MLS

New York City FC won its first MLS title in franchise history Saturday, beating the Portland Timbers 1-1 (4-2) on penalty kicks in the 2021 MLS Cup final at Providence Park in Portland, Oregon.

Portland trailed 1-0 for much of the game but equalized on a Felipe Mora goal in the final minute of stoppage time in the second half. NYCFC was able to overcome the heartbreak, however, as Alexander Callens scored the decisive goal in a penalty shootout:

American goalkeeper Sean Johnson also starred for NYCFC, stopping two of the four PK's he faced.

Portland was in search of its second MLS Cup title after having won in 2015, and it has now lost in the final twice in the past four years, as it fell 2-0 to Atlanta United FC in 2018.

The Timbers were on the road in each of their first two MLS Cup appearances, but they hosted this time around, and the atmosphere was awesome at Providence Park thanks to the capacity crowd and rainy weather:

NYCFC brought a slice of home with it to the Pacific Northwest, however, as New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone was present to watch The Boys in Blue:

The first half was largely a feeling-out process due in part to the weather, and the rain undoubtedly played a huge role in the opening goal of the game.

Golden Boot winner Valentin Castellanos got NYCFC on the board in the 41st minute when he headed a set piece from a hobbled Maximiliano Moralez past Portland goalkeeper Steve Clark:

It was likely a shot Clark would have saved in better conditions, but Felipe Cardenas of The Athletic suggested Clark should have been able to handle it regardless:

Amid the chaos of the goal and NYCFC's celebration, an ugly moment occurred in the form of a fan throwing an object onto the field.

NYCFC's Jesus Medina got hit in the face with a can and was down on the field for a few minutes, but he eventually got up and stayed in the game:

Former MLS and United States Men's National Team forward Herculez Gomez called for the fan who threw the can to be identified and banned:

The Timbers later confirmed that the fan had been ejected from the stadium and banned:

NYCFC largely went into a defensive shell in the second half in an effort to protect the 1-0 lead, and it looked as though it was going to work until disaster struck in stoppage time.

Mora scored a desperation goal in the fourth minute of stoppage time in the second half just before the final whistle was about to blow, evening the score at 1-1 and forcing extra time:

While the Timbers and their fans erupted in delight, several NYCFC players were furious that a foul wasn't called on Portland's Larrys Mabiala for taking down NYCFC defender Maxime Chanot.

The goal was controversial, but New Orleans Saints running back Mark Ingram II seemed to enjoy the moment:

After both clubs played to a stalemate in extra time, the match went to penalties, marking only the fifth time in MLS Cup history that it was decided by a penalty shootout.

Castellanos scored on the first attempt for NYCFC, and each of the next three attempts were stopped, including two by Johnson.

In the end, it was Callens who put it away with a confident penalty and brought New York its first MLS title.

Major League Soccer announced Thursday it's hired the Canadian law firm Rubin Thomlinson to handle an investigation into sexual misconduct allegations against Hubert Busby Jr. and Bob Birarda, former coaches of the now-defunct Vancouver Whitecaps women's soccer team.

The Associated Press provided a statement from MLS about the scope of the independent investigation:

The investigation will consider the club's internal processes and overall culture at the time of the allegations, including what steps it took in response to the allegations. The review will also consider the club's current policies and procedures and provide any recommendations on preventative measures to ensure that all players and staff within the Whitecaps organization work in a safe environment, free of all forms of harassment and fear of retaliation.

MLS announced plans for a probe into the matter in late October after former Whitecaps player Malloree Enoch detailed her experiences with Busby in 2010 and 2011 to Matthew Hall of The Guardian.

Enoch explained she reached out to Busby about a potential administrative role with the club when the coach suggested she could potentially join as a player. He set up two meetings under the guise of tryout opportunities, but in both cases no other members of the organization showed up.

Instead, he asked her to stay in the same hotel room as him on three occasions. The third came while he was scouting a tournament in Florida, which is when Enoch said the misconduct occurred.

"He was on all fours fully on the bed. He was definitely aroused. He tried to kiss and touch me. The light was not on but I don't think he had his shirt on. I had to negotiate to get him off the bed. I told him I wasn't interested," Enoch said.

Busby denied the allegations in a statement to The Guardian and said his departure from Vancouver after the 2011 season was because of football reasons: "I was offered a contract renewal and we obviously couldn't come to terms. When I went to discuss the contract renewal we decided to go in another direction."

