Happy July!
Apologies for missing last week’s edition of the Newsletter. There is plenty of news from the prior week to catch up on as well as some new topics here to make for a much more dense newsletter. Lets get into it!
Topics:
- An Exciting Second Team.
- USWNT in the Box State
- Construction Sponsor
- The Soccer Indie Game
- Pic of the Week
- Box State Baller
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An Exciting Second Team
There is a sneaky good second team playing some great footy in the lower leagues. The Colorado Springs Switchbacks II team is popping off in the Mountain Premier League.
In their first season in the MPL, they are 9-0-1 with their only loss coming against Peak XI. Switchbacks 2 is a development team first and foremost, but where they choose to develop is very important. For the 2’s and the MPL it’s a win-win. The Switchbacks have created a new development path for their youngster and the MPL gets some shine from having a pro team involved with the league. Some local standouts include Marco Rios from Pueblo Colorado who, according to the MPL site, leads the team in goals.
ADDITIONAL READING: A Story on Marco Rios
USWNT in the Box State
The US Women’s National Team played a friendly against Ireland under the bright lights of Dick’s Sporting Goods Park. This game didn’t hit quite as much given the team was without their Colorado Stars but nonetheless the UWSNT is always an attraction and the fans always show out. Rose Lavelle said as much in her post match comments:
The crowd always shows up. I feel like it’s always a sell out and it’s always a really fun environment. Every time we come here we know it’s going to be a great atmosphere. It’s gonna be a lot of fans and it’s something we look forward to.
Head Coach Emma Hayes made her managerial debut for the USWNT in Colorado and returned back to where it all started for another fun result winning 4-0 giving the fans plenty of reason to be excited for future matches in Colorado.
Construction Sponsor
The Colorado Rapids have a new shirt sleeve sponsor: Kiewit Construction Group. The construction company has been responsible for a lot of developments around Colorado. With the controversy surrounding UC Health and their predatory debt collection strategy, the irrelevancy of Transamerica, and the failure that is Ciao Telecom, the Rapids needed a small win in the sponsorship department. It wasn’t long ago this team went without a sponsor; now they’ll have two. While UC Health continues to stain many a Rapids kit, Kiewit is a step in the right direction. The Omaha-based company has had many developments in Colorado. Most notably, the massive I-70 redevelopment over by the Denver Coliseum; a contract initially worth 1.2 billion dollars back in 2017.
It’s worth noting that Dick’s naming rights for the stadium expire next year. Could Kiewit come in and not only claim those rights but also, quite literally, build the stadium back up? Fans have been clamoring for upgrades to the outdated soccer-specific stadium and this could be that lead in for what fans want.
The Soccer Indie Game
This past week, in place of a newsletter, I wrote a review of a new indie game that released this year named Despelote. A charming title and a memorable playing experience that will have you feeling all your soccer feels. A review is up on the Substack if you’d like to read more about it but I want to highlight it one more time. Playing this game is like Anton Ego tasting Ratatouille for the first time and if you’re feeling disillusioned by the sport, this game will spark that joy and wonder reminding you why you love this game so much. I highly recommend it and as high brow as it seems to say, I truly believe soccer as an art form is yet to be fully tapped.
Juanners
Pic of the Week
Box State Baller
Ian Smith was one of the few players I had talked about in the early days of Box State Footy’s beginning. The wide midfielder turned wing back has mostly played a rotational role for the Portland Timbers this season. With Jimer Fory suspended, the former Denver Pioneer started as the left wing back in Portland’s 3-4-2-1 and made the most of his start scoring a belter against New England Revolution. For that, and for being one of the players I touted early in the season in an Outside the Box episode, he is the Baller of the Week.
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Thanks for reading! I’m not sure what these next few weeks will look like so the newsletter may end up being bi-weekly and with more depth. Either way, I’m still thoroughly enjoying writing these and the best way you can show support is by sharing this post with fellow footy fanatics and with a subscription. Thanks for reading!
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