ONLY 7 DAYS UNTIL THE PREMIER LEAGUE RETURNS 🏆🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Hail GFOP!

I type with fingers filled with the exhausted adrenaline of a Football Holiday in Great Britain. The week-long journey we are currently immersed in, traveling up and down the nation to revel in the return of the league we love. Our goal is simple: to eat all the pies, sink multiple pints, attack every English Breakfast we can lay our hands on, and chat with some of British football's biggest stars. We opened up this morning in North London, spending yesterday with Ange Postecoglou and Son Heung-Min, then hit the iconic Tony’s Pie and Mash shop in Waltham Abbey, near Spurs training ground, for some Steak and Kidney Pie and a side of stewed eel. Heaven is a place on earth. 

We then barreled up North to Liverpool to see my beautiful Mum. Am currently typing from my Dad’s office, up early Friday morning, before I head to Wrexham to watch their return to League One with Tomi Caws (more on that below). You can follow every single step of the way with us via all our social media to experience where we're going, what we're eating, and whom we're interviewing. And please send recommendations to [email protected] as we head back to London, then off to Manchester. I hope this trip encourages so many of you to plan Football Holidays of your own. As Big Ange said to me today, football at its best is all about making generational memories. Here's to making memories together. 

Experience the first 24 Hours of our Football Holiday right here: WARNING: A lot of Pies imbibed in the making of this video. 🇬🇧

I want to thank our friends at British Airways for making all of this possible with their support – as a kid, no matter where I was in the world, I always felt like I was home the moment I saw their logo, and that remains the truth to this day. Single handedly, also the greatest place to have a Full English at 35,000 feet. Also – massive love to two terrific hotels who are our home away from home when we are on the road. The incredible Titanic Hotel in Liverpool, which is a stone’s throw from Everton’s new stadium, and serves a fish and chips to die for. The building used to be a rum and tobacco Warehouse located on Stanley Dock and now houses a selection of rums from all over the world. The Midland Hotel in Manchester is a 120 year-old iconic landmark in the city, where Mr. Rolls and Mr. Royce cemented their partnership which has been reinvented in the most creative way possible. The Pep Guardiola of hotels.

b. Massive weekend of football to come – the US Women go for Gold in what would be one of the most remarkable transformational managerial achievements I have witnessed at the international level in the modern period. The curtain call of the Premier League season, the Community Shield also is going down Sunday. My analysis on all to come. I do want to direct you to a pair of interviews I loved dropping:

i. Chelsea fans, I spent the afternoon with your new Dad, Enzo Maresca. He is an incredibly smart gent. Whether he can turn your club around remains to be seen, but you can gain a sense of your Man right here on YouTube (subscribe to our channel while you at it). 💙

ii. The second is the latest episode of my series with Tyler Adams, The Captain, in which Tyler lives through some of the beats of the disastrous Copa campaign and talks, quite honestly, about what the US Men need next managerially. I found it really fascinating to listen to a player inside that locker room talk like this. Thanks to our friends at Allstate for making this series possible. I am indebted to them for their support of the game in this nation. 🇺🇸

2. To the Football

i. USWNT are BACK and go for Gold against Brazil. An Emma Hayes-fuelled transformation that dreams are made of 🇺🇸🇧🇷🥇

(Saturday, 11 a.m. ET, NBC/Peacock) 

August 6th, 2023, the United States Women were knocked out of the World Cup against Sweden in the Round of 16. Our world felt like it had ended. We had fallen so far behind the best in the world. Our style of play seemed antiquated. Our coaching, a liability. 369 days later, We Back. Poised to play our first Olympic final since London 2012. Led by the remarkable Emma Hayes. A coach, “Born in England but made in the USA,” who has brought her effervescent player management and tactical intelligence to deliver instant impact, refashioning the squad into a young, fearless, ferocious fist, hungry to face Spain-Slayers Brazil and earn a record-extending fifth Olympic gold medal.

This transformation has all been so remarkable to witness. In 2023, the USWNT felt like we had squandered supremacy by becoming a floundering, formless proposition whom no opponent feared. A squad that had been bogged down by a legendary generation of winners, many of whom had long since peaked as footballers, has become a young, mobile, intelligent collective who are true contenders. Remember this: Emma Hayes only conducted her first training 73 days ago. When she arrived, we lamented how she had been hired with the Olympics too soon, and that the World Cup in 2027 was her real goal. Instead, Emma has just gone for it and unfurled one of the most impressive extreme tournament makeovers I have ever witnessed. 

Our nation’s finest have shown the minds of poets and the hearts of warriors. Fifteen days ago against Zambia, they began the tournament as a vivacious, free scoring joy, but have since demonstrated a ferocious tenacity to gut out back-to-back 120-minute games. Olympics Soccer is a reckless format with its tiny squads, relentless schedule, travel and heat. Six games in 17 days. A brutal Ultramarathon. But also an epic trial that has forged new heroes. Three weeks ago, Mal Swanson, Sophia Smith and Trinity Rodman had never started a game together. Now, they are the faces of this team, and one of the most kaleidoscopic, feared attacking frontlines in the international game. Naomi Girma has revealed herself to be the team’s leader and a national institution in the process. 

