We have been down this path before. Remember last fall, when you generously agreed to kickstart a little site known as The Classical? Since then, the site has rocked, gotten sponsors, and produced some quality writing. Now, a promising North American soccer quarterly needs your crowdsourced dollars. I speak, of course, of Eleven Quarterly. Continue reading “Time to Dust Off Your Kickstarter Account & Launch Eleven Quarterly” »
Tag Archives: News
You Have a Kantian Moral Obligation to Donate $10. Right Now
So, a new sports website, featuring the likes of Bethlehem Shoals, Eric Freeman, and Fredorrarci, is nearing lift off. There’s just one problem: NASA has privatized space travel, so these fine gentlemen need your kind contributions to get this ship off the ground. They have around two weeks left to raise about $10,000 – a bit of a task, but they’ve already raised over $40,000.
Here’s the deal. Continue reading “You Have a Kantian Moral Obligation to Donate $10. Right Now” »
Spinning Circles in the World At Large, Part 2
If the last few weeks were slow in terms of news, this past week was a terrifying maze of delicious games. Like a child in a candy-store, I pocketed as many Hershey’s Kisses in my SopCast player as I could when my parents weren’t looking. Sadly, this lack of focus left me a tummy ache and you, the reader, some less than consistent posting.
John Lennon once said “Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.” I have diverted a bit of my writing spirit to the mysterious forthcoming book. Curious readers want to know the book’s topic. Soccer. Duh. But seriously, I need a polished and approved final manuscript, the final drafts of illustrations, an ISBN number, and cover before I can spill the beans. And believe you me, beans will be spilled. There will be beans….spilled….everywhere. For now, rest content knowing that a beloved soccer blogger has graciously agreed to write the foreword. Thus, at least two pages won’t suck.
However, even the book hooplah excuse no longer holds up. In my rush to crank out a palatable ebook and pocket some cash on the Kindle easily-click-purchase model, I got a curious email from a “new media company.” Many of my favorite bloggers have gone legit, so I negotiated the fine line between de facto abandoning the site, ceding editorial control, and monetizing the site (sounds dirty, doesn’t it?). Negotiations have entered a final phase. I hope I strike the right balance. History will judge me.
Updates aside, let’s get back to futbol and enjoy last week’s smorgasbord of games. And a few lessons learned. Continue reading “Spinning Circles in the World At Large, Part 2” »
Spinning Circles In The World At Large, Part I
It’s been ages since the soccer-news-media apparatus hummed along at such an accelerated pace. In light of this supernova of information, I have been forced into a stream-of-conscious absorption of facts, opinions, and dallyhoo. True, I am also working on a quasi-secret book. How secret? Well, I can only reveal two facts: it involves feet. And a ball. The rest shall remain with your imagination until June 1st. Then, on June 1st, when my third version of the MS is still not good enough, I will vent to you.
But back to the news of today, not tomorrow. Let’s begin. Continue reading “Spinning Circles In The World At Large, Part I” »
Soccer News – Part Round-up, Part Sound Off
Not quite original content, not quite a link-up, we present a special new post here at Futfanatico: the sarcastic one. Novel, no? Now on with it.
First, the Guardian reports that Inter faxed an offer for Javier Mascherano to Liverpool. The offer? Sulley Muntari plus 6 million pounds. Now I know your confusion – after reading that sentence, you thought that Inter must have offered to pay Liverpool 6 million pounds to take Muntari’s wages off the book. No. I’m afraid not. Re-read the sentence…. Yep. So here’s my explanation.
