Good morning! I'm warming up to the new, all-red, USA kits. The first Washington Spirit preseason game is in just over a month so that's good news too.
D.C. United land Audi in one of the biggest stadium naming rights deals in MLS - Black And Red United
In big D.C. United news, the club sold Audi the naming rights for its new stadium. The new stadium will be called Audi Field and it is one of the most lucrative MLS naming rights deals.
Carli Lloyd signs with Manchester City, will play there until June - Philly.com
Carli Lloyd’s Path to Manchester City: An Email, a Visit, a Deal - The New York Times
The big news in women's soccer is that Carli Lloyd signed a short deal with Manchester City FC. She will compete against former Washington Spirit star Crystal Dunn, who is with Chelsea Ladies FC. Lloyd says she will return to the Houston Dash for some of the NWSL season, but that isn't a sure thing.
Shkodran Mustafi and Arsenal collapse in bumbling second half against Bayern Munich - ESPN FC
3 things we learned from Bayern Munich’s 5-1 thrashing of Arsenal - SBNation.com
Nothing makes me happier than an Arsenal fall apart so here are two articles about it.
Dynamo move to top of MLS allocation order - Houston Chronicle
The Houston Dynamo have the top spot in the MLS allocation order after Minnesota United traded that spot to the Vancouver Whitecaps, who used it to acquire former Seattle Sounders forward Fredy Montero. Got all that?
Portland Timbers trade rights to Rodney Wallace to New York City FC- The Oregonian
The Portland Timbers traded the rights to Costa Rican midfielder Rodney Wallace to New York City FC. In exchange for the 2015 MLS Cup goalscorer, NYCFC sent the Timbers $75,000 in General Allocation Money and $50,000 in Targeted Allocation Money.
Madalyn Schiffel: Seattle Reign's new #2 goalkeeper - Sounder At Heart
The Spirit acquired the rights to Madalyn Schiffel in the 2016 draft but traded them to Seattle in November (the Reign later signed her outright). Our friends at Sounder at Heart found a powerful monologue she performed at her alma mater (note: there is some NSFW language involved here).