Enoch said she reported the misconduct to Whitecaps soccer development director Dan Lenarduzzi, but the club took no action. A larger group of players later took overarching concerns about Busby and their treatment to the club.

The investigation has been expanded to include allegations against Birarda, who coached the club from 2006 through 2008.

In February 2019, former Whitecaps player Ciara McCormack detailed a wide range of abuse she said Birarda inflicted on her and several fellow players during his time in Vancouver and with the Canadian youth national team.

Birarda was charged in December 2020 with six counts of sexual exploitation, two counts of sexual assault and one count of child luring related to alleged offenses that ranged from January 1988 through March 2008.

"It's obviously been a very long journey for a lot of us," McCormack said. "There's still a part of me that's very upset about all the cover-ups that went on for years and allowed him to be on the field, and all the lives that were negatively impacted by him."

The Whitecaps women's team dissolved in 2012. The franchise continues to exist through its MLS men's team.

Vancouver chief executive officer Axel Schuster previously told the AP members of the front office who were part of the handling of previous abuse allegations and remain with the organization were placed on administrative review pending the outcome of an investigation.

MLS didn't provide a timetable for how long it will take to complete the probe and didn't say whether the results would be made public.

Major League Soccer announced Friday it's going to hire counsel to handle an independent investigation into the Vancouver Whitecaps' response to sexual misconduct allegations brought against former women's coach Hubert Busby Jr. by player Malloree Enoch in 2011.

MLS released a statement about the review, via the Associated Press:

The investigation will include a review of the club's internal processes and overall culture at the time as well as recommendations on preventative measures to ensure that all players and staff under the Whitecaps organization umbrella work in a safe environment, free of all forms of harassment and fear of retaliation. The league and club will publicly release the findings and recommendations of the investigation.

The Whitecaps women's squad competed in the USL W-League until the team dissolved in 2012.

Enoch detailed her allegations to Matthew Hall of The Guardian on Thursday, saying Busby asked her to stay in his hotel room on three occasions between 2010 and 2011.

The first request came after a meeting that was she was told would include other members of the Whitecaps staff, but no one else showed up. The second came when she was flown to Los Angeles to participate in a trial game to secure a squad place, but no other Whitecaps staff or players were present and no game was scheduled.

She said the third, which took place while Busby was in Orlando to scout a tournament that he requested she attend, is when the sexual misconduct occurred.

"He was on all fours fully on the bed. He was definitely aroused. He tried to kiss and touch me," Enoch told Hall. "The light was not on but I don't think he had his shirt on. I had to negotiate to get him off the bed. I told him I wasn't interested."

Enoch, who originally contacted Busby in 2010 seeking an administrative job, signed with the Whitecaps as a player in 2011.

She contacted Whitecaps executive Dan Lenarduzzi to detail some of her allegations against Busby at the end of the 2011 season. She explained why she waited until the end of the season to report the allegations of sexual misconduct:

I was embarrassed and didn't want to compromise being able to play. Of course the right thing to say is no. I know to say no but at the same time I know that with his power he can take away any opportunity I could have whether it was for a job or to play. It would be the end game if I pissed him off or didn't do something. What made me feel safe was that he had the backing of such a renowned club and I was protected.

After the season-end review, Vancouver decided not to extend Busby's contract but didn't provide a reason why, and Lendarduzzi wrote in an email to the players that it wasn't "appropriate to comment publicly on this matter" after the coach was let go.

Busby, who currently works as the head coach of the Jamaican women's national team, denied the allegations when contacted by The Guardian. He said his departure from Vancouver came after the sides couldn't reach a contract agreement amid different visions for the future.

"It was more about where they wanted the program to head to at that particular time and where I thought the program was at as well," Busby said.

The Jamaica Football Federation told the AP it has scheduled a meeting with Busby on Tuesday after learning of the allegations.

Members of the Whitecaps organization, which continues to field a men's team in MLS, who were involved in the handling of the Busby allegations and still remain with the team were placed on administrative review pending the outcome of the investigation.

Malloree Enoch said Hubert Busby Jr. attempted to solicit sex from her when she was a player and he was the head coach of the Vancouver Whitecaps women's team.

The Associated Press (h/t Sportsnet) reported Enoch said Busby acted inappropriately toward her in 2010 and 2011, made her room with him on road trips and pressured her to have sex with him. She also said Dan Lenarduzzi, who was the team's soccer development director, did not take immediate action when she told him about the behavior.

Busby's contract with Vancouver was not renewed after it expired in October 2011.

