Category: Sporting KC

Sporting KC signs center back

Sporting Kansas City announced today that the club has signed 29-year-old French defender Nicolas Isimat-Mirin.

The center back has signed a two-year MLS contract through 2022 with an option for 2023 and will occupy an international slot on Sporting’s roster pending receipt of his International Transfer Certificate and P1 visa.

Isimat-Mirin has played over 250 professional matches since 2010, featuring in the top divisions of France, the Netherlands and Turkey. He has logged 93 appearances each in France’s Ligue 1 and the Dutch Eredivisie, where he won three league titles as an integral member of PSV Eindhoven.

With experience in the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, Isimat-Mirin arrives at Sporting following a stint with Turkish powerhouse Besiktas.

Born in the Paris suburb of Meudon, Isimat-Mirin competed in the Clairefontaine youth academy from 2004 to 2007 before continuing his development at Rennes (2007-2009) and Valenciennes (2009-2010). He began his professional career as an 18-year-old in 2010 and spent the next three seasons as a regular starter for Valenciennes, helping the side to three straight top-12 finishes in Ligue 1.

While at Valenciennes, Isimat-Mirin represented France as a U-20 and U-21 youth international and notably featured for Les Bleus during 2013 UEFA European U-21 Championship qualifying. He struck a center back partnership alongside future FIFA World Cup winner Raphael Varane as France finished atop its qualifying group.

Strong performances at Valenciennes landed Isimat-Mirin a transfer to French title contender Monaco. He played 11 matches for the club in all competitions during the 2013-14 season as Monaco placed second in Ligue 1 and advanced to the Coupe de France semifinals.

In September 2014, Isimat-Mirin was loaned from Monaco to PSV Eindhoven, marking the start of a brilliant four-year tenure at the Dutch juggernaut. In his first Eredivisie campaign, he helped PSV win the league title by a 17-point margin while also playing six matches in the UEFA Europa League.

PSV acquired the defender on a permanent transfer ahead of the 2015-2016 campaign, which saw Isimat-Mirin appear in 26 matches as PSV captured another Eredivisie title and advanced to the UEFA Champions League Round of 16, where they fell to eventual finalist Atletico Madrid in a penalty shootout following two scoreless legs.

PSV relinquished its Eredivisie crown in 2016-2017, but Isimat-Mirin continued to flourish with starts in 35 of 37 matches, including five of six UEFA Champions League group stage contests against Atletico Madrid, German giants Bayern Munich and Russian outfit FC Rostov.

Isimat-Mirin and PSV reclaimed their perch atop the Eredivisie in 2017-2018, edging archrivals Ajax by four points and clinching the title with a 3-0 win over the club on April 15. Isimat-Mirin started 37 matches in his final full campaign at PSV, ending his time in Eindhoven with six goals and 130 competitive appearances.

In January 2019, Isimat-Mirin left the Netherlands to join Besiktas in Turkey. He started 14 matches during the latter half of the Super Lig season with Besiktas finishing four points shy of the league title. For the 2019-2020 campaign, the defender was loaned back to Ligue 1 for a stint with Toulouse, where he made 16 starts and scored his 10th professional goal versus Strasbourg in December 2019.

Isimat-Mirin is the second French player to join Sporting this offseason. Last month, the club signed 25-year-old midfielder Remi Walter, who made 74 Ligue 1 appearances during spells at Nice and Troyes and played for France at the U-17 through U-21 levels.

With the addition of Isimat-Mirin, Sporting’s roster now consists of 27 players. The club will convene on Feb. 22 for the start of the 2021 preseason, presented by Children’s Mercy, before kicking off the 2021 MLS campaign on the first weekend of April.

  • Information from Sporting KC

Feilhaber returns to Sporting KC as technical staff member

Benny Feilhaber (File photo)

Longtime midfielder and MLS All-Star Benny Feilhaber has returned as a member of the Sporting KC’s technical staff ahead of the 2021 season.

In addition, Sporting has hired Randi Lininger and Eric Schwartz as assistant athletic trainers for the first team.

Feilhaber ended his professional playing career last March, retiring after 15 seasons across Major League Soccer, the German Bundesliga, English Premier League and Danish Superliga. He won the 2013 MLS Cup and the 2015 and 2017 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cups with Sporting and represented the United States internationally, lifting the 2007 Concacaf Gold Cup and competing at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

“To be back at Sporting Kansas City as part of the technical staff means everything to me,” said Feilhaber, who will report to Peter Vermes, manager and Sporting director. “This is the club where I experienced the most success as a player. Peter and the staff invested in me back in 2013 and I look forward to working with them once again. I’ve come to know a lot of great people here in Kansas City — fans, teammates, coaches and the ownership group — and this is a fantastic opportunity for me to give back to the city and the club. I’m very excited to get to work.”

One of the most prolific playmakers in MLS over the last decade, Feilhaber ended his playing tenure at Sporting with 35 goals and 58 assists in 198 competitive appearances. He spent two stints in Kansas City, guiding the club to five straight playoff appearances from 2013 to 2017 and returning in 2019 for his final season.

His 35 goals and 58 assists rank seventh and third on the club’s all-time charts, and he is one of four players in team history — alongside Preki, Chris Klein and current Sporting defender Graham Zusi — with at least 30 goals and 50 assists.

