Off the Pitch

If you didn’t have Timothy Weah and Weston McKennie awkwardly standing behind Donald Trump while he talks about bombing Iran and banning transgender people in sports on your bingo card… you’re not alone.

Italian giants Juventus were invited to the White House on Tuesday ahead of their Club World Cup opener against Al Ain in Washington D.C. that night. The reason for Juventus being present for a Trump press conference isn’t clear. All we know is that it was awkward.

The United States men’s national team dominated Trinidad and Tobago 5-0 in their Concacaf Gold Cup opener on Sunday, but do the people care?

Despite the home World Cup being just a year out, the USMNT’s draw appears to be at a low that hasn’t been seen in recent history. Sunday’s game was played at PayPal Park in San Jose, California, which has a capacity of 18,000. 

The venue was far from filled with a reported attendance of 12,610.

The scene at the stadium 10 minutes from kickoff was hard to believe.

USMNT attendance vs Trinidad and Tobago

June 2 (Reuters) - Seattle Sounders players called for a bigger slice of the prize money for competing at the Club World Cup this month by wearing T-shirts emblazoned with "Cash Grab" and "Fair Share Now" ahead of a Major League Soccer match on Sunday.

Seattle are set to earn at least $9.55 million for competing at the June 14 to July 13 tournament in the U.S., where the total prize money runs to $1 billion, but under the MLS collective bargaining agreement (CBA) the players' share is capped at $1 million per club.

Real Madrid have signed Trent Alexander-Arnold on a six-year deal, the LaLiga club said on Friday, paying Liverpool a fee to release the England defender from his contract a month early to allow him to join before the Club World Cup.

Alexander-Arnold, who joined Liverpool when he was six and made 354 appearances for the Premier League side since his senior debut in 2016, said earlier this month he would leave the club once his contract expired on June 30.

LIVERPOOL, England, May 27 (Reuters) - Four people were "very, very ill in hospital" after sustaining injuries when a car ploughed into a crowd of Liverpool fans during a Premier League title parade, the city's mayor said on Tuesday, adding he hoped they would "pull through."

British police believe the incident, in a packed Liverpool city centre on Monday, was isolated and not an act of terrorism, but have not said why or how a man was able to drive at crowds celebrating in the streets.

Christian Pulisic won’t be playing in the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup. The United States men’s national team star opted out of the team’s final competitive competition prior to next summer’s home World Cup because he wants to rest.

Matt Crocker, the U.S. Soccer Sporting Director, said in a statement that Pulisic requested to not play in the Gold Cup.

It’s called soccer, world.

Major League Soccer has made a significant jump on the global soccer landscape in terms of value, with 19 of its clubs featured in Sportico's most-recent list of the world's 50 most valuable soccer teams.