don't Need Quality to Have Drama

The Concacaf League returned on Tuesday night with an absolutely electric game. Heavy favorites FAS of El Salvador dominated the first half while visiting Managua FC clung on for dear life and were lucky to be down only 1-0 at halftime. But in the later stages of the game Managua completely took charge and overwhelmed FAS, not only scoring an equalizer but threatening for more. In this single elimination win or go home format, the tension during the final 10 minutes or so was palpable through the TV screen. Managua eventually clinched a historic upset victory after a lengthy penalty shootout.

 

People sometimes ask me why I'm watching a match between two teams that in the grand scheme of the world are so tiny. Surely I'd be more interested in watching the glitz and glamor of the UEFA Champions League? Now don't get me wrong, the high level European game is amazing. It brings incredible star power and so many players who are absolute wizards on the pitch, and the communal experience of seeing half my twitter timeline explode at the same time when there's a terrible VAR decision is special. I love it. And I'm a Liga MX fan, a league with no shortage of bright lights surrounding it.

But there is something very different about watching smaller teams, something that can simply never be replicated by the world's most prestigious leagues and clubs. I don't know what to call it other than magic. 

Football is a game that is about so much more than the quality of play, or the stature of the players. It is a story; unscripted drama, and competitions like the Concacaf League offer a different type of drama that cannot exist in football's upper echelons. Managua are a side comprised of many players who need to work other jobs during the off-season to make ends meet. They play football in a country where baseball and boxing reign supreme, and are fighting for the entire soccer fan base in Nicaragua in an attempt to build more excitement around the sport. 

A lot of these players had never played a match outside of their home country before; and if they lost last night, perhaps they never would again. This tournament is a once in a lifetime experience for clubs like Managua, (and Arcahaie and Verdes, who will hopefully get their chance one day soon), and they marched right into one of the most daunting stadiums on the continent, empty or not, and won a battle against relative giants. That's magic.

I don't say this to patronize or belittle the Managuas of the world. Lots of small clubs have great players and show a level of professionalism that Liga MX teams could never dream of. They aren't a curiosity; they are a testament to how great this game is and what makes it special. Hardworking dreamers who can accomplish extraordinary things as a team.

And we cannot forget teams like FAS on the other side of the table, who have their own unique stories to them. Once the kings of Salvadoran football, they haven't won a league title in over a decade and have watched arch-rivals Alianza achieve great success both at home and on the continental level. They purchased Colombian striker Raul Peñaranda, who led Alianza to great success in this very tournament just one year ago, and dreamed of a dramatic run of their own. Instead, they have gone home in the preliminary round, unsure of what the future holds for the once great club.

The storylines surrounding soccer teams are ever-present. It doesn't matter if you are in Concacaf, UEFA, CAF, or anywhere else, and it does not matter if the team is rich, poor, or somewhere in between. There will always be drama. I'm sure if you regularly read this blog you don't need much convincing, but I urge every fan to take some time to watch the unknown teams of their region battle it out. Learn their backstories, soak up the raw passion for the game, and enjoy the magic. That's what I'll be doing tonight with some more delicious Concacaf League, and I can't wait.

 

2020 Concacaf League Preliminary Round Preview

The Concacaf League, the region's second-tier continental club competition, is finally set to return on October 20, with the preliminary round matches to be played as single-legged affairs rather than the usual two legs. It's a very weird time for any sort of international games in the Americas, and I really don't know if all of these games will be played, or if this tournament will ever finish, or if they will go into a bubble in the later rounds like the UEFA Champions League. We just don't know right now. But regardless, previewing the Concacaf League is a tradition of mine that predates the existence of this blog, so I'm going to do it anyway. There are a total of 6 matches slated for next week, with 10 countries represented.

Alajuelense 🇨🇷 vs Cibao 🇩🇴

Cibao have been in the continental picture for a few seasons now, but they've never really been drawn against a team they could beat. The streak continues with this match against the Costa Rican giants Alajuelense, but at least in a one-legged affair they've got a chance. Cibao just started their domestic season last week, while Ala are 9 games in and boast the most impressive record in Central America right now with 8 wins and 1 draw. The ageless Alvaro Saborio leads the team in goals. I don't think they can completely look past a normally defensively sound Cibao side, but Alajuelense have to be thinking that they can go all the way this time.

FAS 🇸🇻 vs Managua 🇳🇮

A year ago in this tournament Salvadoran teams made quite a splash, but FAS was not among that group. FAS recently returned to play in the El Salvador Primera last week, losing 3-1 to Isidro Metapán. The Salvadoran league, by the way, is playing in three separate geographic bubbles, before converging down to two geographic bubbles, before then meeting in one more serious bubble for the playoffs. One of the more unique ideas we've seen, but let's hope it works out alright. Veterans of the Concacaf League may recognize Raul Peñaranda for FAS, who has featured for both Alianza and Arabe Unido in the past. The Colombian striker scored the club's only goal in the season opener. Managua are the two-time regining runners-up in Nicaragua, having lost both finals to Real Estelí. They won their first game of the season 2-0, and the core of this team does have some good Concacaf experience having put up a great fight against Motagua a year ago. FAS are the favorites, but this one could get interesting.

