Rick Lund

@nwblackmon Agree with all. One more from me: I don’t understand the case for M Robinson. I feel like there are half a dozen (or more?) American center backs in MLS that are more deserving.

@ricklund23 1) leaving Aidan Morris off is madness, especially if you don’t have Tessman, which I am less mad about if he was hurt but still confused. 2) Joe Scally is surplus to requirements; 3) felt Jack McGlynn warranted a look given the dearth of MF creativity

Sanjay is one of the best soccer writers in America. A great follow this summer. I have 3 pretty intense disagreements with Poch’s roster, and I guess they’ll play a 3-4-3 which is curious given personnel— but time will be the judge. Read Sanjay. Big time talent

El Levante sería sexto desde que Luís Castro cogió al equipo en enero. Es una de las mayores gestas del fútbol español en los últimos años.

The NAACP is taking a stand. Today, we launch the #OutofBounds campaign, a national call to action for Black athletes, families, fans, and allies. In response to states erasing Black voting representation after the Supreme Court’s Louisiana v. Callais decision, we are demanding accountability. "Out of Bounds is our answer: we are naming the contradiction, and we are calling on Black athletes, families, fans, and consumers to act on it. The same power that built these programs can be redirected." —NAACP President and CEO @DerrickNAACP This is about more than sports. It’s about justice. Learn more and join the movement: naacp.org/articles/naacp…

This is what defines a professional military—not bullshit about “lethality” or “meat eaters” or jerking off to kill cams, but some unnamed enlisted person who day after day made sure the ejection seat they were responsible for met the standard so that when it mattered, it worked.

ESPÍ 📹 @RadioMARCA ⚽️ Sus abuelas lo visitan en el CIUTAT ✌🏻 El delantero responde con GOL y permanencia casi asegurada 🤝 Clave en el @LevanteUD 📸 No podía faltar la foto final

Si el Levante termina salvándose, será una de las hazañas de las últimas décadas en LaLiga.

¡FINAL! ¡FINAL! ¡FINAL! ¡FINAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAL! EN PEU GRANOTES!!!! 🐸⚔️ @RCCelta 2-3 #LevanteUD #YOCREO 💙❤️ #CeltaLevanteUD

To be truly fluent in English, you must know your shits Part 2 Dogshit: Very poor quality Bullshit: Not true Horseshit: Nonsense Apeshit: Rambunctious Batshit: Insane Chickenshit: Cowardly Ratshit: Poor quality No shit: Obviously Holy shit: Unbelievable Hot shit: Very good Dipshit: Total dumbass Tuff shit: Take it or leave it Jack shit: Nothing The shit: Perfection Deep shit: Big trouble Shitfaced: Drunk Shitstorm: Chaos Piece of shit: Lousy person/thing Full of shit: Lying Shit-ton: Huge amount Shithead: Jerk Shithole: Terrible place Brick shithouse: Curvy/voluptuous No shit, Sherlock: Sarcastic obvious Don’t give a shit: Don’t care Shit happens: Oh well I shit you not: Truth Shit stirrer: Drama starter The shits: Diarrhea Good shit: Excellent Crock of shit: Nonsense Shit sandwich: Bad situation

I’m sorry but under no circumstance is the USMNT good enough to NOT bring a player who just started in the UCL semis to the World Cup. Roldan and Berhalter do not elevate this team enough to excuse him not going. Johnny Cardoso should be on the World Cup roster.

Kaja Kallas was born on June 18, 1977, in Tallinn into a family deeply scarred by Soviet occupation. Her mother, Kristi, was only six months old when she, along with her mother and grandmother, was deported to Siberia’s Krasnoyarsk region in cattle wagons. They spent ten years there before finally returning to Estonia in 1959. That family history of survival shaped Kallas into one of Europe’s strongest voices against Russian aggression — a stance that earned her the nickname “Europe’s Iron Lady” after she became Estonia’s first female prime minister in January 2021. She studied law at University of Tartu, graduating in 1999, and later earned an Executive MBA from the Estonian Business School in 2010 while building a successful career as a competition lawyer and partner at major law firms. Her father, Siim Kallas, served as Prime Minister of Estonia and later Vice-President of the European Commission. For many years, this actually pushed Kaja away from politics because she did not want to spend her life being compared to her father. She played drums, loved dancing, and by age 27 had already become a partner in a law firm where the other partners were over 60 and spent their days golfing — making her question whether that was really the life she wanted. That restlessness pushed her into politics in 2010. Within a year she entered parliament, and later became a member of the European Parliament for the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe from 2014 to 2018, where Politico named her one of Brussels’ most influential women. In 2018, she married her second husband, Arvo Hallik, while raising a blended family with two children and navigating the collapse of her first coalition government, the global pandemic, and the highest inflation in the European Union. When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Kallas pushed Estonia to donate more than 1% of its GDP in support of Ukraine — a larger share than any other country. She repeatedly argued that every weapon sent to Ukraine weakens the enemy while strengthening Estonia’s own security.

