Soccer Watch

UT's Allison Smith scored the winning goal against St. Edward's

Photo courtesy of University of Texas

The Texas Longhorns host North Texas in the last home game of their spring exhibition season this Saturday, March 2, 2pm, at Myers Stadium. The Horns won their first two, including last weekend's 2-1 win over crosstown rival and perennial DII power St. Edward's... Longhorn freshman goalie Abby Smith is with the U.S. U-23 national team this week, playing Sweden, Norway, and England in the Four Nations Tournament in Spain... The U.S. Under-20 men earned a spot in the U-20 World Cup Tuesday, with a come-from-behind 4-2 win over Canada in qualifying.

Orlando City SC (né Austin Aztex) may have come a step closer to an MLS franchise this week. On Feb. 25, the Orlando City Council approved the $4 million purchase of four parcels of land near the Orlando Magic's Amway Center, in what is believed to be the first move in the city's bid to attract an MLS franchise with a soccer-specific stadium. The team already has designs for a 18,800-seat stadium with a price tag of about $110 million. According to the Orlando Sentinel: "City officials would not confirm the property is the favored site for a $110 million stadium sought by Orlando City Soc­cer Club, simply calling it a 'strategic acquisition'" for the city.

Dramatic week in Spain for the two giants of La Liga. Recently struggling Real Madrid knocked Barcelona out of the Spanish Cup Tuesday with a 3-1 win on their archrivals' home field; on Sunday they host Barca in league play, then on Tuesday they're at Manchester United, needing a win or high-scoring draw to stay alive in Champions League play. And suddenly it's high-flying Barca whose season looks about to unravel: Unless they can reverse a 2-0 Champions League loss to AC Milan in the return leg March 5, the consensus best team in the world will be eliminated from all cup competitions and have little to play for in the last two months of their season... Champs League games just about every week now: Tue.-Wed., 1:45pm, Fox Soccer Channel.