Motagua 🇭🇳 vs Comunicaciones 🇬🇹

If you like brand names, this is your match. Two of the biggest clubs in Central America going at it in a do or die showdown? That's good eats. Motagua are 3-0 in their return to play so far in Honduras, but the results have been a little shaky to get them there. They have conceded in all three matches, and two of them were against teams that failed to make the playoffs a year ago. On the flip side though, this Motagua team has been here before, going all the way to the finals last year before falling to Saprissa. The club also recently signed Argentine journeyman Gonzalo Klusener, who already has made his impact felt with two goals in league play. Across from them is the 30-time champions of Guatemala and current co-leaders in their domestic group (they also have a game in hand), Comunicaciones. Earlier this year Los Cremas took Club América all the way to penalties in the CCL, and they've got great momentum after a big win over rivals Antigua yesterday. Quality wise, this is the best game of the preliminaries, for sure.

Arcahaie 🇭🇹 vs Verdes 🇧🇿

Conversely, quality wise, this is likely to be the worst game of the preliminaries. Certainly on paper it looks that way. But this match-up between Haiti's most recent champions and Belize's most recent champions is a real chance for the little guys. Looking ahead on the bracket you have Waterhouse of Jamaica meeting the winner of this game. That means a team from Belize or the Caribbean is guaranteed a spot in the quarterfinals; a fantastic achievement for all three clubs. Verdes have recently resumed play, but Arcahaie have had more time to get back into a groove, having played seven games so far this season. I don't have much to say about these teams but I am really excited to see one of them advance.

Municipal Limeño 🇸🇻 vs Forge FC 🇨🇦

Municipal Limeño (legendary crest) are traditionally one of those mid-tier teams in El Salvador that qualify for the playoffs and then get knocked out by one of the big boys. But times have changed for Los Chancheros. This team is looking more like the Limeño side that reached two finals back around the turn of the millenium, and their Concacaf debut is a huge moment for the club. They will face Forge FC from Hamilton, Ontario, the two-time reigning Canadian Premier League champions. Forge just finished a very impressive campaign up in the CPL's bubble, gaining steam as the tournament went on and closing it out with a 2-0 victory in the final. Fans may recognize their 2020 top scorer Kyle Bekker from his MLS days. Limeño lost their first game of the season to Aguila 2-1, but La Selecta veteran Edwin Sánchez did at least get on the board for them.

Independiente 🇵🇦 vs Antigua 🇬🇹

Independiente secured their place in Concacaf lore when they dismantled Toronto FC in the Champions League two years ago. They did fine enough in the Concacaf League last year; there's no shame in losing to Saprissa, but this club can smell revenge. If they can get there, a rematch with the Costa Rican giants will likely be waiting for them in the quarterfinals. But play has not yet resumed in Panama, and CAI were floundering in the league before it was suspended, so they've got a long way to go before they need to worry about the quarterfinals. Antigua are putting up a meh campaign so far in Guatemala, but games are always better than no games. CAI have played some friendlies and a handful of the players have been at national team camps, but jumping straight into a continental match will not be easy. I don't want to call either of these teams washed up, but I think two or three years ago this match would've been a lot more compelling.

Jamal Charles and Grenada are Ready to Shoot for the Stars

The Spice Boys of Grenada have never really found themselves among Concacaf’s elite. They’ve never made the final round of World Cup qualifying and have made the Gold Cup just twice, in 2009 and 2011. They certainly lack the reputation of the Caribbean’s top sides like Jamaica and Trinidad.

But in these turbulent times, with a new cycle of World Cup Qualifying on the near horizon, Grenada may finally be poised to make a big splash. Concacaf’s new World Cup Qualification format sees the Hex expanded to eight teams and rebranded as the Octo, meaning it’s now just a tiny bit easier for dreamers like Grenada to get in. The new format has also thrust the bottom 30 teams directly into a four match group stage that will immediately narrow the field to just six teams, three of which will join the top five who automatically qualified to the Octo via their FIFA ranking.

The Spice Boys were among the most impressive teams in the Nations League B last cycle, going undefeated in six matches and finishing with 14 points. Jamal Charles, already a budding star for the national team, really came into his own during the campaign, tallying 6 goals and dominating throughout. The highlight of Charles' hot run came in the final match, when his team needed all three of his goals to edge out Belize.

And the draw for that group stage I mentioned? It was quite frankly about as good Grenada could have hoped for. Being placed in Pot 3 seemed disastrous but the Boys ended up with one of the more well balanced groups in the field. El Salvador are always a threat and will be itching to set the record straight after being denied a Hex place by the format change, Antigua are talented and looking to bounce back after a poor Nations League run (albeit in a tough group), Montserrat are the upstart darlings and the US Virgin Islands proved very difficult to put away for their League C opponents.