Scott Jennings is from Kentucky. Let’s see how these two states stack up… Murder rate (per 100,000, FBI 2024): 🔵California: 4.5 🔴Kentucky: 6.1 Life expectancy (at birth, CDC 2022 latest state-level): 🔵California: 79.3 years 🔴Kentucky: 73.6 years Obesity rate (adults, CDC BRFSS 2024): 🔵California: 27.1% 🔴Kentucky: 37.2% Educational ranking (U.S. News Best States, ~2025): 🔵California: #20 🔴Kentucky: #32 Healthcare ranking (U.S. News Best States, ~2025): 🔵California: ~#7 🔴Kentucky: #45 GDP (total, BEA ~2025): 🔵California: ~$4.25 trillion 🔴Kentucky: ~$307 billion GDP per capita (BEA ~2025/2024 data): 🔵California: ~$108,000 🔴Kentucky: ~$66,600 Teen birth rate (per 1,000 females 15-19, CDC 2023): 🔵California: 9.1 🔴Kentucky: 20.7 Infant mortality rate (per 1,000 live births, CDC 2023): 🔵California: 4.1 🔴Kentucky: 6.58 Poverty rate (official, Census ~2023): 🔵California: 12.0% 🔴Kentucky: 16.4%

I spent a week in Northern California. Here's my review: 1. San Francisco (2 Days) This was my first time visiting SF as an adult. I'd been when I was 10 years old but that doesn't count (although Alcatraz was pretty sick). I had my expectations low, which is key to any first time experience, but can also be tricky. For example: the first time I saw Hot Tub Time Machine, I thought it was the funniest movie I'd ever seen. Had no expectations. Took my wife to see it after hyping it up, and she did not think it was the funniest movie she'd ever seen. I set her expectations too high. I thought SF was cool. Could I live there? Eh. I'm not sure I could ever get used to those hills, but they are super unique to any other American city. Being right on the Bay is pretty badass. The people were friendly and the service was good. I prefer the SF vibe over the LA vibe. Less pretentious and “douchey” for lack of a better word. Also much cleaner than I expected. Someone told me they got a new mayor who's done a good job, or maybe there was a big push during SB. Either way, not the zombie apocalypse you might think from watching the news. My first Waymo ride was fun. Kinda creepy how all the billboards in SF are about AI. Def think it will be the first city where robots outnumber humans when the time comes. 2. Yosemite (3 days) My wife and I love the outdoors but we aren't necessarily outdoors people, if that makes sense. The only way you can get me to camp in the wilderness is with something they call "Glamping" and that's what we did. Highly recommend Under Canvas which just opened their Yosemite location. These tents were awesome, and the food was fucking fantastic. We checked out El Capitan, Tunnel View, some Sequoia trees, hiked the Vista Trail and Hetch Hetchy. Not super touristy which was great. I've heard Yellowstone gets absurdly packed. Could have been the time of year as it was a little cold. This was our second National Park visit and I thought it was perfect for beginners like us. 3. Napa (3 days) This place is gorgeous. I was blown away at how nice of a drive it was (3.5 hours) from Yosemite to Napa. You'd be in flat farmlands that felt like the middle of Kansas, then an hour later be surrounded by mountains and vineyards. Someone told us California is responsible for making 70% of the country's produce. I now believe that. I'm not the biggest wine guy but I like wine. Drank it a lot more before I started getting bad acid reflux. I don't think you need more than 2 days in Napa if you're just a casual wine drinker. The experience overall was great though. Enjoyed the tastings and scenery at every stop. There's only so much red wine I can drink during the day before I need a nap. The town could use an emergency cocktail bar nearby serving Whiskey Cokes and cigarettes to keep you going. Oh and you didn't ask but my favorite winery was Alpha Omega. We bought a few bottles there because they don't sell anywhere else. Pretty cool. Overall I'm left coming away with this impression: Northern California fucking rocks. I can't believe I was not familiar with its game. The people are chill. The scenery is stunning. The weather is lovely. As an East Coast guy who's made multiple drives from NYC to Florida and back, I am beyond envious that the other side of the country is so much more beautiful. They don't have any rest stops though, which is tough for a guy like me that has to piss every 20 minutes. So for that I would like to say THANK YOU New Jersey! I'm not the type to make a lot of life goals (not a good thing) but I think ending up in Northern California after your kids go to college and living out your remaining years there is absolutely the dream scenario. I doubt most of you read this but if you did, please let me know if you have any recs for my next visit. Cheers.

TIMO WERNER, TAKE A BOW 😤 What a finish to put @SJEarthquakes ahead late.

In a match with a World Cup champion, a Champions League winner, a Premier League Golden Boot winner, and an MLS Golden Boot winner, it’s 20 year old American Niko Tsakiris that steals the show on Sunday Night Soccer. #Quakes74 have themselves a gem in their homegrown 10 👏🏻 #MLS

If Niko Tsakiris, Zavier Gozo, Adri Mehmeti, and Julian Hall aren't in a USMNT camp soon after the World Cup ends, I'll be shocked. Tsakiris has been the best player on the field in this San Jose Earthquakes/LAFC game. What a talent.

Took charge of Real Sociedad when they were in relegation trouble, has them 4 points off 5th, looking for a Champions League spot, with only 2 defeats, and now Copa Del Rey Champion. 1st 🇺🇸 Manager to win a trophy in a Top Five league. Enorme, Rino 👏

@nscalzo81 @THEChrisKessell I distinctly remember extensive, fun, happy tailgating outside of Stanford stadium during the 1994 World Cup. Zero violence.

@THEChrisKessell People who don’t watch world soccer have this take. The fact is European and South American fans can’t be near each other without fighting. It would be a disaster to allow tailgating.

The only part of American sporting culture that fits amazingly with the World Cup... banned. FIFA and the billionaire class can't figure out how to fully monetize it... so we can't do it.

One of the most stunning things to me in this second Trump presidency debacle is how NORMAL the media, Congress, millions of Americans try to paint him as despite daily violating his oath, saying vile things, cursing, threatening Judges, profiteering off his high office, being credibly accused of horrific sex crimes against kids, destroying NATO alliances, embracing Putin, and attacking other nations without congressional approvals.

The biggest game of the first round is on Friday, when Long Island battles Arizona for iced tea supremacy