Sunil Gulati faces the music after USA 2022 loses to Qatar

14 votes to eight. In favor of the sheiks from Qatar.

That's the margin the USA lost to in their bid for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

After the fourth and final vote, and in spite of a spirit campaign that involved the Los Angeles Galaxy's Landon Donovan, Sunil Gulati was forced to to put on a brave face in what will go down as the biggest black eye of his tenure as US Soccer Federation president.

"We're disappointed," he said at the Messe Zürich. "There's no way to get around that. It's a very harsh disappointment. We worked very hard. The country's been behind us in a way frankly we haven't seen.

"I always viewed this as a huge pedal, and a World Cup hosted in the US would give us a foot down on that pedal and take us to a new trend line. So obviously, we're not going to have that.

Will that trend line still be positive? Yes. Will we still get to all of us, where Don [Garber], where I and others want to get? The answer is yes. It's going to take longer. It's going to be harder. This was a big part of the plan. There's no way around that."

Interestingly enough, Gulati was not surprised by the news.

"I'm not shocked," Gulati said. "[Qatar] put forth an aggressive campaign that was successful.

"Luckily for us, we've had a great team here. That's a great team from a professional level as well as some personal friends. It's been a lot of emotion, a lot of hard work. If there is a roller-coaster, this is the bottom of it."

The bid president was quick to second-guess himself at the press conference on Thursday.

"Maybe I should have told the FIFA Executive Committee yesterday that I'm not half the man that [South African Organizing Committee president] Danny [Jordaan] is," Gulati added, "because I can only do this once. He did it twice and I give him a lot of credit for having the stamina to do that."

"It's a tough process."

"Although we are all disappointed in FIFA’s decision to award the 2022 World Cup to Qatar rather than the United States," MLS Commissioner Don Darber said in a letter to the fans of the league, "we will continue moving forward.

We remain as committed today as we have ever been to continuing our mission of growing the sport in North America and growing MLS into one of the best leagues in the world.

"Through the dedication and support of the US Bid Committee, MLS’ owners, Clubs and League staffs, US Soccer, and the cities and fans across the country that participated in the bid process, the United States prepared and submitted an outstanding proposal to host the World Cup.

"By every measure, the US bid was rated the highest by FIFA of all competing nations. In this, we should all take great pride."

Youth Academy Update

With the train wreck that was the USA 2022 bid now in their rear view mirror, the Los Angeles Galaxy Youth Academy prepared for the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Winter Showcase to be held in Phoenix, Arizona.

Both the U-16 and U-18 teams will face Dallas-based club Andromeda, South Carolina United FC and Alabama’s Birmingham United during the four-day Showcase, which brings together all 78 of the clubs that compete in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy.

The Galaxy will open their schedule against Andromeda on Saturday, December 4, with the U-18’s playing at 9 a.m. and the U-16’s following at 11:15 a.m.

They will be back in action two days later on Monday, December 6 when they face South Carolina United FC at 1:30 p.m. and 3:45 p.m.

The Galaxy will then round out their Showcase schedule a day later on Tuesday, December 7 with both teams taking on Birmingham United at 9 a.m.

The Galaxy U-18’s enter the Winter Showcase on a four game winning streak with a record of 5-2-1 on the season. Under the direction of head coach Matt Mennell, they are looking to return to the Development Academy Playoffs for the second consecutive season.

Juan Gutierrez leads the team with four goals on the season, while Neil Ignacio and Eric Verso each have three and Riley Wolfe has two.

The Galaxy U-16’s have been even better so far this season, tallying a 7-0-1 record through their first eight games of the season.

The U-16’s will be coached by Mike Stauber at the Showcase while their usual head coach, Kenny Arena, remains with his college team, UCLA, where he is an assistant coach, for the Quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament.

The Galaxy have outscored opponents 22-6 on the season so far, with Jack McBean scoring a team-high six goals. Drew Murphy is close behind with five goals while Sean Dhillon has added four.

This is the third consecutive year in which the Galaxy Academy teams have participated in the Winter Showcase with the 2009 Showcase also being held in Phoenix at the Reach 11 Sports Complex.

The U-16’s are 4-1-1 all-time at the Winter Showcase, going a perfect 3-0-0 in 2008 and 1-1-1 last season.

The U-18’s are 2-1-3 all-time at the Winter Showcase, going 1-0-2 in 2008 and 1-1-1 in 2009.

Both teams have also participated in a pair of Spring Showcases, which take place each May in Florida, with the U-16’s going 4-1-1 and the U-18’s going 3-1-2.


Here are your LA Galaxy Under-16 and Under-18 rosters for the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Winter Showcase.

LA Galaxy U-16 Roster for the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Winter Showcase
GOALKEEPERS (2) – Grayson Cornwell, Josh McNeely
DEFENDERS (6) – Chris Antunez, Steve Copley, Cole Dimond, Sagar Jambusaria, Vincent Reyes, Ludwing Vargas
MIDFIELDERS (8) – Jose Avila, Sean Dhillon, Grady Howe, Kevin Labastida, Francisco Magallon, Axel Mendez, Drew Murphy, Ivan Vasquez
FORWARDS (3) – Justin Dhillon, Jack McBean, Willie Raygoza
COACHES – Mike Stauber, Adam Reeves

LA Galaxy U-18 Roster for the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Winter Showcase
GOALKEEPERS (2) – Vince Paldino, Adam Zepeda
DEFENDERS (7) – Mathias Cuadrado, Ricardo Hernandez, Justin Kim, Jake LaPorte, Matt Mardesich, Gabriel Rivera, Derek Vog
MIDFIELDERS (7) – Angel Ayala, Brian Blumenfeld, Eric Gonzalez, Juan Mendoza, Nati Schnitman, Eric Verso, Riley Wolfe
FORWARDS (4) – Neil Ignacio, Dylan Seedman, Cameron Souri, Dyllan Stevens
COACHES – Matt Mennell, Todd Dunivant, Sal Diaz

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