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Frisco native Jaedyn Shaw unavailable for USWNT’s 2025 Paris Olympic match against Zambia
Dallas, TX
Leagues Cup pits FC Dallas, MLS against Mexico’s best, but tournament still has doubters
Like it or not, the Leagues Cup is back.
The controversial and polarizing midsummer tournament that forces the MLS and Liga MX to a one-month hiatus starts Friday, bringing complaints from some and praise from others.
Major League Soccer is in its best shape since its launch in 1996.
With 26 clubs strategically spread across the United States and three more in Canada, the league reported that stadiums are filled to 94% capacity each game.
So far this season, 8.3 million fans have attended MLS games, the highest number at the All-Star break in league history.
MLS average attendance so far is 23,194, the highest in league history.
With things going so well, it’s hard for some to understand why the MLS needs to be involved in a midsummer tournament.
“It is difficult to stop the league for so long,” said the Spanish midfielder of the LA Galaxy, Riqui Puig, who played for the MLS All-Star Team against the stars of Liga MX on Wednesday. Liga MX won 4-1 in Columbus.
“It’s complicated, even more so if you are in a moment where you are adding victory after victory and the team is playing at a good level,” said Puig, who played for Barcelona before arriving in the MLS.
The Leagues Cup includes 77 matches hosted at MLS stadiums throughout the U.S. and Canada.
All 29 MLS clubs and 18 Liga MX teams participate in a World Cup-style tournament. The competition has a Group Stage made up of two regions (East and West), followed by knockout rounds until one team is crowned champion.
Officially sanctioned by Concacaf, the top three teams will receive automatic bids into the Concacaf Champions Cup with a chance to represent the Confederation at the FIFA Club World Cup.
“I don’t think that in Europe they would have accepted something like that,” said André-Pierre Gignac, the French forward who joined Liga MX Tigres from Club Marseille in 2015.
“It’s part of the show that the United States puts on and that’s cool, but the Leagues Cup is the beginning of a project that must improve,” said Gigac, who also played in Wednesday’s All-Star Game.
MLS teams are eight games away from completing their 34-game regular season, while Liga MX has just started its season with four matches on the books.
FC Dallas begins play in the Leagues Cup on Saturday, visiting St. Louis City SC.
On Wednesday, FCD will host FC Juárez, an incoming Liga MX team.
League Cup play will cut short a good run FCD has shown since Peter Luccin was appointed head coach on June 9, replacing Nico Estévez. But the interim coach praised the tournament.
“For me, the Leagues Cup is a fabulous tournament,” said Luccin, who took over FC Dallas when the team was second to last in the Western Conference, with just 14 points after 16 matches.
At the time of the All-Star break, FCD is fighting to get into the playoffs. It is in 11th place in its conference with 30 points. The nine best teams in each conference advance to the postseason.
“To be honest, I love the Leagues Cup because it is an opportunity for us to compete against Mexican teams that have a very good level and it helps us grow and learn,” Luccin said.
For FCD attacker Paul Arriola, the Leagues Cup adds more positive than negative things.
“I don’t have anything bad to say about playing the tournament between both Leagues,” said Arriola, who likes the rivalry brewing between the MLS and Liga MX.
“Both leagues are fighting to show which one is the best, and that is very good. I understand that some may not like this tournament, but for us, it is a great opportunity to compete at another level and try to win a trophy for the club.”
The most substantial criticism of the Leagues Cup comes from the Liga MX teams, which will be on tour for a month, playing games in MLS stadiums.
“It would be nice if MLS teams were also able to play in Mexico in different climates, altitudes, and fields; that would be more fair,” Gignac said.
In its first year, the Leagues Cup was a success largely due to Lionel Messi’s arrival in the MLS.
The Argentine star arrived last summer at Inter Miami CF, and the Leagues Cup served as the setting for his first appearances as an MLS player, including his visit to Toyota Stadium to play a knockout match against FCD.
The Aug. 6, 2023 game was epic. Led by two Messi goals, Inter Miami beat FC Dallas 5-3 on penalties after a wild 4-4 tie in regulation. Inter Miami eventually won last year’s Leagues Cup.
“It was a spectacular atmosphere that day here at Toyota Stadium,” Luccin said about the game against Inter Miami.