Notably, a number of players on the team raised concerns about him to management before the contract was not renewed. 

Busby is now the head coach of Jamaica's women's team, and the AP reported the country's football federation plans on meeting with him about the allegations on Nov. 2.

The AP also noted this is not the first time a Whitecaps women's coach has been accused of abuse, as Ciara McCormack previously used a 2019 blog post to allege former Canadian women's under-20 coach Bob Birarda was abusive.

The former Whitecaps coach was charged with six counts of sexual exploitation, two counts of sexual assault and one count of child luring. Canada Soccer said it will conduct a "transparent, independent review of the investigation of allegations."

Enoch revealed yet another example of alleged abuse in North American women's soccer.

Earlier this month, the National Women's Soccer League announced it was "launching several critical investigative and reform initiatives to protect players and staff and the environments in which athletes live, train and compete to give athletes the agency and ability to safely report misconduct of any form."

The Athletic's Meg Linehan reported Mana Shim and Sinead Farrelly said they were abused by former North Carolina Courage coach Paul Riley.

The NWSL Players Association released a list of demands that called for "systemic transformation" to "end the culture of silence."

NWSL players stopped matches earlier this month to show solidarity for those who said they were abused in the league.              

A foul in Saturday's MLS matchup between the Seattle Sounders and Sporting KC required the analytical skills of The Rock. 

After Fox Soccer tweeted a video asking for help to figure out what move KC goaltender Tim Melia used to take down Cristian Roldan in the net, the Great One declared it was "a devastating, 'Rock Bottom.'"

It actually is fairly close to being a perfectly executed Rock Bottom. The only difference from the real thing is Roldan didn't jump, so the impact wasn't as great as it usually is when Rock delivered it.

Regardless of the overall form, odds would seem good that it hurt Roldan at least a little bit. The only part of this that didn't make it a full-scale tribute to the Rock is Melia didn't immediately pop up and attempt to deliver the People's Elbow. 

Adding insult to injury for Roldan and the Sounders, the referees didn't give Melia a red card. He was issued a yellow card, one of three given to Sporting KC in the match.

KC won the game 2-1 to clinch a playoff berth. Seattle, which leads the Western Conference standings with 58 points, already clinched a spot in the postseason. 

Sporting Kansas City will not have midfielder Felipe Hernandez for the rest of the season after Major League Soccer announced Friday he was suspended without pay for gambling on MLS matches. 

MLS said Hernandez violated the league's gambling integrity rules and standards of conduct and had been suspended since July while the league and law enforcement investigated him.

He disclosed to the team in July that he was worried about his safety because of gambling debts, which kickstarted the investigation.

The investigation determined Hernandez gambled on two MLS matches as a member of Sporting Kansas City, although neither was a game involving his team. It also found no evidence suggesting any other MLS player gambled on league matches.

"No evidence was found that the integrity of any MLS match was impacted by the sports gambling activities under investigation," the announcement read.

The midfielder will be eligible for reinstatement at the end of the calendar year as long as he follows "certain directives, including ongoing counseling." The release noted he cooperated with the MLS' investigation.

Hernandez made four starts for Sporting Kansas City this year and finished the season with one goal, two assists and 13 shots. The goal was his first at the MLS level.

Sporting Kansas City has 52 points on the season and is in second place in the Western Conference standings. It is two points behind the Seattle Sounders, who have a game in hand.

Next up is a game against Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Oct. 17.

Major League Soccer and Liga MX announced Tuesday they are partnering on a new monthlong tournament that will begin in 2023.

According to ESPN's Jeff Carlisle, the Leagues Cup will resemble an international tournament. Forty-seven teams from the two leagues will compete in a group phase and knockout stage to determine a winner.

Previously, the Leagues Cup consisted of four teams from MLS and four teams from Liga MX, and the matches were scheduled to run concurrently with the domestic campaigns. The Seattle Sounders will play Leon at Allegiant Stadium on Wednesday in the final.

The revamped Leagues Cup will supplement a newly formatted CONCACAF Champions League. The winner of the tournament earns a place in the Champions League round of 16, while the second- and third-place finishers qualify for the opening round.

In recent months, a merger between MLS and Liga MX has been floated with the idea they'd be stronger together than apart. Perhaps the Leagues Cup is a sort of compromise where the leagues retain their independence while growing the continental game.

Historically, Liga MX clubs have dominated the Champions League. D.C. United (1998) and the Los Angeles Galaxy (2000) are the only MLS sides to have claimed a title.

