Your NASL Rumblings

Loves Choo-Choos and Overalls

While this blog might not be considered by some to be a US footy blog–we try, but it’s tough to get overly enthused about a Sporting KC match on a hot summer’s night–we do have a rooting interest in the sport domestically both at the MLS level and in the lower divisions.

In that respect, you should likely gird your loins appropriately for posts from The Fan’s Attic about his Portland Timbers or hide your eyes if James T begins posting photos of himself wearing a Philly Union shirt with the new Bimbo label. As for me, my local’s a Premier Development League side, so it really is more about rooting for laundry than for players as each year’s squad is basically remade from scratch.

But for your USSF Division 2 fix, welcome back the new NASL, which was finally granted provisional permission to represent 2nd-tier soccer in the US just this weekend. As the decision happened so late, these clubs will be denied entry into the US Open Cup, with USSF Prez Sunil Gulati quipping, “It’s simply too late…There’s no place in the structure.”

So, the US Open Cup is as open as Kim Jong-il’s PDRK is democratic apparently. Nice one, Sunil.

Now that NASL got the sanction, the Carolina Railhawks have to scramble to get everything together prior to the season opener in April. See, when it appeared the league would not obtain DII status, the previous owner of the franchise liquidated the club and sold all the club’s stuff on Ebay–right down to the logo. Brazilian-based company Traffic USA–which already owns a couple other NASL franchises already–won its bids for the Carolina gear, so it’s up to them to get things in line.

Finally, now that NASL is back in the somewhat Big Time, league club Miami FC will complete its rebranding and revert back to the old team’s name–Fort Lauderdale Strikers. Going way old school, the club will return to playing at the original NASL team’s former digs and will try to bring Originaldo out of yesterday’s retirement to inject some celebrity into the squad.

Okay, that last bit was completely made up–but if it happens, give me the copyright on the rumor. Originaldo’s Brazilian, Fort Lauderdale’s run by that same Brazilian company Traffic USA, and it’s possibly a great market to capitalize on aging stars from the southern hemisphere.

So, there you have it–new NASL’s back, old NASL names coming back, and you’ve learned there is such a thing as a railhawk. Now if only the NY Cosmos actually played…