Friendly

The USWNT, the world's top-ranked side, defeated Germany, second-ranked, 1-0 to begin SheBelieves Cup play Thursday night, Megan Rapinoe scoring the game's lone goal off an assist from Alex Morgan.

The weather outside was weather — cold, wet (a nice wintery mix of rain/snow) and windy. Why the SheBelieves Cup decided to stage two matches in the midwest during the winter is an awfully good question, but the USWNT and Germany played out a high-energy, although somewhat limited, match — the opener for both nations at this round-robin tournament. 

Hi, do you like playing soccer? Do you like not sleeping? Then we’ve got the thing for you. To celebrate the start of the 2018 MLS season, NYCFC is hosting a 24-hour soccer marathon, with a five-a-side match that will last a full day. 

The exhibition will be played at Rockefeller Center in New York City, set to start at 4 p.m. (ET) on Friday, March 9, continuing to 4 p.m. Saturday, March 10. About 500 players will have the chance to play soccer at famed 30 Rock as Patrick Vieira, David Villa and other NYCFC players criticize your insistence on toe-poking every shot you take. 

We previously wondered how the Las Vegas Lights FC pledge to be the boldest club in North American soccer would play out on the pitch. Having a fantastic, neon-tubed crest and a gaudy home shirt is one thing, but it’s the product on the field that’ll ultimately sustain any interest.

The mystery of who the USMNT will play during the March international break has been revealed. The USMNT will take on Paraguay in March 27 in Sahlen's Stadium in Cary, North Carolina (home of the NWSL's North Carolina Courage).

The & vs. 

Standing over a free kick from 22 yards out during Toronto FC’s preseason friendly against Club America in Mexico City, Sebastian Giovinco looked up to see a three-man wall, defenders on either post, the goalkeeper stationed dead center and four more players scattered in front of goal to deter any other angles. No matter.

The Atomic Ant rifled one into the top-right corner, giving the defender on that post zero chance (maybe a slim chance of being decapitated). There’s simply no stopping the 31-year-old Italian. 

The USWNT is currently gearing up for the SheBelieves Cup slated for March 1-7, but the American women will be facing a different kind of rival a month later. A USWNT vs. Mexico friendly will be played on April 8 at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston, U.S. Soccer announced on Wednesday.

U.S. Soccer is going through a bit of turmoil right now. Presidential elections are about a week away, the contracts of the USMNT coaching staff are about to expire and one of the country’s young rising stars switched nationalities to Mexico. Perhaps most alarming right now: There are no March friendlies currently slated on the USMNT schedule. 

As if the Jonathan Gonzalez Mexico debut wasn’t bad enough for U.S. fans, the California native completed his switch to El Tri on U.S. soil. Gonzalez came on as a 57th-minute substitute for Elias Hernandez and didn’t look out of place as Mexico played Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday evening at the Alamodome in San Antonio. 

The U.S. Men’s National Team opened the 2018 season with a friendly against Bosnia and Herzegovina, a pair of teams who failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup. The USMNT vs Bosnia match itself was a relatively drab 0-0 draw, but with about 15 minutes left U.S. forward Jordan Morris had his shirt ripped, by far the highlight of the match.

Morris, the Seattle Sounders product, was involved in a tussle on the left sideline when his shirt tore just enough to bare his smooth abdomen, which the cameras didn’t shy away from showing.