With just four matches to be played and little room for error, smaller sides have a real chance to shake things up. A draw with El Salvador, if Grenada can take care of everyone else, may very well be all it takes to top the group. When La Selecta host the Spice Boys in the first match on October 8th, the normally imposing crowd at the Estadio Cuscatlán will, presumably (and hopefully for safety reasons) be greatly diminished or nonexistent, making life a heck of a lot easier for the visitors. With no return fixture, it’s the most important game of the group. If this team plays at the level they did last fall, I expect them to win the other three games, especially considering Montserrat will likely be lacking more than a few overseas based players.

I wouldn’t hold my breath, but hopefully when October rolls around we actually do get to see these matches safely played, and if you like underdogs in World Cup Qualifying (and we all do), there are perhaps no minnows with as good of a shot as Grenada right now. If they could topple El Salvador, they'll get a date with the Group F winner (likely Trinidad or Guyana) for a place in the Octo. Who's to say they can't get that far? I certainly wouldn't count them out.

Concacaf Stadium Series Episode #2: Estadio Universitario Alberto "Chivo" Córdoba

For this edition of our Concacaf stadium tour we head down to central Mexico, to the city of Toluca. Toluca's most famous ground is the Estadio Nemesio Diéz, which has been home to the city's main club since 1954, and while it's an impressive stadium that has even made its way into that weird Geico ad, it is not the subject of today's tour.

We are headed to the city's lesser known stadium, the Estadio Universitario Alberto "Chivo" Córdoba. The 32,000 capacity venue actually makes it the largest in the city, but its main tenants, the UAEM Potros, rarely if ever fill it up. The Potros have bounced around the lower divisions of Mexican football since their formation in 1970, but never reached the top flight. They currently sit in the 4th tier of the pyramid, and with the uncertainty surrounding Mexican pro/rel they may never climb higher than that again.

Although the Potros may not be the biggest draw in the world, Mexican soccer fans are still probably familiar with the Universitario due to its use as a temporary home for Toluca in 2016 while the Nemesio Díez underwent renovations. It only takes one glance at the western stands for the place to grab your attention:

The gigantic coliseum style concrete seating is a sight to behold on its own, but the mural that covers the grandstand is what makes the Universitario one of the most beautiful stadiums on Earth. The mural, created by famous artist Leopoldo Flores, was added to the stadium in the mid-1970s, about a decade after the stands were first constructed. Flores called the abstract depiction of a person grabbing the sunlight from the sky the Aratmósfera. I do not have an eye for high art, but I think it's impressive how the mural remains so captivating even though I struggle to see anything other than a splash of colors and shapes.

In addition to the mural, overlooking the stadium high atop a painted cliff that acts as an extension of the Aratmósfera itself, is a gigantic statue of the head of former Mexican president Adolfo López Mateos. The mural is among the most beautiful backdrops you'll ever see in a football stadium; the president's gigantic head is among the most unique.

From up on the cliff you get a fantastic view of not only the stadium, but the entire city. The view is nice on google maps, but certainly this is an overlook worth seeing for yourself.

Sadly, unless Toluca ever returns to the stadium it is unlikely we'll ever see it full again; with only the Potros playing there regularly it may be tough to catch a game with a lively atmosphere. But that shouldn't stop you from seeing the ground altogether. If you ever find yourself in Toluca, the Universitario is a must-visit.

 

Concacaf Stadium Series Episode #1: Canada

Hello Concacaf fans! Hope you are all staying safe and healthy! It sure has been a while since I posted here. Unfortunately, the current state of the region has left us without all that much soccer to watch, though of course Costa Rica managed to sneak in the end of their season and other leagues are beginning to trickle back in. So perhaps there will be some "regular" content to talk about in the near-ish future, but for now I want to introduce a new series of sorts to Concacaf Lives!

What I have cleverly titled the Concacaf Stadium Series will be a series of brief looks at some of the more interesting venues around the region. There are some absolutely tremendous grounds to look at, and since we are not going to be traveling or attending matches for the time being, I wanted to take you all on a virtual soccer pilgrimage. Perhaps, when this is all over, some of you will be inspired to visit these places on a real soccer pilgrimage. For now though, enjoy the images and Google StreetView links when applicable.

Our first stop will be in Concacaf's largest member nation: Canada. While known much more for its ice hockey, there are some beautiful pitches dotted across the northern lands. Canada will of course be co-hosting the 2026 World Cup, and just hosted the 2015 Women's World Cup, and the country's biggest soccer venues, many of which double as homes for CFL teams, are pretty well known.

And perhaps none moreso than the Olympic Stadium in Montreal. Originally built for the 1976 Olympics, the stadium is the current part-time home of the Montreal Impact, who use the building exclusively for their biggest games. The iconic 2015 Concacaf Champions League final, in which Dario Benedetto netted a soul-crushing hat trick for América to deny Impact fans the ultimate prize, took place inside the Big O.