I keep thinking about that iconic quote from legendary Italian coach Giovanni Trapattoni who once said, "A good manager can make a team 10% better and a bad manager makes it 30% worse.” The gulf in US performances between Emma and her predecessor, Vlatko Andonovski, suggests the idea is true, even though the percentages may be off. 

Make no mistake, the United States are not without our vulnerabilities. The midfield is still a work in progress. But they have shown both a peerless ability to suffer, and the creativity to find solutions for every problem that is presented to them while doing so. Injury-ravaged Brazil will attempt to craft the perfect end for the legend that is Marta, the 38 year-old who will be raring to return for a final hurrah after a two-game red card suspension. They smashed a shell-shocked, wildly uncalibrated Spain in the semi-final. A game which felt as much about Spain’s exhaustion, as it was about Brazil’s true threat. The game will be won by the team able to dig deepest to deny fatigue, and prove they can assert themselves mentally and emotionally to grab glory. I believe the United States can do this and complete the most remarkable metamorphosis the American game has ever witnessed – and in the process, remind us of the one life truth in football: It makes a fool out of all of us. 

More: We have talked a lot over these last two games about this tournament feeling like an Ultramarathon rather than a footballing challenge. Emma Hayes actually brought in an ultramarathoner to speak to the players! 

And: the incredible Becky Sauerbrunn joins Sammy Mewis to tell you all you need to know to be ready for this game of games.

2. Our US Men’s Coaching Search Rumbles On 🇺🇸

I too am old enough to remember that sweet 24-hours when it felt like Jersey-born, Bundesliga-bred Hoffenheim coach Pellegrino Matarazzo was poised to take over the USMNT job. Not quite the serial-winner promised, but good enough, right? It was not to be. But as I wrote last week, Mauricio Pochettino remains in the search, and multiple sources I have spoken to confirm he is considering the opportunity. U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker knows Pochettino from his final year at Southampton, where Crocker ran the academy in 2013. It should be said, Poch is also heavily linked to the vacant England job (and thus far – this US job has demonstrated a galling tendency to be used by agents as a negotiation tactic to achieve other goals) but he is such a smart, emotionally intelligent culture builder who loves young players. The people around him, like Jesus Perez, are also terrific human beings. This could very much be a win-win for all parties. 

Interesting Read: Recent USMNT managers have promised the world and forgotten the basics.

3. COMMUNITY SHIELD TIME BABY! Manchester City vs. Manchester United (Saturday, 10 a.m. ET, ESPN+)

The quintuple begins now! In a repeat of last season’s FA Cup Final, Manchester’s red and blue sides meet Saturday to play for the first trophy of the season (10 a.m. ET, ESPN+). This weekend’s game marks the fourth consecutive year City have appeared in this match, a win tomorrow would prevent them from equaling United’s record of four straight Community Shield defeats (1998-2001). Ten Hag starts his third season in charge of United in less than ideal fashion, with a litany of backline injuries leaving him extremely limited options in defense. On the blue side, stars Erling Haaland and Jack Grealish appear terrifyingly potent, after a summer without European football, the former fresh off slapping three past Chelsea in City’s 4-2 victory in Columbus.

PrizePicks. Best PP since Pie and Potatoes 

Charlie Kipp Writes: Rejoice, embrace… commence. Club football is back. Premier League? Not so fast my friend. We are talking about the English Football League. League Two, League One (the one Wrexham is in, fyi) and The Championship - all start play today and don’t stop until late May of next year. Big change, sports fans: EFL matches have a new home, CBS Sports. Reports indicate that matches will be far more accessible on both CBS Sports and Paramount+ than they were on their old home, ESPN+... Bristol City fans rejoice! And with more football, comes more picks. Yup, PrizePicks will have you covered for all the EFL action this season, and while there is no standout pick to key-in on this week, let’s just celebrate with GOALS, shall we?

In the opening round of fixtures in last year’s EFL Championship, we averaged nearly 3.5 goals PER MATCH. Legs are fresh, excitement is high, strikers know how to score and defenses aren’t fully organized (yet). So we are going to have some fun and take the MORE on ALL GOAL SCORERS for the first week of EFL play. Like other picks in the Paris games? Add on a goal scoring more to your PrizePicks entry to juice-up those winnings and kick off your footballing season in the right way. We are so, so back. 

If you haven’t joined PrizePicks, CLICK HERE and use code MiB for a first deposit match up to $100.

4. More Football, Did Ya Say?

i. Aston Villa. First better, now younger.

ii. Football’s transfer summer of austerity. Why it is happening?

iii. How Spain came to dominate Men’s Football at every level.

iv. I taped a lovely interview with a Bournemouth fan podcast, Back of the Net, about the documentary I made in 2015 that turned a ton of Americans into hardcore cherries. Really enjoyed this discussion.