“That’s why the Leagues Cup is a very positive thing. It is a tournament that benefits fans who enjoy watching different teams and players, and we, as players and coaches, like to play it because we love to compete at the highest level.”
Find more FC Dallas coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
DALLAS – North Texans will enjoy a brief break today before the next weather system arrives, bringing multiple rounds of storms. A warmup is on the way, with temperatures climbing back into the mid-80s by the weekend.
Monday Forecast
Following a few morning showers in the eastern counties, expect a warm and breezy Monday. High temperatures will climb into the low 80s under partly cloudy skies.
Tuesday Forecast
As an upper-level low-pressure system moves to the west, scattered storms will move into the region Tuesday afternoon. Some of these storms could become severe, with the primary threats being large hail, damaging winds and isolated tornadoes.
Simultaneously, storms are expected to develop ahead of a dryline to the west. While the tornado threat remains low in this area, any storms that form could produce large hail and damaging wind gusts.
7-Day Forecast
Those overnight storms should push out to the east by Wednesday morning, but don’t put the umbrella away just yet. As the main weather system moves directly over us Wednesday afternoon, we’ll likely see another round of scattered storms that could still bring with some hail. Once everything finally clears out Wednesday evening, we can look forward to some drier, much more comfortable air moving back into the area.
Thursday will be noticeably cooler, with high temperatures settling in the mid-60s. However, sunshine and a quick warmup are expected by the weekend. Temperatures will rebound into the 80s on Friday and Saturday.
The Source: Information in this article comes from the National Weather Service and FOX 4 forecasters.
Dallas, TX
Off-duty Dallas officer shoots at suspects allegedly trying to steal his vehicle in Addison, police say
An off-duty Dallas police officer shot at a group of people allegedly trying to steal his personal vehicle on Sunday afternoon in Addison, officials said.
According to the Addison Police Department, around 2:15 p.m., the off-duty Dallas officer saw a group of people trying to steal his vehicle in a parking lot at 5000 Belt Line Road. He confronted the suspects, “and during the encounter, fired a weapon at the suspects’ vehicle.”
The suspects fled in their vehicle, Addison police said, and it is unknown if any suspects were hit by gunfire.
The investigation is ongoing.
The Dallas Wings can’t seem to get a win, at least when it comes to the team’s training facility and arena. Not only is its practice facility in west Oak Cliff, approved over the summer and fast-tracked to open ahead of the team’s spring season, now running behind schedule, it is also somehow over budget.
Dallas had already committed $55 million for the team’s practice facility, a price tag we were uncomfortable with from the beginning. At the time, city staff said that was the amount needed to build a training facility with the amenities and infrastructure required for a WNBA team. The city argued there were few viable alternative locations for the practice facility after delays with the convention center, and they were running out of time. Enter the $55 million facility at Joey Georgusis Park.
But now the project needs an additional $27 million to cross the finish line. How did costs increase so much in just a few months? And how did a project that was expedited to meet the team’s deadline end up falling behind and over budget?
City staff attribute the holdup to missed deadlines by the project management firm McKissack and McKissack and new requirements from the WNBA that weren’t part of the original scope. McKissack and McKissack didn’t respond to multiple messages seeking comment for this editorial. Whatever the company’s missteps, the city is ultimately responsible for conducting due diligence and making sure the project stays on track, and it couldn’t deliver what it promised.
Now the city wants the Wings to take over. The city would cap its total contributions at $57 million, which includes $653,000 in delay reimbursements. The Wings would then cover the remaining costs, at least $27 million, needed to finish the practice facility and agree not to sue Dallas for the delays.
Some City Council members have suggested that Dallas should consider the American Airlines Center for the Wings’ practice facility and arena. But even though the Dallas Mavericks and the Dallas Stars, who currently play at the AAC, are looking to leave, their lease agreements run through 2031. That doesn’t do much for the Wings who need a practice facility now.
Maybe all of this could have been avoided if the city had more seriously considered existing facilities that could have accommodated the Wings. That’s not to say the team doesn’t deserve a training space that will meet their needs, but repurposing an existing space instead of starting from the ground up might have saved both time and money.
This debacle is frustrating for the Wings, and it also isn’t a good look for the city. If Dallas can’t figure out how to deliver a practice facility that it promised to one of its professional sports teams, how can it hope to attract more businesses and major investments? Anyone watching this unfold would have good reason to question the city’s ability to deliver.
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