Timing is often a problem for MLS representatives.

The reigning champion Columbus Crew, for example, had a two-legged tie with Real Esteli in April before they kicked off their domestic season. Ten days after their home opener, they were right back in the CCL against Monterrey in the quarterfinals. 

MLS commissioner Don Garber believes the Leagues Cup "puts everybody on equal footing" because of how it's laid out, per Carlisle.

David Beckham has increased his ownership stake in Inter Miami CF along with brothers Jorge and Jose Mas, the club announced Friday.

The group has bought out the stakes from Marcelo Claure and Masayoshi Son on the way to controlling ownership of the MLS squad.

Beckham released a statement following the move:

We are immensely proud of the progress we’ve made over the past year and a half in Major League Soccer, and we are grateful to have had Marcelo and Masayoshi with us for the first part of our journey. I am more committed than ever to working with my partners and friends Jorge and Jose to build a lasting legacy, developing youth players from our Academy, competing for championships regularly, and most importantly, rooting ourselves into the DNA of our community and South Florida.

Inter Miami is in the midst of its second season after entering the league as an expansion team in 2020.

After finishing 10th in the Eastern Conference a year ago, the club is vying for a playoff spot in 2021. The team entered Friday eighth in the conference, just one point behind seventh-place Atlanta United.

The club has also put together a roster of proven international players, including Gonzalo Higuain, Rodolfo Pizarro and Blaise Matuidi. Though the MLS sanctioned Inter Miami for violating roster guidelines last season, there is still enough exciting talent to compete in the league.

The team's future could be even more exciting if Beckham is able to sign Lionel Messi in the future.

"The club wants it, we'll see," Higuain told ESPN (h/t Chris Burton of Goal.com) of a potential Messi deal.

Beckham was one of the world's most popular players during his prime, starring for Manchester United and Real Madrid while winning six Premier League titles and one La Liga crown. He also helped the Los Angeles Galaxy win two MLS titles late in his career.

The 46-year-old is now looking for even more success from the ownership side.  

On Wednesday night in central Florida, Jared Isaacman, Sian Proctor, Hayley Arceneaux and Christopher Sembroski blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, onboard the Crew Dragon Resilience becoming the first space mission featuring only private citizens to orbit.

Soccer fans who went to see Orlando City take on Montreal in MLS play got a front-row seat to the historic event.

The rocket launch flew directly over Exploria Stadium, giving those in attendance a glowing beacon in the sky that immediately caught the attention of the crowd.

The mission, dubbed Inspiration4, will orbit the Earth for three days and raise awareness and funds for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital while humankind takes another step toward space tourism.

Former United States soccer star Landon Donovan has been interviewed to become head coach of Real Salt Lake of Major League Soccer, according to Sam Stejskal of The Athletic.

The longtime USMNT mainstay is currently the co-owner, manager and executive vice president of soccer operations for the San Diego Loyal in the USL Championship. He's 11-8-8 since he began coaching in November 2019 and has also worked with Lincoln City FC (third tier of the English football league system) and the MLS Homegrown Game (exhibition match between homegrown MLS players and a selected opponent).

Real Salt Lake has only had two full-time head coaches since March 2017. Daryl Shore (1-1) coached two games on an interim basis to close out the 2017 season and was replaced by Mike Petke (37-39-15) the following year. Freddy Juarez (18-14-23) took over on an interim basis in August 2019 and had the interim tag removed in December of that year.

Pablo Mastroeni has been RSL's interim coach since August 2021, and he's 1-2-0 since becoming manager.

Despite making the quarterfinals of the MLS playoffs in 2018 and 2019, RSL has yet to win a league title. Donovan is now an option to help it do so.

Per Stejskal:

Donovan is one of a large number of candidates the club has spoken to in the opening stages of its search, which began after former head coach Freddy Juarez left Salt Lake to become an assistant with the Seattle Sounders on Aug. 27. Sources said the club has also spoken with legendary club figure Jason Kreis, who coached RSL from 2007-2013 and is currently an assistant at Inter Miami, and Atlanta United assistant Rob Valentino, who earned widespread praise for the work he did as interim head coach of the Five Stripes earlier this year.

The Athletic noted the club continues to canvass for new coaches and has "a decent amount" of work left before it extends an offer to any candidate. If the 39-year-old Donovan ends up being the pick, RSL will be adding someone who has appeared in 157 international matches with 57 goals to its staff.