The United States men’s national team made a massive announcement on Monday that 21-year-old Stade Reims striker Folarin Balogun will make a one-time nationality switch to represent the U.S. instead of England.

FIFA approved the switch meaning Balogun could be playing for the Stars and Stripes as soon as the Concacaf Nations League semifinal vs. Mexico in June. Balogun has been electric in France’s Ligue 1 this season with 19 goals in 34 games (fifth best in the league).

Chelsea goalkeeper Gabriel Slonina headlines the USMNT squad playing in the U-20 World Cup in Argentina later this month. 

Mexican-American Jonathan Gomez and forwards Kevin Paredes and Cade Cowell are also on the list announced Wednesday by coach Mikey Varas. 

Sadly, Paxten Aaronson, who won the Concacaf U-20 Championship’s Golden Boot and Golden Ball awards last summer, will not feature in the tournament after German club Eintracht Frankfurt decided not to release him.

The National Soccer Hall of Fame inducted its 2023 class and a belated member of the 2022 class with U.S. team members Landon Donovan and Hope Solo among the inclusions Saturday in Frisco, Texas.

The full list of athletes and contributors honored included Donovan, Solo, DaMarcus Beasley, Lauren Cheney Holiday, Kate Sobrero Markgraf, Jill Ellis and Slavisa "Steve" Zungul.

FC Groningen's relegation from the Eredivisie was confirmed Sunday following a 1-1 away draw at Go Ahead Eagles, although USMNT striker Ricardo Pepi provided a brief glimmer of hope (as he has all season) when he opened the scoring for the visitors in the sixth-minute.

This was Pepi's 12th goal of the campaign to go along with three assists, giving him 15 goal involvements in 26 games. The last 20-year-old to reach that benchmark for Groningen was one Luis Suárez, who scored 10 goals and created six more during the 2006-07 campaign.

Fulham captain Tim Ream's season ended prematurely on Sunday as he suffered a broken arm in the 2-1 home defeat by Manchester City in the Premier League.

The American defender, who conceded a penalty to allow City's Erling Haaland to score early on, fell awkwardly after slipping and went off with his arm in a makeshift sling.

"It looked clear Tim Ream will not play for us this season, broken his arm," Fulham manager Marco Silva said.

American internationals Ethan Horvath and Zack Steffen went toe-to-toe on Monday night with Horvath's Luton Town welcoming Steffen's Middlesbrough to Kenilworth Road in the EFL Championship, and let's just say that Matt Turner's standing as USMNT No.1 feels safe. 

The stakes weren't especially high with Burnley and Sheffield United headed for automatic promotion to the Premier League while Luton and Middlesbrough have clinched their spots in the four-team playoffs, but the encounter was a possible preview of "the richest game in football" (the playoff final at Wembley).