Sprinkles: Throwing frosting...

New York: The syrupy energy drink is flying in the Big Apple, with the Cupcakes' mascot Tony Meola the one freaking out. Big Apple Soccer has the report, with Tony upset that Bruce Arena informed him via email that he wouldn't be starting any longer for the Bulls and that his contract wouldn't be picked up.

He still hasn't decided on his retirement. Tony said, "It's like a see-saw everyday. There's no other way to describe it. And there are some days, to be honest, I look at some of the guys who are playing in the league and still have contract, there's no way I shouldn't play." As much as I enjoy making jokes about Meola, I can't really argue with this point.

It's kind of surprising that Arena would bring Meola in for a game before the World Cup last year, in order to get his 100th cap, but then treat the guy like this. Sure, it's easy to cry "Sour Grapes" here, but I think this is rather poor on Arena's part.

Tony goes on to say in another piece that the Red Bulls need to fix issues in their front office, saying that it was at its best in the Alexi Lalas Era. Meola mentioned Lalas in the first article as well, giving him props for treating Cobi Jones in the right way and letting him go out on his own terms. Is Meola trying hard to become the Galaxy #2?

MLS: The first ESPN ads for their Thursday night coverage have started hitting (see them here, thanks Kenn at BigSoccer). As usual, some of the internet soccer crowd is up in arms about ESPN speaking to general sports fans, rather than world soccer fans. Sad to say, I think ESPN and MLS have a better chance at converting a basketball fan than a Euro-snob.

I like the spots, and I'm curious to see what the general reaction will be. American soccer is creeping into the general sports consciousness, check one of my favorite sports blogs, With Leather, for proof.

Thanks again to Kenn for this, it looks like the Commish will have a few announcements next Monday. I'm intrigued...

Houston: Don't look for the Dynamo to join the jersey sponsorship club before the season begins, according to Bernardo Fallas and the Houston Chronicle. It was assumed for a while that Gallery Furniture would step up, but it looks like those talks have fallen off.

In other news, there might be some stadium issues if Houston holds off Pachuca in the CONCACAF semis. "This is another example why we need to have our own soccer venue," Dynamo GM Oliver Luck said. Very true...

New England: The Revs pounded Olimpia 3-1 in New Orleans. Over 8K fans attended the match. The Revs have also been doing many good deeds during their stay in New Orleans, earning praise from the Mayor and other city officials. Well done New England!

Columbus: du Nord is reporting that Dante Washington has joined the Crew announce team. I completely agree, this is a great move. Read this article from last year about Dante Washington Night and you'll agree.

Chivas USA: The Sueño MLS contest ended with a bit of a thud, as the winner, Jorge Flores, will be taking a spot on the Chivas USA U-19 team. It is nice to see that Chivas has displayed a commitment to their youth teams from the beginning, it will serve them well in the coming years as they develop their own players while some clubs keep hoping the colleges do it for them.

Dallas: Pablo Ricchetti, the team's target in midfield, is in Dallas. He has not officially joined the team yet though. He's still referred to as a "trialist" on the excellent FC Dallas blog.