In the upper reaches of the country, soccer pitches become increasingly rare. It's just too cold. But Shell Place in Fort McMurray, Alberta, acts as one of the game's northern outposts in the country. The venue hosted FC Edmonton for two special games during the 2015 NASL season, making it, to my knowledge, the northernmost venue to host professional soccer in Concacaf. Seriously, look at Fort McMurray on a map, it is waaaaaay the heck up there.

You can actually find one of those FC Edmonton matches in full here, which can give you a pretty good feel for the stadium.

At the very Western tip of Vancouver, where the land meets the Strait of Georgia, lies the campus of the University of British Columbia and Thunderbird Stadium. The main tenants are various teams of the UBC Thunderbirds, for which the stadium is named, but the Whitecaps reserves used to play here when they fielded a USL team from 2015-2017.

I'm sure the gridiron football lines are upsetting to a lot of people, but I have always liked the cozy look of the single grandstand. It's so neatly tucked into the surroundings.

Our final stop takes us near the Arctic Circle, to Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavut. As far North as Shell Place was, it has nothing on the Artic Winter Games Arena. The turf field inside the complex, which hosts local adult and youth leagues, is a testament to the sport's ability to survive in any conditions. Even here in a remote community of just over 7,000, where the temperature is rarely warm enough for an outdoor game, players of all ages take to the pitch each week.

The arena itself is nothing too out of the ordinary for an indoor field, but indoor pitches don't get enough love as it is and it's cool to see the game being played up here. It really speaks to the universality of soccer. You can explore pretty much the whole arena on StreetView, albeit with ice installed over the turf. Just walk right through the front door and take a peek!

The Hawaii Tsunami: American Soccer's Best Kept Secret

As a blog that mostly focuses on the lesser covered nations in the Concacaf region, the United States is not a place I get to talk about too often. As MLS continues to grow in size and in popularity, it's sometimes easy to forget that the US has its own bottomless supply of interesting teams and stories to tell. The USL Championship today has 36 teams, and it's 2nd Division adds another 12. The third tier, which was formerly called the PDL, has about another 80. There's a lot of history there that is seldom spoken about.

And while the USL divisions today are beginning to stabilize (and hopefully will remain stable through the current crisis), lots of minor league clubs pop up and fold as quickly as they appeared. So often while surfing Wikipedia I see the names of teams I wish I could know more about: The Jackson Chargers from Mississippi, the New Orleans Riverboat Gamblers, and countless others.

But the one team that had always stuck out to me more than any other was the Hawaii Tsunami, a professional team based in Honolulu that played four seasons in the USISL from 1994 to 1997. For the unitiated, that's the United States Interregional Soccer League, and also the United States International Soccer League, and also the United Systems of Independent Soccer Leagues. They loved changing the name but keeping the acronym. Eventually it became the United Soccer Leagues (USL), and now finally has settled on the singular United Soccer League.

"Hottest League/Coolest Teams"

The Tsunami were the second professional soccer team on the islands, after a failed attempt at a franchise during the 1977 NASL season. They played four seasons and had one great year in 1995; reaching the Sizzlin' Nine (yes, that's really the name) playoffs and bowing out in group play. And, without some digging, that is nearly all you'll ever find out about them online. No pictures, no club logo, almost absolutely nothing.

So of course, I did some digging. I found some interesting articles. I read a book on Hawaiian sports history. I even tracked down David Trifonovitch, a former player and coach for the Tsunami who was kind enough to answer all of my questions. Here's my expanded history of the Hawaii Tsunami, America's forgotten club:

The club joined the USISL for the 1994 season with a side consisting entirely of local players and coaches. With a limited talent pool compared to the mainland clubs and a grueling travel schedule that prevented the team from ever truly being at full strength away from the islands, things were tough. The team went 3-15, finishing 8th out of 10 teams in the USISL's Pacific Division.  It wasn't a great start, but the season laid the foundation for greater things to come.

Before the 1995 season, the USISL split its outdoor season into two leagues: The Pro League and the Premier League. The Pro League was, naturally, for professionals, while the Premier League was for amateurs and college kids during their summer offseason. The Tsunami were placed in the professional division, but there weren't many pros on the team. The meager salaries offered in 1994 were mostly returned by the players to help fund the 1995 season, and most of the budget during the club's second year was invested in coaching.

Enter Andrew Rowley, a man who was well-connected in the soccer world of Central California, and was brought across the Pacific to guide the 1995 Tsunami through the newly formed Northwest Division. If it sounds like spending most of your money on a coach rather than players sounds like a bad idea, think again. One of Rowley's first moves was to recruit veteran goalkeeper and Bay Area friend Mark Dougherty, who was waiting for MLS to start up in 1996 and had one season to fill. Dougherty would go on to be the 7th overall pick in the inaugural MLS draft and was by all accounts one of the best goalies in the country at the time.

