2013 UEFA Champions League Final - Predictions

Bayern Munich vs Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League Final

An incredible 2012/2013 Champions league season is coming to a close with the Final set for Saturday, May 25th 2013.

The two teams who will compete in the final are Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich.

Bayern was last years runner up, they lost to Chelsea in the final so they will certainly want to change that this year.

Dortmund have had a stellar Champions League campaign taking down one high ranking opponent after another. To reach the final, they had to beat Real Madrid in the Semis.

But the question is, who will win in the final, and claim the top prize in club soccer?

Predictions for 2013 Champions league Final

Dortmund vs Bayern

Bayern has clearly had the stronger season with a dominating performance not only in their home league, the Bundesliga, but also in the Champions League.

They put together one of the best performances over two legs ever seen in Champions League history, beating Barcelona 7-0 over two games. It was an astounding performance that put them immediately as the favorite.

Dortmund have also done very well in the Champions League, showcasing a young team that has plenty of attacking power and fast pace. Unfortunately  they will be missing at least one key player in the final, Gotze, who has a strained hamstring.

with all this information, it seems easy to predict that Bayern will have the advantage in the Final. But lets also look at Bayern's two key players on the wing; Robben and Ribery.

Both players have been very hungry, and appear to want to win more than ever before. Their combined performance against Barcelona boosted Bayern into another level.

One cannot discount Robert Lewandowski when talking about performances. He scored all 4 goals in Dortmund's 1st leg win over Real Madrid, which turned out to be all the goals they needed to reach the final.

With these high quality attacking players on both sides, it seems likely that each team will score. But I would predict Bayer to score more, with a final score of 3-1.

Prediction: Bayern 3-1 Dortmund

Leave a comment with your thoughts and predictions, and also check out our World Cup 2014 page.

Bayern vs Dortmund 2013 Champions League Final

The 2013 UEFA Champions League Final is Set

On May 25th 2013 Bayern Munich will face Borussia Dortmund in the UEFA Champions League Final.

The 2013 Champions League competition has been an exciting series of high stakes games for the top clubs in Europe.

It will now be an all German club final, with Dortmund and Bayern taking out the Spanish competition in the semifinal. Let's look a little closer at how the teams reached the final.

Reaching the Champions League Final

Bayern Munich faced Barcelona, and Dortmund played Real Madrid in the Semifinal, over a two leg competition.

The first game between Barcelona and Bayern Munich ended in a surprise 4-0 rout of Barcelona by Bayern Munich, and the second game followed in the same path, with Bayern winning 3-0 to go 7-0 on aggregate.

While some expected or predicted Bayern to win in the semi's, no one would have expected them to post such a high score over the two games. Their emphatic wins make them the favorite to win in the final on May 25th.

Dortmund, the other German club in the semifinals, had to face Real Madrid. Many thought Madrid would conquer Dortmund, simply because of their superior talent and experience. But the young Dortmund team surprised everyone with a massive 4-1 win in the first leg.

It proved just enough, as Madrid gave it a go and won the second leg 2-0 at home, but ended up losing the two leg competition 3-4 on aggregate.

Dortmund and Bayern Munich will now face each other in an all German club final that puts the Bundesliga's #1 team against the #2 team for the biggest price in Europe.

If this season is any indication of how the game will turn out, then Bayern should be the clear winner, already the German league winner with weeks to go in the season.

But, this may be Dortmund's chance to throw some dirt on Bayern's shiny season, and take the price for themselves.

In the end, 90 minutes will determine who is the Champions of Europe.

The match will take place on May 25th 2013 at Wembly stadium in London England. It will be live on Fox in the USA starting at 2pm Eastern time.

You don't want to miss this match.

Union Face Neighbors DC United on April 21st Live on ESPN2

The Philadelphia Union Face Nearby Rivals DC United in a Sunday Showdown

The game, which will be live on ESPN2, takes place at RFK Stadium in DC at a time when they really need points.

DC United currently sits in last place in the eastern conference with only one win, and one tie this season. They have been defeated 4 times already.

The Union are in the middle of the Eastern conference at 6th place with 8 points. This  is much better than last season already, and they have shown good signs of improvement.

What makes this game exciting is that it will not only be available on ESPN2 at 5pm E on Sunday April 21st, it is also a fast growing rivalry that will surly have some sparks, and perhaps more.

DC is often better known for its longer lasting rivalry with New York. But the fact that Philadelphia sits in the middle, makes them an instant rival for both teams.



This game will certainly be exciting and full of entertainment and drama.

World Cup Qualifying News - USA Gets Valuable Points

The USMNT Win at Home, Get Draw on the Road

The US Men's National Team gained four valuable points in their last two games of World Cup Qualifiers against Costa Rica and Mexico.

The qualification process in the Caribbean and North/Central American region consists of one group of six teams, where the top three advance to the world cup after a series of games between every team.