Feilhaber, 36, bagged 56 goals in over 400 professional matches during a well-traveled club career that included stops at Hamburg in Germany, Derby County in England and Aarhus in Denmark. His MLS journey also featured spells at the New England Revolution (2011-2012), LAFC (2018) and the Colorado Rapids (2019).

Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and raised in Irvine, California, Feilhaber represented the U.S. Men’s National Team 44 times from 2007-2017. Among his several U.S. MNT accomplishments, he scored a world-class goal to win the 2007 Concacaf Gold Cup final versus Mexico, helped the U.S. to a second-place finish at the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup and played three World Cup matches the following year in South Africa.

Last August, Feilhaber took the first step of his post-playing career by joining UCLA, his college alma mater, as an assistant coach for the men’s soccer team. Working under head coach Ryan Jorden, he oversaw training sessions throughout the fall after the Pac-12 Conference postponed its 2020 season until 2021. Feilhaber is close to attaining his B-License through the U.S. Soccer Coaching Education program.

As assistant athletic trainers, Lininger and Schwartz will help oversee injury prevention and rehabilitation programs, medical treatments, hydration, nutrition and athletic performance for all Sporting players. They will report to Kurt Andrews, Sporting KC director, sports medicine.

Lininger arrives in Kansas City after serving as head athletic trainer for Rio Grande Valley FC Toros in the USL Championship for three seasons. Prior to joining RGVFC, she was an assistant athletic trainer at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and worked with several organizations as a contracted athletic trainer, including USA Rugby and USA Field Hockey. Lininger earned a bachelor’s degree in athletic training at Colorado State University-Pueblo in 2011 and a master’s degree in sports psychology at California University of Pennsylvania in 2012. This year she will complete her Doctor of Athletic Training from Temple University.

Schwartz previously spent three seasons with MLS club D.C. United, serving as the first team’s assistant athletic trainer in 2020. His time at D.C. began as a seasonal athletic trainer for the first team in 2018 before his promotion to D.C. United Academy head athletic trainer in 2019. Schwartz earned a bachelor’s degree in exercise science at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in 2016 and two years later received his master’s degree in athletic training at the University of Arkansas, where he worked with football and volleyball athletes.

  • Information from Sporting KC

MLS season to begin April 3

Major League Soccer announced today that the 2021 MLS season will begin on Saturday, April 3, and feature 34 matches for each of the league’s 27 clubs.

MLS’ 26th regular season will conclude on MLS Decision Day, Nov. 7, and the 2021 MLS Cup Playoffs will begin Nov. 19. MLS Cup will be played on Saturday, Dec. 11.

Clubs will be permitted to open preseason training on Feb. 22, six weeks prior to MLS opening weekend. In accordance with MLS health and safety protocols, players will be required to quarantine and conduct individual trainings upon reporting back to their clubs.

The 2021 season will feature the debut of the league’s 27th club, Austin FC, and its new world-class stadium. MLS also will see the opening of two new soccer stadiums in Ohio this season for FC Cincinnati and Columbus Crew SC.

In addition to regular season matches, the 26th season will include the MLS All-Star Game, Campeones Cup, and Leagues Cup during the late summer. MLS clubs also will participate in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, Canadian Championship and Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League in 2021.

The league also anticipates dozens of players competing for their national teams in competitions such as FIFA World Cup qualifying, Concacaf Nations League Finals, the Concacaf Gold Cup, Copa America, the European Championship and the Summer Olympics.

With Austin FC joining MLS, the 2021 season will feature 27 clubs, 14 in the Eastern Conference and 13 in the Western Conference. Sporting Kansas City is in the Western Conference. Austin will be in the Western Conference.

Due to travel restrictions between the U.S. and Canada, Major League Soccer continues to work with the league’s three Canadian clubs regarding plans for the 2021 regular season.

Similar to the 2020 MLS season, COVID-19 testing protocols will again play an important role in MLS’ competition framework. MLS continues to work closely with the league and MLSPA’s infectious disease advisers on health and safety protocols, including testing. During the regular season, all players, technical staff and essential club staff will continue to be tested every other day, including the day before each match day. In addition, clubs will take chartered flights for all road trips until further notice.

MLS continues to meet with the Major League Soccer Players Association and players to discuss working together to put MLS on a secure footing given the unprecedented impact of COVID-19. On Jan. 5, MLS presented the MLSPA with a proposal that committed to paying the players 100 percent of their salaries this year, in return for a two-year extension of the MLS Collective Bargaining Agreement. The MLSPA provided a response to the league’s proposal Jan. 23. Although no agreement has been reached, MLS is committed to meet as many times as necessary with the MLSPA in the coming days to finalize an agreement, a spokesman stated.

Major League Soccer will announce the complete 2021 regular season schedule, including the national broadcast schedule for the league’s media partners in the U.S. and Canada, in the coming weeks.

Key dates – MLS 2021 season

• Feb. 22: MLS Preseason training begins (6 weeks)
Players will observe a mandatory quarantine upon reporting
• April 3-4: MLS is Back – Opening Weekend 2021
• Late August: MLS Heineken Rivalry Week
• Late summer: MLS All-Star Game presented by Target, Leagues Cup, Campeones Cup
• Nov. 7: MLS Decision Day
• Nov. 19: Audi 2021 MLS Cup Playoffs begin
• Dec. 11: 2021 MLS Cup