Dougherty was brought on board as a player/coach, and he and Rowley successfully recruited numerous other top players who were waiting for MLS, including forwards Billy Thompson and Peter Woodring, who both had European experience and would go on to play for the USMNT. They also landed Samuel Ekemé, who played for Cameroon at the 1994 World Cup, and Victor N'Dip Akem, who played for Cameroon at both the 1990 and 1994 World Cups.

Suddenly, the team of Hawaiian locals was now packed with international stars, and the results on the pitch were what you would expect. The Tsunami finished the 1995 season comfortably in first place in the Northwest Division, going 18-2 with a +54 goal differential. They were a perfect 10-0 at home during the regular season, and improved to 11-0 with a 2-0 win at Aloha Stadium in the divisional final against the Salem Surge.

The Tsunami played games at venues around Oahu, and on occasion on other islands such as Kauai, with many matches taking place at high school stadiums. But when possible, the club played at the 50,000 seat Aloha Stadium, arguably the nicest venue in the league. But that alone wasn't the only reason the club enjoyed a home field advantage: while road trips were grueling for the Tsunami, trips to the islands for other teams were naturally just as difficult.

In addition to the long flight, the conditions of Hawaii proved challenging for the outsiders. Mark Dougherty once suggested that the team's opponents, who routinely showed up sunburned, couldn't resist goofing off at the beach before games instead of preparing. Hawaii native David Trifonovitch says while he doesn't know for sure that the opposition were out at the beach, even a day of practicing in the Hawaiian sun would be enough to leave most visitors burned and exhausted.

This dominant home form coupled with near equal dominance on the mainland saw the Tsunami qualify for the Sizzlin' Nine, the national stage of the USISL playoffs. Here the Tsunami dropped both games in group play, the first on penalties to the hometown New York Fever, and the second 2-0 to the eventual runners-up Minnesota Thunder. Though they didn't capture a national title, the team was well recognized for their efforts. Rowley won the Northwest Coach of the Year Award, while Billy Thompson was named Offensive MVP. Ekemé won Defensive Player of the Year. Dougherty and midfielder Sterling Wescott were also named to the All-Northwest XI.

All four players, as well as Woodring and midfielder Josh McKay, would go straight to MLS in 1996. Trifonovitch, one of the club's biggest local stars, retired to focus on coaching at the high school level. Jerry Proctor, another local star from Pearl City, returned for a third year.

In 1996, the USISL reformatted its leagues again, creating the Select League, which was one tier above the Pro League. The Tsunami stayed put in the USISL Pro League, which thanks to the addition of MLS and the Select League, was now the third tier of American soccer. Thus, despite the mass exodus of the team's best players, the club was still able to hold its own.

The quality of the league had dropped, and this time around when the Tsunami fielded a mostly local team they found themselves quite up to the challenge, going 10-6 en route to a first place finish in the Western Conference. Proctor lead the team with 7 goals and 7 assists. Luis Orellana had a team high 9 goals.

After a sluggish start, the team won 7 of their final 8 matches to lock up a home playoff game for the second consecutive year. This time around, playing at Cooke Field on the campus of the University of Hawaii rather than Aloha Stadium, they were eliminated in the first round by the Everett Bigfoot. It would be the final playoff game in Tsunami history.

The 1997 season saw the departure of Rowley and the return of Trifonovitch, this time as head coach. The league had once again been renamed, this time as the USISL D-3 Pro League, and the Tsunami set out for a third straight regular season title. But the team would finish just 5-11, as financial troubles continued to mount and the league itself went through a rough stretch as it continued to lose top players to MLS. Trifonovitch said of the '97 season:

"That fourth year was pretty 'bush league' as they say. There were lots of players just trying to hurt other players and numerous fights in the games. I even had to put my credit card down and pay for hotel rooms on one of the road trips. We showed up at the team hotel in Oakland after a game and I was told the rooms were not paid for. I took over an hour to get in touch with someone from the host team and they said we booked the rooms for you but we cannot pay for them. That expense eventually came out of my salary for coaching the team. It was just another nail in the coffin that ended the Tsunami."

And sadly, that is where the story ends, with the Tsunami folding after the 1997 season. In just four years the franchise had gone through some tremendous ups and downs, and had successfully launched the careers of many future MLS players. Exact roster data for each year is not available, so it is difficult to track down exactly who played for the Tsunami and when, but it is likely that a handful of others not mentioned here eventually found their way to MLS or a different top flight for a cup of coffee at some point.

Oh, and how could I not talk about the jerseys? These are some serious heat! A simple design but that blue and white color scheme is oh so good.

As I mentioned above, David was able to answer a TON of questions for me, some of which don't neatly fit into the narrative of the story. He also kindly provided all of the images used in this post. For more info on the nitty-gritty details of the Tsunami and soccer in Hawaii in general, here is the rest of the interview:

Tim: How many years were you part of the Tsunami as a player, and how many as a coach? Were you ever both at the same time?
David: I was part of the team for three out of four years. I played on the team the first two years. Quit playing for them the third year and then was hired to be the coach for the 4th year.

