We’re only two days from D.C. United’s final game at RFK Stadium, and now it looks like Bill Hamid is about to make his departure from the club official. 2017 has been tough for a lot of serious, real-life reasons, but it’s also been tough for soccer fans around these parts. Saying goodbye on Sunday might be the toughest part of the whole season.
Soccer at RFK Stadium: ‘It’s dirty and disgusting and ugly, but it’s ours’ | Washington Post
Few people have spent more time at RFK than Steve Goff, and you just knew his article on RFK would be a good one.
DC United prepare for emotions, ceremony of final match at RFK Stadium | MLSsoccer.com
Ben Olsen, Nick DeLeon, and Zach Thornton all share some thoughts on the final-ever MLS game at RFK.
Robinson's favorite RFK memory | Watching a legend | DCUnited.com
United put up a bunch of these, but this one was my favorite for the Santino Quaranta note. Goals and games are key, but it’s the little connections that really make a club.
Through the lens | Soccer history at RFK | DCUnited.com
If you’ve spent any time following this team, or even just soccer in this region, you’ve probably seen Tony Quinn’s photography over and over again. Here are some good ones.
RFK Stadium: In their own words | Prost Amerika
What really hit home reading this is that despite a wide range of big names from American soccer recalling a wide range of games, the only one I missed out on was Ali Krieger’s Freedom Reserves hat trick.
Here’s a game I did end up missing, though: North Korea’s 2-1 win over the USMNT in 1991.
On this day in 1991, in Washington DC: "The United States is expected to win against a North Korean team that isn't nearly as strong as its pro-western southern neighbor"
— Adam Hurrey (@FootballCliches) October 19, 2017
2-1 North Korea, then, on the most American pitch imaginable. pic.twitter.com/z2NMiUPGpe
Bill Hamid is traveling to Denmark to sign his next contract | Black and Red United
When a player wants to go, a player wants to go. The one thing D.C. United can’t offer Bill Hamid is the enduring cache of playing in a European league, which Hamid has been up front about wanting for years. The timing sounds like it will make it difficult for him to suit up Sunday, so we may well be saying goodbye to Hamid in street clothes.
Of course, things could be much worse. We could have Anthony Precourt “taking full responsibility” for moving our team while still actively trying to move our team.
I really do feel for you Crew fans. Its an uncertain time I recognize, and I take full responsibility for the situation I have put us in.
— Anthony Precourt (@APrecourt) October 19, 2017
Save The Crew | TimbersArmy.org
Supporters groups across the country are uniting to support Columbus Crew fans in standing against Precourt’s decision to “explore” (read: “aggressively pursue”) a move to Austin, TX. Don’t be surprised if we see plenty of banners around the league on Sunday that express the same kind of thoughts as the Timbers Army express here. Maybe the only thing that can stop this, beyond Austin’s tepid reaction to the whole thing, is fans pressuring the league and club owners taking notice and pushing for a different outcome.
The shadow over Columbus falls across us all | Burgundy Wave
Here’s one of the clubs who should be concerned in this new reality in MLS. You can’t blame fans in Colorado for wondering what actual guarantees there are to keep them in place.
USA plays contrasting halves in 3-1 win over South Korea | Stars and Stripes FC
The Washington Spirit’s Mallory Pugh got the start for the USWNT, but ended up being carried off with what looked like a severe (and painful) hamstring strain. South Korea made a game of it, scoring a gem of a goal and later hitting the bar, but ultimately the story of the game was the number of times trainers had to check on players. Here’s hoping Pugh’s injury is less severe than it seemed last night.
It’s time to give Shea Groom a shot with the national team | Stars and Stripes FC
I wouldn’t mind this one bit. This year, Groom went from being merely a physical pest for FC Kansas City to an inventive, all-around attacking force. The USWNT doesn’t have a player like her on the offensive side of the ball.
Eniola Aluko’s case is a perfect illustration of how institutional racism works | SB Nation
Here’s hoping this is the last time we have to settle for an organization like England’s FA trying so hard to cover for an injustice and blindly support those in power rather than investigating properly.
Randy Waldrum appointed Super Falcons technical adviser | Goal.com
Never mind the headline here. Former Houston Dash head coach Randy Waldrum is now the head coach for Francisca Ordega and the Nigerian women’s national team.
Ben asked for music suggestions for the last, RFK-centric episode of Filibuster, but I didn’t have any good ideas at the time that felt right. However, since sometime yesterday I’ve found myself thinking of this one. It’s not a perfect metaphor or anything, and I’m sure Willie Nelson fans would prefer the original, but I didn’t find myself thinking of Willie Nelson’s version, and this version came out in 1996, which is kind of important in this instance. There’s also just something about the trumpet, and the idea of sad songs and waltzes not being commercially viable that seems to fit.