USA played Costa Rica on March 22nd 2013, at home in Denver and won 1-0 in blizzard conditions. Grounds people worked throughout the entire game at keeping lines clear so the game could go on. At every stoppage of play, workers ran onto the field with snow shovels to clear the important lines. It was a game to remember because of the incredible conditions.

If you missed that game, you can still watch the highlights of America's snowy win over Costa Rica on YouTube.

After that crucial home win over Costa Rica, The Americans had the difficult task of going to Mexico and trying to get points against the very good Mexican national team. To put it into perspective, in all the World Cup qualifying matches USA had played in Mexico, they had never won, and only even tied Mexico once!

But in that now historic game played on March 26th, 2013, the US Men's National Team got a wonderful 0-0 tie, grabbing a valuable road point.

Current Standings for the USA and others after Three Games

This puts the USMNT in 3rd place in a very tight table. But four points in three games is not bad as long as they continue to win at home, and get points here and there on the road. The US will play next in June, so look forward to those games in the future on the road to World Cup 2014!

USMNT Head Into World Cup Qualifiers Minus Key Starters

The USMNT Will Be Missing Several Important Players for their Upcoming Games
As two big World Cup Qualification games loom just days away, the US team is forced to go without several key players.

The US will take on Costa Rica on Friday, Match 22, and Mexico on Tuesday, March 26th in two key games for World Cup 2014 qualifications.

Unfortunately for the US, they will be without a handful of their usual starters, including Carlos Bocanegra and Goalkeeper Tim Howard.

Howard, who has been a vital part of the USMNT for several years and a major reason for several of their recent big wins, suffered a back injury but is expected to return for his club, Everton, in early April.

This leaves a gap between the goal posts for US coach Jurgen Klinsmann, who choose Brad Guzan as the replacement.

Guzan is an easy pick to replace the missing Howard, as his high level of play have been on display at Aston Villa, where he is the starting 'keeper, and gaining a fair amount of positive attention.

But the question will remain as the US takes on Costa Rica and Mexico, is there enough depth to get points out of these games, especially the must win against Costa Rica?

The USMNT will play Costa Rica on Friday, March 22nd at 10:30 EST Live on ESPN.

Don't miss out on cheering them on!

World Cup 2014 - First Hexagonal Matches Played

USMNT Losses in First Hexagonal Match for World Cup 2014 Qualification 

The Caribbean, North and Central American qualification group for World Cup 2014 has been narrowed down to just 6 teams who will battle it out to qualify for the upcoming World Cup.

On February 6th, 2013, the first match in this final stage of qualification was played as the US went south to play Honduras.

Honduras came back from a goal down to beat the US 2-1 and gain 3 valuable points in the group.

Clint Dempsey got his 31st career goal for the USMNT in the first half, giving the Americans a 1-0 lead. But that lasted only minutes as Honduras tied the game just before halftime. 

In the second half, Honduras managed to grab another goal, which proved enough to win the game for them.

Although this was not a good start for World Cup Qualifications, this was only the first of a number of games to be played over the next 6 months to determine who will advance from the group.

World Cup 2014 Qualification Standings after Match 1 for the Hexagonal:

Standings for Hexagonal World Cup Qualifiers 

While the USA does sit at the bottom with zero points, they are fortunate that both Mexico vs Jamaica, and Panama vs Costa Rica ended in draws, leaving only Honduras with a full 3 points.

The US will play Costa Rica next at the end of Match, followed by a game against Mexico a week later.

With a their first game ending in a disappointing loss, the US will have to work very hard to win their next few matches or else face an even more dismal situation; not qualifying for World Cup 2014.

New Women's League to Start in US

A New Women's League will Start in March or April of this Year

After a year with no women's league in the USA, it is coming back stronger than ever.

Many people are concerned that a women's soccer league will fail yet again, this is the third attempt after all. But changes in the new league lead me to believe it will gain a foothold in a burgeoning US soccer market and fill a niche for young female athletes.

The MLS is showing signs of slow, but powerful growth in its fan-base and attendance to games. And with the popularity of US Women's national team, it is probable that fans will attend the games and support the league.

But the new women's league will also serve a much higher purpose.

A Domestic Soccer League is Vital for National Team Success

Impressively, the US Women's soccer team has won many of their games and major tournaments over the last few years despite the loss of the domestic league in 2011.

The countries that have seen the biggest improvement in the their female soccer teams are countries with domestic women's soccer leagues. Japan, Sweden and Germany are three great examples of teams that are, and will, challenge the US Women.

In order for the US Women to continue to dominate their sport, they must have a developmental domestic league to bring up new talent. And that is exactly what the new league will do for not only the US, but Mexico and Canada.

So with the US, Mexican, and Canadian soccer organizations invested in the new women's league, it appears to have the best chance to become a strong, self supporting league for the future.

I shall certainly be supporting them in the coming season, and especially when Philadelphia gets a team.