Tim: How popular is soccer in Hawaii in general? Do you think the Tsunami helped grow the game around the state or was the passion already there?
David: Soccer is the number one participation sport for kids in the state of Hawaii. The love for the game was in a great growth period during the Tsunami years and I think the Tsunami definitely helped fuel the passion for the game.

Tim: Even though there’s no more pro soccer in Hawaii, you’re still very involved in the game today. What exactly are you doing now?
David: I am the Director of Coaching for a club called FC Hawaii, I am the vice chairman of the board for the Oahu League, which is the largest youth soccer league in the state affiliated with USYSA, and I am also on the Hawaii Youth Soccer Association (HYSA) board and head varsity boys coach and program director at Punahou School.

Tim: How was the travel for the Tsunami? Were there some players who couldn’t make the away dates and only played at home?
David: We were sponsored by Hawaiian Airlines, and it was always a pleasure to travel with them. We would leave on a Thursday, play games Friday and Sunday and return on Mondays. It wasn’t very easy due to the time difference of three hours between the islands and the west coast, but we knew it was something we couldn’t use as an excuse. All the players in the first year worked other jobs either full or part time, so some, who couldn’t get away with missing 3 days of work, would have to pick and choose what trips they could make. I think everyone on the team made at least one road trip.

Tim: What was the media coverage of the time like? Were any matches/interviews broadcast on TV or radio or was it just newspapers? 
David: The media did a pretty good job. We were mostly covered through the local papers but sometimes got TV sports news interviews. They would sometimes send a cameraman to the games to get some highlights for the late evening and next-day sports news.

Tim: So if there was a little media coverage around the league was there any sort of scouting your opponents beforehand or was it basically flying blind until the second and third time you played them?
David: The first year was completely blind. We had no idea who we were playing and being it was an all local team with local coaches, there was no information on our opponents. The second year, Andrew and Mark had contacts and friends within the league that gave us some information on teams and players to watch for. In the 4th year when I was coaching, we were pretty much blind again. I could only rely on information from some of the mainland players that were playing with us to tell me about friends on other teams.

Costa Rican League Set to Return, and it's Okay to Watch

Rejoice, futbol fans, because finally after a very long hiatus (though time moves awfully quick these days) there will be some exciting matches played very soon in the Concacaf region. The Costa Rican government and Ministry of Health have given the green light to restart the Liga FPD on May 20th. There are seven weeks of regular season play left, with the top four teams in the twelve-team league making the playoffs. The matchdays have been condensed so that the regular season may finish on June 10th, with the playoffs running until June 24th, or July 1st, if a Gran Final is required. You can watch the league's full press conference (in Spanish) here.

Simply put, it is exciting to see the return of one of Concacaf's highest quality and most fun leagues. For those unfamiliar with the Liga FPD: it absolutely slaps. The top 3 sides, Alajuelense, Herediano, and Saprissa all have the look of Central American all-star teams and consistently play at a very high level, though Ala are just coming out of a stretch of a few rough seasons. Newly promoted Jicaral are currently holding down the 4th and final playoff spot, and should they qualify it would be the second consecutive Clausura in which the league's only newly promoted team reached the playoffs; San Carlos won the whole thing one year ago in their first year back in the top flight after a stint in the Liga de Ascenso.

Jornada 16 will be headlined by league leaders Saprissa hosting 3rd placed Herediano with an awful lot to play for. The league format mandates that if the #1 seed fails to win the playoffs, they get a second chance via a home-and-away series with the playoff champion. Thus, Saprissa will not be sitting on their comfortable playoff position but rather pushing for a win to help lock up that 1st place finish.

But of course, you may be, and in fact you probably are, reading this and thinking that this all just doesn't seem right. Sports around the world are coming back far too soon. This feeling of guilt has become very normal for us, who all very much want to see the return of the games we love but also know they aren't worth risking the safety of the people involved. This feeling completely tainted the delightful finish to the Nicaraguan League last month, which played straight through the pandemic despite disapproval from many players and turned the rest of the season into an uncomfortable mess.

And as the Bundesliga, Premier League, and Major American Leagues begin to roll out dates for their returns that seem far too good to be true or safe, the feeling persists. Back on April 11th I started watching Taiwanese baseball, and the Rakuten Monkeys have provided some much-needed guilt-free sporting stability in my life. Taiwan has handled the crisis with aplomb so far, and the league feels very safe. So safe, in fact, that they've started letting fans back into the seats so long as they remain socially distanced. Other people have started following the KBO, South Korea's baseball league which started its season last week. And K-League Football resumed last weekend too, as Korea continues to minimize cases even as a second cluster sprung up a few days ago.

