Week # 16
The Weekly Spurs Report
Upcoming Competitions:
This weekend the 2013/14 Girls and the 2011/12 Girls will be competing in the 2nd Annual United Girls Spring Kick-Off in Sioux City, South Dakota. Good Luck Girls!
https://www.sodakspurs.com/spurs-match-central
MLS Ticket Raffle:
Raffle Prizes
5 tickets to a Home Sporting KC game of your choice + Sporting KC jersey
5 tickets to a Home Minnesota United game of your choice + Minnesota United jersey
1 ticket - $20
6 tickets - $100
Tickets are also available in Trivia Night Package and in person at Trivia Night on March 30th
Winners will be drawn March 30th at Trivia Night.
Trivia Night Fundraiser:
Come out for a fun night of trivia to support the SoDak Spurs Soccer Club! We will draw the winners of the MLS Raffles following Trivia.
There are only 50 tickets available. Deadline to purchase tickets is March 25th!
What: Trivia Night Fundraiser
Where: Wooden Legs Brewing Company
When: March 30th, 6-9pm
We have multiple ticket options available for purchase.
Ticket #1 - Pizza, 1 drink, & trivia entry - $30
Ticket #2 - Pizza, 2 drinks, & trivia entry - $40
Ticket #3 - Pizza, 3 drinks, & trivia entry - $50
Spurs Supporter Package - Pizza, 3 drinks, trivia entry, & 3 MLS Raffle Tickets - $100
Trivia Night Rules:
Must purchase a ticket to participate in trivia. Teams are allowed.
Cash Prizes
1st Place - $100
2nd Place - $50
3rd Place - $25
Buy Tickets Here:
https://www.sodakspurs.com/trivia-night-raffle-tickets/p/wooden-legs-trivia-night-ticket
Raise Right Fundraising:
We have partnered with Raise Right Fundraising! Use the SoDak Spurs Enrollment Code to purchase eGift Cards for your everyday purchases. Each purchased gift card gives a percentage of earnings back to our fundraising account.
Example: Purchase a $100 eGift Card to GAP at 14% earnings. Your $100 eGift Card is delivered to your online wallet for instant or future use. You earned $14 for our Fundraising Account! The earnings come from the brand, so no extra money out of your pocket.
There are over 200 brands to choose from for eGift Cards! Including Starbucks, Walmart, Buffalo Wild Wings, Lowes, and many more!
When placing an order, select Add and pay with a credit card. DO NOT select Pay Coordinator Directly. There will be a 2.6% credit card fee for each transaction.
Get Started Here! https://www.raiseright.com/shop
SoDak Spurs Enrollment Code: PYQGPNWS462S
Open Registrations:
Registration is now open for Summer JR Spurs! Register at the link below.
https://www.sodakspurs.com/summer-jr-spurs
This Week in Soccer:
This weekend is an International Break!
United States vs. Grenada - Friday, 7:00pm on TNT
England vs. Ukraine - Sunday, 11:00am
United States vs. El Salvador - Monday, 6:30pm on TNT
The National Women’s Soccer League starts their season this weekend!
North Carolina vs. Kansas City - Saturday, 1:00pm on Paramount+
San Diego vs. Chicago - Saturday, 9:00pm on CBS
Washington vs. OL Reign - Sunday, 3:00pm on Paramount+
Portland vs. Orlando - Sunday, 4:00pm on Paramount+
Houston vs. Louisville - Sunday, 6:00pm on Paramount+
Angel City vs. Gotham - Sunday, 8:00pm on Paramount+
International Breaks - Written by Jake Weber
This weekend most leagues in Europe and around the world will not be playing any games. This is due to a scheduled break that sees players travel with their national teams to play in a variety of competitions. International breaks are a common occurrence in the world of soccer and are something that new viewers can take some getting used to.
While 2022 and 2023 are odd years for international breaks, due to the World Cup being held in the winter, every year leagues go on a hiatus for a week while their players are sent to play for their national teams. Most of the time games played during the international break are either friendlies to build chemistry between teammates who play on different club teams, or qualification matches for continental or global competitions.
Every continent in the world has a unique competition held every 2-4 years that decides the best nation in the continent. In North America, CONCACAF, the governing body of North American international soccer hosts the Gold Cup which was most recently won by the United States in 2021. In South America, CONMEBOL hosts the Copa America which was last won by Argentina in 2021. The AFC hosts the Asian Cup with its reigning Champion being Qatar who won the 2019 edition. The OFC is a confederation for Pacific Island nations including New Zealand which won the last OFC Nations Cup in 2016. The Euros, being the European continental competition, is the highest-profile continental competition and was last won by Italy in 2021. Finally, that leaves us with AFCON and the African Cup of Nations which was last won by Senegal in 2021.
While most major tournaments are held in the summer to avoid conflict with most domestic leagues, and with international breaks being taken to give teams chances to play qualifying matches, it would be easy to assume that there is never a conflict between international and domestic play. However, there have been times when continental competitions have taken place during a domestic season. While all domestic soccer took a break during the World Cup, it is usually decided to continue playing during continental tournaments. This leaves some teams with absences in their roster and can sometimes be left scrambling to find replacements.