UK and Their Little Game

Currently I have the absolute fortune of being in the UK, York to be specific. The Varisty Pub if you are in a stalker-ishly specific mood. Delightful pub with the delightful addition of FREE WIFI.


Not wee-fee. Why - Figh. Get'erright.

Pelada - Travel, soccer, culture and cameras.

Interesting new documentary coming out just came to my attention. Made by the former Duke women's soccer captain, Rebekah Fergusson, it's a definite must-see.

USWNT - Vidtastic Part 1

Some videos that came out of the USWNT camp this past week. Let's pump up that viewcount, people.

The WPS Desperately Needs Some Tattoos

Found this the other day. Thought it was amazing for two reasons:

What Happened to the War?

Dear GerryM the GM, Hof the Boss and the marketing peeps at Sky Blue FC,

um...what happened? 

Wasn't there a war going on? Did I miss the white flag? I know the league-wide Defend Your Turf campaign kinda stole your thunder, but can we get a video showing the "cease-fire" or peace talks or whatever? Give us a tweet, at least!

It's not that I'm against peace on the Jersey shore, more that my curiosity is beginning to fester.

Thanks!

-Julie

WPS Fantasy - Warning: Not for All States

Trolling through the Facebook-verse I came upon this situation. Which raised a big question in my mind: Huh, what?

Soccer Ads vs. Ads with Soccer

Bigger post is going to be coming out soon about soccer videos, but I came across two ads today that really got me thinking. What does more for an athlete / team: a commercial ad made about them to promote a game OR an ad made for another product that uses them as stars?

This time 'round I'm going to try and get you guys to write something. Comments welcome. 

The Devil's in the Details

I found some fun little tidbits about the Phantom Trade when researching my last post...

Are You On the Ball? The WPS Wasn't...

Imagine a player 1v1 with the goalie, no pressure from behind and plenty of space in the box, blasting the ball on-frame but well over the goal. She didn't panic, she just had a bit of a brain fart at a horribly inconvenient moment. 

When pondering the current WPS snafu, that's one of the little scenes that plays in my mind. All things considered, they were going at the right goal with the ball at their feet after having done a nice little dance to get past the entire defence. So their hearts were in the right place.

For those of you not on Twitter, for a brief moment today there was quite a snickering as people realized (and shared) this unfortunate fact: the WPS approved a trade that involved a phantom draft pick. 

3 Rules for a Persuasive #FollowFriday

Twitter really is just a way to share information, so it's not surprising that phenoms such as #MusicMonday (#MM) and #FollowFriday (#FF) have grown quite popular. Not only are you joining in a huge communal effort (and we're all just sheep at heart), but you are also simultaneously expressing your individuality. 

This is the music I am listening to. These are the people I recommend you follow. Doesn't really matter if the tweets are read, if anyone actually listens, because you've been accepted into the mass of tweeters talking about the same thing. The act is the reward, in a way.

Ok, but what if you actually want to achieve something with your hashtags? Here are some tips for optimizing your use of CURRENT hashtag trends, particularly #FollowFriday.

1. Be Specific

2. Keep it Simple

3. Be Concrete, Give Context

Sky Blue FC Twitter War - TEAM GM!

Props to Jersey's Sky Blue FC for starting this twitter war, as Melissa say's ...

Small audience and small budget means WPS has to do a pretty good job being inventive when it comes to advertising and publicity.

If you’re a fan, particularly an out-of-stater, this is a great chance to specify what kind of free Sky Blue FC swag/gifts prizes you want to win for your vote. Hoff is openly looking for ideas and as he is the $$$ behind the operation, if he agrees to it you’re probably set. 

WPS 09 Championship Game: A Behind-the-Benches View

I had a crew of people at the '09 WPS Championship game and finally found time to cut something together. Hopefully will have a few more videos coming out cut from on-the-field footage I have of other games. Pass the video around if you like it! There is something addictive in YouTube, I swear. ;) 

Soccer Strategy Part 3 - Extra Thoughts On Strategy

Soccer Strategy Part 2 - What is more important, winning or quality of play?

Soccer Strategy Part 1 - What is more important, star players or quality of play as a team?

What Makes Me a Fan of a Team and some Social Media Tips

A few months ago I was talking to Jason Lemire (GM of Pali Blues) about social media, Facebook in particular, and he asked what the difference was between a friend and a fan. I was in a contemplative mood and spent a few minutes going on about how a friend comes to a game and enjoys it, but a fan wins or loses with the team. At the end of my musings I realized he was asking about friends vs. fans on Facebook (friends are for profile pages while fans are for fan pages).

Will the LA Sol Return in 2011 or Will the WPS Expand Elsewhere?

With the closure of the LA team it is only logical that rumors begin to fly around about expansion into San Diego or Seattle or Vancouver (or here or there, I’ve heard a lot of places named…good sign, loads of interest I guess).

Los Angeles Sol: A Brand Lost or a Franchise Folded?

Just a Piece

Though this was a shocking announcement, it is not like it was totally unexpected. In mid-January ASN was writing about the ownership transfer and raised the possibility of a last minute pullout, Sacramento Monarchs style. Sadly they hit it on the nose and the Sol situation became the same story of league-scramble followed by franchise-closure.

LA Sol Photographs

What can I say, I'm a work-a-holic. If I'm not working on a project I go stir crazy, and all this media I have from making On the Ball leaves me way more content than I could possibly process for the show.

Sooo side projects like this happen:

ReDesign

Working on a new design for the blog. Might just keep it simple-template style. Everything else just gets...cluttered. So if you check in and see something weird, it's probably going to change...

How to Follow WPS 2010 Draft Day via Twitter

The 2010 Women’s Pro Soccer college draft is happening concurrently with the NCAA convention in Philadelphia, PA. Starting at 10am ET, the coverage will begin on Twitter at 9am to follow a roundtable discussion. Scroll to the bottom of this post to find a list of the various twitter accounts you should follow to be in the loop.

Background on the Women's Pro Soccer league 2010 College Draft

16 hours and counting...

The 2010 draft happens this Friday, January 15 @ 10am ET (so 7am for us West Coasters) in Philadelphia, PA, home to the new Independence expansion team.

The Fan Experience

I’m not a short post person. I start with one idea and write my way to 3 others. It’s easy to split them (see my last two posts) but I don’t like the fractured idea concept…I’d rather put it all out in one massive post and let you read or not read it all as you will.

I’ll work on focusing my posts, but for now here are some of my musings on the Fan experience.

The Egg before the Chicken: Crowds and US Soccer

So what is it about soccer that attracts the largest and most passionate crowds across the world and yet only has this slowly growing “handful” in the U.S.? And I know this is a bit misleading as the sport is one of the most played in the US showing it as a quite popular sport to play, but playing is a far cry from following.

UCLA v. Virginia and Great Soccer Culture

Looking at the UCLA v. Virginia game from a few weeks (ok, months) ago, two words sufficiently sum up the game: UCLA dominated. Even when Virginia had the ball, UCLA was only a touch or two away from reclaiming it. More importantly, the Bruin women stepped onto their field knowing they owned that ball. Though this is not Football (you will never get me to talk like this about Bruins and the pigskin), even admitting the obvious talent of last years Bruin women’s soccer squad hurts my Trojan sensibilities. So when I say they were good you know that it is overcoming a lot of collegiate prejudice to get there. The 3-0 score—one goal by Dea Cook to start the whole game off in the 3’ minute and two more by Sydney Leroux in the 41’ and 88’ minutes—reinforces their authority on that field.