I say all of this to say that there are some guilt-free sports to watch out there, even if eSports or Marbula 1 aren't your thing. And I'm happy to say that the Liga FPD can be added to that list. Costa Rica's renowned healthcare system, contact tracing, and diligence in battling the virus have proven to be very effective, and the country has had just a touch over 800 cases total. Of course, the population of Costa Rica (5 million) is much smaller than that of Germany or England, who both are looking to resume their leagues in a similar time frame, but it's still a very low and very encouraging number. The cases have plateaued at about a dozen a day. I am no epidemiologist and you shouldn't take your pandemic advice from me, but if you do some homework on the subject you're going to read a lot of praise for Costa Rica's success and little evidence to contradict it.

With matches scheduled to be played behind closed doors and all players and team staff adhering to safety precautions when traveling, I think it is fair to say that (for now) it is safe for the league to return and it is perfectly okay to enjoy the final weeks of the playoff chase (and tense relegation battle! Vamos UCR!). Of course, with this virus, cases could rise in Costa Rica over the next month and things could get icky again, but for now we can all take a sweet dose of football medicine for our ailing minds. Stay safe out there, everyone.

Joe Public vs New England: Revisiting a CCL Classic

Throughout the history of the Concacaf Champions League there has been no shortage of crazy matches, and at least once per year we see a scoreline that really grabs your attention. Arabe Unido taking out favorites Monterrey not once but twice in the group stage a few years ago, Independiente slaughtering Toronto last year, and the minor league Puerto Rico Islanders taking Cruz Azul to penalties in the semifinals are a few that come to mind.

But there is one series that defies all logic. It is, in a good way, the most Concacafy of all CCL ties. To find it, we must go back to August of 2008, to the very first round in CCL history. Today we revisit what is for my money the most astounding, jaw dropping scoreline we have ever seen and ever will see: New England Revolution 0, Joe Public FC 4.

The 2-1 home victory for Joe Public in the first leg maybe wasn’t the biggest shock in the world, but it was still a surprise to say the least. Later on in the tournament Joe Public would lose all three of their home group matches, including a 4-1 defeat to the then USL based Montreal Impact. Teams from Trinidad and Tobago were not supposed to be beating MLS sides, and in fact in Joe Public’s previous CONCACAF outings they had lost 8-0 to DC United, 2-0 to the Chicago Fire, and a respectable 1-0 to Pachuca, all in the first round. The home leg against New England was Joe Public’s first ever win in CONCACAF’s top competition, period.

But it is the second leg of this series that really deserves attention. What a great game for CONCACAF lore. It was the first round of the Champions League era. Mark Geiger was the 4th official. Gillette Stadium, an NFL venue, was packed with roughly 3,000 fans and 60,000 empty seats. And Joe Public FC, who at the time sat in 6th place in the TT Pro League, demolished the New England Revolution 4-0. It was ugly.

The hero of the day was Guyanese striker Gregory Richardson, who notched a hat trick and added the assist on the other goal to launch himself into the history books. Richardson’s legendary performance in this match eventually earned him a contract with the Colorado Rapids a year later. He would play just 11 minutes in his MLS career, quickly moving to the US lower divisions and then back home to his native Guyana in 2013. Richardson still plays in the Guyanese League at the age of 37, and even got onto the national team roster in 2019 for the Nations League, though he hasn't seen the field for them in a few years.

Now your first thought upon reading all this might be: “Okay, it was 2008, New England probably didn’t care about this competition and played a bunch of 19 year olds.” But if you take a look at the starting XI that day, that simply wasn’t the case. Yes, New England were without their starting forwards including Taylor Twellman, but fill-in Khano Smith started 26 games for the Revs a year prior, and had 18 starts in 2008. He was by no means a reserve player.

Regardless of the situation up top, the back line for the Revs that day, the one responsible for giving up four goals at home, was loaded with talent. Jay Heaps and Christian Tierney played 240 games each for the Revolution and were perennial starters for a decade. Jeff Larentowicz played 111 games with New England and is still a productive MLS player over twelve years later. Gabriel Badilla (Rest in Peace) earned 25 caps for Costa Rica.

Furthermore goalkeeper Matt Reis was the Revs starter for 10 years, and defensive midfielder Shalrie Joseph, who captained New England that day, played over 260 games for the Revolution and was named to the MLS Best XI four times, including during 2008. Along with Twellman, he’s debatably the best player in the club’s history.

There is really not much of a case to be made that Joe Public defeated a phony lineup in Foxborough. A similar squad defeated Atlante in the Superliga just a month prior to the Joe Public series. Atlante, of course, would go on to win the first CONCACAF Champions League while the Revolution were embarrassed.

This upset is so absurd that it doesn't even give me hope for more in the future. It was such a rare occurrence that I cannot fathom ever happening again. There is just one Caribbean team in the 2020 CCL, Jamaica's Portmore United. Most people would be surprised if they keep it within four goals against Cruz Azul; winning by four goals on the road is not even a possibility.  This game is special to look back on because I truly don't think it will EVER happen again.

What Will it Take for Saprissa to Win the CCL?