Alcohol. Some sneaky intern got a bit tipsy while working late hours and mailed in a preposterous fax to Liverpool. The Guardian article failed to give a date or time for the fax, so this is entirely plausible. Another explanation is that Muntari sent the fax himself, hoping to leave Inter, and wrote it in confusing language in the hopes of confusing Liverpool. Perhaps he wrote “You will not unsign Javier Mascherano in the possible exchange for accepting Sulley Muntari and you don’t not dislike six million pounds DO NOT SIGN HERE IF YOU DON’T ACCEPT.” Continue reading “Soccer News – Part Round-up, Part Sound Off” »
Riquelme: My Transfer Rumor Tumor Humor
So, the World Cup is over. The season is weeks away. However, for all the nascent capitalists and “managers in their own minds”, the open transfer season is a joyous occasion with the exuberance, spontaneity, and substance of a middle school dance. Wait, did somebody from Europe mention Landon Donovan’s name? Really? REALLY!!! I’ve got to visit the various sites and forums in order to confirm the substance of that unsubstantiated rumor and potentially post my own reflections on how it would forever change my life. For the better.
So, no. I am not Mister Manager. The gossip tales do not tug at my heartstrings. Press conferences and asides from overpaid agents do not make me salivate at the mouth. Why? Too much smoke. Not enough fire.
Except for this one. Continue reading “Riquelme: My Transfer Rumor Tumor Humor” »
West Ham United, West Ham Divided
We have touched on stadium naming rights, but now it appears that West Ham United, considering a move from Upton Park to Olympic accommodations, is considering changing the club name to reflect the posh new digs. The name? “West Ham Olympic.” Let’s suspend disbelief – let’s not immediately dismiss out of hand the preposterous notion of naming a club after a stadium that will in all likelihood change corporate names every five years and be obsolete after a decade.
Let’s indulge West Ham and brainstorm a few creative monikers based on Olympic mascots past. Here we go… Continue reading “West Ham United, West Ham Divided” »
Media, Death, Life, Change, Business, Blah
The NY Times has announced a new “metered model” for 2011, showing that Rupert Murdoch is not the only publish magnate struggling to cope with the “internet.” While the Times has avoided confronting Google, a wise move given the current cooing of this monopolistic privacy shredding behemoth, the “metered approach” brings to mind two things: 1920′s prohibition and the maginot line.
As a blogger, I am excited by the prospect of a NY Times pay-per-content model because I am a media startup with little-to-no-overhead who does not charge directly for my content. Thus, when consumers decide between paying for the Goal Blog or getting me for free, I am pretty sure a few will decide FreeMe or “Frelliott.” But Frelliot alone does not tell the tale… Continue reading “Media, Death, Life, Change, Business, Blah” »
In the Spirit of Stealing Content Part 4
Johny Terry, the face of Chelsea, has grown one humongous zit. The News of the World allegedly paid him and a known ticket scalper 10,000 pound for a private tour of the club’s training ground without the club’s permission. Still, as someone who routinely used the JCCC gym without paying, along with 50% of the individuals in there, this is not the bothersome part.
No, the worrisome part is what the News of the World discovered – Didier Drogba and Michael Ballack sharing the jaccuzzi. Now, if Joe Cole had been plopped in the hot water tank with those boys, I could understand. Or even Bosingwa. But just the two of them? Naturally, my mind wandered to the immensely intellectual dialogue which must have ensued before being rudely interrupted by the deviant Terry and the undercover journalists. Continue reading “In the Spirit of Stealing Content Part 4” »
The Diego Ban and How It Affects You

The FIFA handslap brigade is at it again. This time, the dastardly, ever cruel judges at the FIFA headquarters, conveniently located atop a menacing mountaintop (known as “Skull Mountain” by local indigenous peoples), have issued a very strong sentence: Diego Maradonna has been banned from all football activities for two months. Yes, you read that right. ALL football activities. This is not a touchline ban. This is not a game suspension. This is every single activity related to football and/or footballery. The obvious question: how does this affect you?
Well, I begin with the worst news. Unfortunately, Diego’s traveling circus of indoor soccer will grind to a halt. Yes, the Diego “showball” tour, with its proceeds destined to some charity with a CEO that undoubtedly is a blood relative of Maradonna, will cease for a time. Continue reading “The Diego Ban and How It Affects You” »




