roguecavaliers

It has been talked about for months, but it is now almost a done deal. I haven't seen this discussed here yet, and I know that there are a few WHUFC fans here so I figured it was worth mentioning.

West Ham's USL-1 side will start playing in the US in 2009. "The Football Academy" will also be starting stateside training programs. To have the best youth development institution in Europe actively involved in US soccer is a huge deal.

There is some feeling in England that trying to get talent out of MLS is a bad idea, mostly because of the way players rights are owned by the league. American players from other American leagues have done well in England recently (see DeMerit and Spector), and can be obtained without having to go through Garber and AEG.