Every year when the Concacaf Champions Leauge rolls around, the discussion is the same. Liga MX teams are the favorites, but can an MLS side break through and raise the trophy? It's a valid discussion, but also one you can find elsewhere on the internet, so instead I ask a different question. What will it take for a Central American team to win it all?

It may not be as impossible as it sounds. In fact, two Costa Rican teams have won the regional crown more recently than an MLS team, but of course that was all before the tournament was rebranded and reformatted as the Champions League. But even still, a lot of sides from outside the continent's "Big Two" leagues remain dangerous and relevant. In 2015 both Herediano and Alajuelense reached the semis, and for a brief moment it looked as though we were headed for an all-Costa Rican final.

It has become a bit of a Concacaf cliche to dub Saprissa as the best team in Central America before the CCL starts up; though they’re always near the top of the heap, we’ve seen the last few years they haven’t quite been the beast so many of us have made them out to be. In 2020 however, I think El Monstruo will live up to the hype. They come into the tournament with a talented squad including evergreen Concacaf boss Marvin Angulo and proven veteran goalscorer Johan Venegas. They've also got a growing star in Manfred Ugalde, and a favorable draw means they won't have to play a Liga MX team until the semifinals at minimum.

Saprissa just won the 2019 Concacaf League, playing through five grueling rounds of away trips that provide invaluable experience for a CCL run. The Champions League is all about the intangibles, and I cannot stress enough how useful the Concacaf League was for developing this team. Moments like the epic comeback against Olimpia and even having a bit of trouble against the Belmopan Bandits mentally prepare the team for the difficult matches to come and instill the confidence and mentality that they can climb out of those dire situations. And as I’ve said a million times at this point, on the logistical side, the club having just had a dress rehearsal where they booked flights, accommodations, etc. five times will help prevent any off the field nonsense from hurting their chances.

Earlier in the week I noted one of Tigres’ biggest advantages this year is a draw that sees them isolated from the rest of the Liga MX sides; Saprissa (and Honduran side Olimpia, who have the 2nd best odds from Central America this year) have that same benefit.

Saprissa have the Montreal Impact in the first round in a series where they are just straight up the favorites. The Impact have a CCL pedigree, having made the final back in 2015 and gotten awfully close to winning it, but they also were the 18th best team in MLS a year ago and are now without Ignacio Piatti. Saprissa will be in form and are a better team right now. Montreal is by no means a walk-over and the Canadians will also be looking at the bracket and licking their lips at a very makeable passage to the final, but I like Saprissa’s chances.

Now of course, to win the whole tournament you need more than an easy first round draw. Saprissa can’t expect to not have to upset a few teams along the way, but let’s look at the bigger picture here. Saprissa’s home record is outrageous. In fact, all Costa Rican clubs have an outrageous home record in the CCL (the last five MLS teams to travel to Costa Rica have all lost by at least 2 goals), but Saprissa even moreso.

El Monstruo Morado was a perfect 5 wins in 5 home matches in the Concacaf League title run. They even defeated Tigres 1-0 at home last year, though they came out flat in the second leg and went down without much of a fight. Even if they are the underdogs against Seattle, Tigres, or whoever comes after that, they’re almost always going to get a good result at home, reducing the 2nd leg to a very manageable game.

Let’s play the hypothetical game for a moment to visualize the odds: Montreal they should beat, then they have roughly a 25% chance of getting Olimpia (who they should also beat), or more likely an encounter with Seattle where I’d have them as underdogs by the slimmest of margins. Perfectly doable so far. Independiente a year ago had a very similar road and nearly qualified to the semifinals.

The final four is where it gets tricky. Most likely you’re getting Tigres, who did manhandle Saprissa a year ago at El Volcan. But as I said they did win the home leg a year ago, and their Liga FPD rivals Herediano gave Tigres a tough time three years in a row before that. If they get all the way to the final they’d again have another difficult series with most likely a Liga MX team, but at that point the momentum would be through the roof and I think you’d see a very inspired Saprissa side in that series.

Maybe you read that and said, “you know, that is reasonable.” Or maybe you read it and said “that’s exactly why they’ll never win.” And I think it’s fine to believe either way; it’s all a matter of perspective. If you firmly believe this is a Liga MX tournament, I’m not going to argue with you and neither are the results. But if you think this is a tournament that MLS teams can conceivably win (as I do), then I think you need to recognize Saprissa’s chances as well.

The hypothetical odds game sounds like a convoluted mess (and it is), but I can assure you that every MLS team’s hypothetical is equally convoluted. All LAFC has to do is beat 4 Liga MX teams in a row. NYCFC cannot play their matches at Yankee Stadium and has to deal with Tigres. Atlanta is getting thrown against the best team on the continent in the second round. These teams winning is *also* unlikely, and I think it’s important to shake off any biases you may have against the smaller leagues of the region and recognize that the best Central American teams, Saprissa this year, Independiente a year ago, Herediano and Alajuelense in 2015, have as good a chance as anyone outside Liga MX.