Keeping Central Texans up-to-date on all the soccer news that’s fit to link to.
Reading
Listen. There was really only one story that dominated our reading this week. Here’s the roundup on a bunch of the coverage of Austin FC’s groundbreaking ceremony at McKalla Place:
MLS: Austin FC breaks ground on $242 million stadium, set to open in 2021
“We want a team, we want a stadium, and we want an experience that helps us grow the legend that is Austin, Texas, for all of us who call this place home,” said new Austin FC investor and “Minister of Culture” Matthew McConaughey, officially announced in the dual role two weeks ago.
The Stadium Business: Austin FC breaks ground on 20,500-seat stadium
The open-air stadium will feature canopy coverage over all of the seats, concourses and plaza entries. Open-air corners of the stadium will also be incorporated, allowing for natural breezes to circulate around the seating bowl and the rest of the stadium. The venue will also include a number of seating products that will feature breathable mesh seating materials that lower seat temperatures on warm days.
The Statesman: ‘Vision coming to reality’: Austin FC breaks ground on stadium
“A vision coming to reality,” said Anthony Precourt, the managing partner and CEO of Two Oak Ventures and Austin FC. “I’ve got chills right now. My heart is pumping. This is an exciting day. We’ve hit a number of milestones but no bigger one than a groundbreaking.”
The Austin Chronicle: City, Austin FC Break Ground on New Soccer Stadium (see their photo gallery, too)
Adler highlighted the nascent club’s ability to unite our city… “We still are a community that is segregated more than we should be,” Adler told the crowd. “This team … has the opportunity to really bring this community together in ways that just don’t happen frequently enough.”
Spectrum News: Austin FC Soccer Stadium: The Man Behind The Grass – even the team’s grasss is in the news! This is the world we live in now!
Austin FC also created a Twitter moment to capture the, um, moment – some good pictures from all kinds of attendees.
Lastly, if you didn’t see it, we published our own brief photo history of Austin soccer stadiums over the past decade leading up to this week’s milestone.
Watched
Austin Bold playoff push takes hit with 2-1 loss to Sacramento Republic
The loss puts more pressure on the Bold to win their final two home matches, against Reno 1868 FC this Sunday and Las Vegas Lights the following weekend. After that, the final four matches are away — where Austin has only won twice all season.
The margin for error is slim with only four points separating Austin (40 points) in fifth and El Paso (36) below the playoff line in 11th. The top 10 teams in the 18-team USL Championship Western Conference make the playoffs.
Dynamo top Minnesota 2-0 behind pair of first-half goals
The win was the first for interim head coach Davy Arnaud, who was elevated into the role on Aug. 13.… Houston now faces a quick turnaround as they travel to the Pacific Northwest on Saturday to face Vancouver Whitecaps FC at BC Place.
A pair of USMNT friendlies: a 3-0 loss to Mexico last Friday in a rivalry match that some think will remain one-sided for a while yet, and a 1-1 draw with Uruguay on Tuesday that we at least may have learned something from
A victory against the South Americans would be nice, but simply seeing signs of a program improving, and a team adapting to its new style of play, was the modest hope after the USMNT’s 3-0 loss to Mexico last week. Tuesday’s 1-1 draw with Uruguay did succeed on that front, but it would be a considerable overreaction to suggest it was the kind of performance capable of erasing all the fears surrounding the state of Gregg Berhalter’s reconstruction project.
Gonna Watch
FC Dallas at Chicago Fire – Saturday at 2:30 in Chicago (Univision or Twitter(!)). The winner will claim the lesser-known-but-hey-still-a-rivalry-trophy Brimstone Cup, named from Dallas’ days as the Burn (Burn + Fire = Brimstone).
Houston Dynamo at Vancouver – Saturday at 9PM (ESPN+)
The Vancouver Whitecaps look to extend an all-time home unbeaten streak against the Houston Dynamo to nine games and avenge a loss at BBVA Stadium earlier this year, while the Dynamo hope to carry momentum from a midweek victory over Minnesota United when the Western Conference foes square off at BC Place Saturday night.
Reno 1868 FC at Bold FC – Sunday at 6:00 at Bold Stadium (ESPN+)
The Bold continue their three game homestand at Bold Stadium this Sunday against Reno 1868 FC at 6:00 PM. Head coach Marcelo Serrano will be looking to quickly bounce back from Wednesday’s defeat against Sacramento Republic FC. The disappointing result took Austin’s Own from fourth to fifth place in the USL Championship western conference.
UT soccer has two home games at Mike A. Myers Field this coming week: vs. Monmouth on Sunday 9/15 at 1PM, and vs. Providence on Thursday 9/19 at 7PM. Tickets start at $5!
Also on tap: the international break broken, it’s back to action across MLS, England, and Europe all weekend.
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