Major Link Soccer: NBC Sports Live Extra, Nigeria drops from tourney, USOC100

Back when NBC and MLS announce their partnership NBC said they would carry every match online. Then reality happened and legal streams did not. Today, that changes. NBC Sports Live Extra will carry over 1000 events in the next year including MLS games.

The first NBC Sports Network event to be live streamed will be tonight's NHL matchup featuring the Tampa Bay Lightning hosting the Pittsburgh Penguins (7:30 p.m. ET). This weekend's slate of NBC Sports Network events to be streamed live on NBC Sports Live Extra via TV Everywhere includes:

You will need to have a cable provider in order to get these streams.

Africa has many competitions. There is both a Cup of Nations and a Nations Championship. Nigeria just won the first, but they will not play in the second (BBC). With the ACN, World Cup Qualifying and Confederations Cup the footballing power could not afford another tournament. This tournament had no effect on Obafemi Martins as the ANC is only for players that play within their home nation.

The 100th edition of the US Open Cup is just over 1 month away. The amateur leagues are in middle of determining who qualified as their reps. For the NPSL two clubs withdrew (TheCup.US) because they could not afford to participate. They were replaced by a club that employs the head of the NPSL USOC committee.

XI Quarterly is a magazine all about soccer and they want your monies! Not a lot of it either. During their subscription drive (Goat Parade) they are offering some cool prizes. The thematically based magazine features great content and is strong attempt to provide long form print writing for America's soccer audience.

Duncan McCormick is joining Sean Okoli at Wake Forrest (Top Drawer Soccer). One of the better soccer programs in the nation will have two Sounders Academy players as long as neither sign an HGP deal.

Real Madrid has a good luck charm. He's from LA. How does that happen? Read Grant Wahl's latest (SI).

The LA Galaxy lost their CCL semifinal. Omar Gonzalez is awesome (LAGConfidential) though. This means no MLS side in the Final. It also means that Seattle did something LA could not.

Update: Also a nice profile of (future) Reign player Megan Rapinoe in the New York Times.