Puget Sound

Hero of Defiance: Helen B. Stafford - We R Tacoma

Women’s World Cup

Scotland survive Khadija Shaw’s class to leave for World Cup in fine spirits | The Guardian
Scotland’s women will head to the World Cup having broken records as well as barriers. 18,555 turned up at Hampden Park for a pre-tournament farewell against Jamaica, which smashed the previous best home attendance figure of 4,098.

Majority of Nadeshiko Japan’s players going to Women’s World Cup for first time | The Japan Times
Jun Endo turned 19 a few days ago and is headed to her first Women’s World Cup. The Japan forward has lots of company. Sixteen others on the 23-player roster are also going for the first time.

South Korea team guide: 2019 Women’s World Cup – Equalizer Soccer

World Cup time for Banyana Banyana to shine - Ellis
South Africa face a tough task to advance from Group B, having been drawn with Germany, Spain and China, but the squad is “always competitive”.

MLS / USMNT

Khaldoon Al Mubarak: “We will crack” MLS with New York City FC | MLSsoccer.com

MLS, Liga MX will announce eight-team Leagues Cup tournament to start in July – The Athletic
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10 Secondary Transfer Window targets MLS teams should consider | MLSsoccer.com

Plata’s agent confirms Mexico transfer talks, says move likely in next few days - RSL Soapbox
The saga continues.

Predicting the USMNT Gold Cup roster - Stars and Stripes FC
Our friends believe Cristian Roldan will make the squad, but not Jordan Morris.

Other global soccer

Union Berlin win promotion to the Bundesliga for the first time ever - Bavarian Football Works
This is the team Michael Gspurning currently coaches for.

Robert Lewandowski isn’t the best goalscorer in Germany - Bavarian Football Works
An actual baker scored 101 goals in the German 10th division this year.

National Soccer Hall of Fame voting process remains flawed | SI.com
The small problem is Abby Wambach only received 80% of the vote. The big problem is she was the only player elected. Another year, another set of baffling circumstances surrounding the building that is supposed to tell the story of American soccer.

Scotland’s most successful football export, by a distance | Nutmeg Magazine
Eight Scudetti, four Italian Cups and two French championships: it’s unlikely anyone will ever eclipse the achievements of Rose Reilly.

Sport Wales says it needs to get younger girls involved - BBC News
The body responsible for getting more people into sport thinks it would help keep women involved as they get older.

Gattuso out at AC Milan after missing out on UCL
Gennaro Gattuso has left AC Milan by mutual agreement after 18 months in charge of the Serie A club.

La Liga players arrested in match-fixing raid
The Spanish league says several players have been arrested for suspected match-fixing in Spain in an ongoing operation.

Aston Villa Vs. Derby: Research Shows Premier League Spot Worth Much More Than Commonly Touted £170M
There is no doubt that the winner of the Championship playoff game between Aston Villa and Derby on Monday at Wembley, will be the recipient of the biggest payday in world sport. But how much is it actually worth?

A Trove of FIFA Secrets, Locked Inside a New Jersey Storage Locker - The New York Times
Chuck Blazer, whose cooperation led to the arrests of top FIFA officials, died in 2017. But he left behind materials that could implicate officials who have so far escaped punishment.