The US Soccer Foundation merrily skips down hockey's trail..
 

They really want to break the players don't they? The players offered a no-strike promise, IF the USSF started paying players at the rate the USSF was offering while they negotiated. Love how they try to claim its the PLAYERS being obstructionist too..

let's see.. who has..

A) Been two years without a contract.
B) Seen the rise in the contract cut in HALF because they dared not accept the USSF's first offer..
C) Offered a "anywhere in between the two offers" arbitration (where the USSF wants all or nothing, probably so they can lockout the players if the arbitrator goes their way)

It ain't the players fault..

What a bunch of overbearing assholes. They think they can squeeze a WC Qualifying year without a pay raise.

USSF to start recruiting replacement squad
Associated Press
NEW YORK -- The U.S. Soccer Federation said Thursday it will start to recruit a replacement team for next month's World Cup qualifier if a players union dispute is not quickly resolved.

The USSF took the stance after the union rejected an offer to go to mediation in exchange for a players' pledge not to strike through World Cup qualifying, which ends in October or November.

The federation said it will use players who have never appeared at a U.S. national team camp for the Feb. 9 game at Trinidad and Tobago unless the regulars, who are unionized, agree to a deal by Feb. 1. The USSF intends to hold a training camp for the replacements in Carson, Calif.

"The players' association has left us no choice," USSF spokesman Jim Moorhouse said.

Union head Mark Levinstein said the union would agree to a no-strike pledge only if management in turn agreed to start paying players under the terms of the USSF's latest offer instead of the agreement that covered 1999-02. The old agreement expired at the end of 2002 and the players are seeking a pay increase.

"We had many reasons to believe that their goal was to have our players play under the 1999 deal for another year without their having any intention of negotiating in good faith," Levinstein said.

The USSF said that if players had made a no-strike pledge through World Cup qualifying, it would have called in the regular players for the Trinidad game, the first of 10 for the team in the final round of the North and Central American and Caribbean region.

Last week, the union rejected binding arbitration because of the limits set by the USSF on what each side could propose.

"This is the second time in a week that the union has obstructed our efforts to get the U.S. men's national team on the field for the upcoming World Cup qualifying match," USSF president Bob Contiguglia said.

I guess my solace in this is I am going to say good riddance.

For everyone who loves soccer and could care less about hockey, serves you right.

I'm bitter, so sue me.

I am guessing that the USSF is going to win on this matter. At the very least, they have won the negotiating game so far. They have the players begging for something between the two offers, instead of asking for more than the original offer.

I've employed negotiating tactics similar to what the USSF has used here. I reserve it for jerks, though, who seem to think that acting like an ass should get them more in the world than everyone else.

You know who really suffers through all this? The kids

Yeah, they should resolve this for the children... :confused:

Why? My daughter's game went off without a hitch last Saturday, and her game for tomorrow is still scheduled for 11am.

Wait...soccer is played professionally in the US?

She is playing right now? I think everyone is between seasons here.

It's hard to say... the players IMO have less to lose, as the fed could lose a lot of money if they don't qualify, but I'm not sure how willing the players are to risk it.

It's not clear whether the players have actually moved at all on money. The fed did offer arbitration (with restrictions the players were not willing to accept), the players countered with mediation, also the PA's GM has indicated on BigSoccer that there was progress on some of the off-the-field issues in negotiation.

Edit: Also, I understand that so far, the fed has not had much success at finding non-locked-out players who are willing to play.

I live in Florida. We don't have pesky issues such as trying to kick a soccer ball in 3 feet of snow. :) Although, her first game in December was quite cold, and tomorrow morning the low is supposed to be in the 40's. That's cold enough for people to have scarves and crap on here, and I'm sure my daughter will have a full sweatsuit on under her uniform.

Won't Somebody think of the children!!!