5. Wrexham are in League One 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

Nineteen years after their last game in this league — which many fans believe is their true level – Wrexham returns to English Football’s third tier, Saturday against Buckinghamshire-based Wycombe Wanderers (12.30 p.m. ET, Paramount +). The squad has been gussied up with six summer signings, including former Arsenal loanee Arthur Okonkwo in goal, while League One vet Dan Scarr, who recently joined the club from Plymouth, may make his first appearance at center back. The Red Dragons will be without Deadpool star (and last season’s top scorer) Paul Mullin, who is still working his way back after undergoing surgery in June. The last time the two sides met back in 2008 in League Two, Wycombe took all the points in a 2-1 win watched by 4,000. Expect tomorrow’s game to have a few more eyes on it. I will be amongst them and am fascinated to hear from the fans as to what they believe is the goal for the season? The emotionally tinged dream of an unprecedented third-straight promotion? The rational idea of a season of growth and consolidation as the club pauses for breath after jumping two levels in as many years? Or the truly dark, unshakeable belief that Wrexham will always “Wrexham it up” and find a way to turn joy into self-destruction? 

More from Manager Phil Parkinson: Wrexham will relish 'underdog' role in League One.

And: Prepare for the season with our Wrexham Live Show which was immense. 

P.S. Our digital YouTube series “This Week in Wrexham” with the great Tomi Cheese Lewis returns THIS THURSDAY. Subscribe to our YouTube channel and turn those notifications on to make sure you never miss an episode. 

6. All Hail Tim Ream. A Great American as he returns to our shores to play with Charlotte

Tim Ream’s Premier League career was one of the most inspirational in American men’s history. Reaching the peaks of world football, via a journey which was a masterclass in tenacity, belief, and patience. Thirteen seasons and 312 Fulham appearances only tells part of the story. It was how he did it. Written off at first, told by his manager he was surplus to requirements, only to fight on, and at 35 years old, experience the season of his life, alongside fellow-American, Antonee Robinson.

Scoring Premier League goals, unfurling incredible World Cup performances, unleashing dazzling tekkers. And even catching the eye of Pep Guardiola. It has been a joy to watch this child of Missouri revel in every moment, and stay humble throughout. I have become proud to call him my friend in this time, and can confirm this man-bun-clad pillar of the US men’s national team backline, Mound City Maldini, is an all-around magnificent human being. I have spent a lot of time around this Charlotte organization and adore the manager, proper-Villa man, Dean Smith. I cannot wait to come and watch and buy Tim all the Bojangles in North Carolina. ❤️🤍💙

More: Beautiful thread of Tim Ream’s finest Fulham moments as a footballer and a human being. 

7. Not Football, and All the Better For It

i. Midwestern Duolingo: Ope! Sorry, I’m going to need you to explain what that word means and where it came from. 

ii. 10 years gone: “He’s Absolutely Extraordinary”: Remembering Robin Williams. 

iii. The Gay Supermarket Sweep “Business Partners” From the ’90s Have a Wilder Story Than You Know. Includes a wholesome twist you'll never see coming.

iv. History heroes: Ukraine’s death-defying art rescuers.

v. The Thing About ‘Dateline’. Especially fun to read if you've also committed Bill Hader's Keith Morrison impression to memory. 

vi. Fear as a Game. Explainer for roller coasters, scary movies, and subjecting yourself to Merseyside derbies. 

vii. How that 'slamming door' sound became a must-use on hip hop tracks. The "thwack!" heard round the world. 

viii. “If there’s one fundamental human impulse that the internet has indulged more than anything else, it’s our desire to be huge bitches.” Everybody Gets a Star. 

ix. Doc Brown without the DeLorean: The Charming, Eccentric, Blessed Life of Lee Maxwell.

x. Inside the Secret Negotiations to Free Evan Gershkovich. Behind a paywall (I'm sorry!) but absolutely worth the effort. 

xi. I could not love this Song More: Public Service and This is The Kit — The South Atlantic. Read about its Amelia Earhart-inspired concept. Magical.

I want to close with a lovely letter I received (email me at [email protected]) from Chris Franz (Not the Talking Heads one) from Charleston, S.C. Chris wrote: “Rog - absolute scenes from Columbia, South Carolina last night as Liverpool played Manchester United. A Gamecocks fan compared the crowd level to that of a home game against Georgia. I was able to take my 4 year-old son to see his first soccer game and he witnessed a 3-0 routing of our club’s rival. What a night. I’m not proud of my language when coming face to side-face with Antony and not proud of temporarily forgetting which team I support when I saw Marcus Rashford. We broke the attendance record for a soccer match in the great state of South Carolina and they pulled together a beautiful grass pitch, watered and everything. We got to see 20 different Liverpool players play in a single game with a starting lineup likely to be a Carabao Cup first round squad, but it was glorious. It will be a core memory for my son and me. English football is alive in America.” 🇺🇸

Chris. I cannot tell you how much I loved your email and the idea of the memories you made with your son, which I hope you treasure forever. To the hundreds more we can make in the season together to come. Let’s never take it for granted. 

To more.

Courage.

Go! Go! USA!

ROG