The Blazing Musket Podcast

It's the time of year where everyone makes their predictions for the season ahead, everyone offered up their best thought out predictions that will mostly turn out to be wildly inaccurate in a few months time.We also discussed the 1st round of the US Open Cup in New England and we tested the limits of how far off topic we can get and still get back on track.Our guests join from:United in Green podcast covering the Vermont GreenFrom the Forest to the Tide podcast covering Portland Hearts of PineRaising Anchor a podcast covering Rhode Island FCAnd contributing writers for The Blazing MusketYou can find all these podcasts on The Blazing Musket as part of our podcast network along with Revolution Recap.We hope you like this episode and be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review if you do wherever you get your podcasts from! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's almost time! The NWSL's return to New England with the Boston Legacy is drawing ever closer. Jackie is back to get you caught up on who the Legacy have got, where they're playing, when they're playing and everything to expect this season.The best way to follow the Legacy is with Jackie's coverage at The Blazing Musket and on BlueSky.If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The leader of The Blazing Musket, Sam Lattof, checks in to catch up on all the latest developments with soccer in New England. We've got preseason behind closed doors for the Revs, new players for RIFC and Hartford, the US Open Cup brings New England vs New England match-ups and Mauricio Pochettino puts his foot in his mouth. Sam's here to discuss it all!If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With all the excitement around New England's growing USL presence in recent years, the strong presence of the UPSL may have been overlooked. The founders of one of the UPSL's newest teams, Boston Emeralds, are in this week to tell you all about their Club and why we should check them out in 2026.What goes into founding a Club, deciding on a league, name, badge and building a following, Kevin and Keegan let us know all about it!You can follow the Boston Emeralds on Instagram and checkout the UPSL at their site.If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The biggest obstacle to the biggest year of soccer in the US that isn't the Federal government is the USL Championship labor dispute. The USL and USLPA are three weeks past the expiration of the previous deal and it's an open question as to when a new one will be reached. Connor Tobin is fully involved in the negotiation process and joins us to tell the tale of how we reached this point, what an ongoing dispute could mean and what are the key points holding up the deal.It's a critical and important situation for the future of US soccer and one to keep full up to date on!If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're back for the January 2026 Roundtable! The USL has an ongoing labor dispute, women's soccer is back in New England, new teams are joining the party in Maine, Vermont and Connecticut and the USL is going to play right through the World Cup.It's a lot discuss and we tackled all of it!Our guests join from:United in Green podcast covering the Vermont GreenFrom the Forest to the Tide podcast covering Portland Hearts of PineRaising Anchor a podcast covering Rhode Island FCAnd contributing writers for The Blazing MusketYou can find all these podcasts on The Blazing Musket as part of our podcast network along with Revolution RecapWe hope you like this episode and be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review if you do wherever you get your podcasts from! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're back up and running for 2026! The much anticipated biggest year of soccer in the US is finally here. It will be a year of soccer the likes of which has never been seen in New England as well. Sam Latoff joins Thomas to preview all there is to look forward to, we've got new teams in New England, the return of women's soccer, a new coach in Foxboro and the World Cup drama looms in the distance.It's going to be a year to remember in 2026, let's kick it off together!If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After a prolonged procession and giving out of totally made up prizes to suck up to the President, FIFA managed to place all 42 qualified teams into their groups for next year's World Cup. They also determined where the remaining countries still trying to qualify will end up should they get in. The schedule came out shortly thereafter, finally letting people know who they can see next summer if they're prepared to sell vital organs to buy tickets.We're joined by Valair Shabilla from SixOneFive Soccer to talk about the draw itself, how the groups are looking and discussed if the group of death is dead, how happy should the US be with their group, does 48 teams take away from the group stage drama and more.You can checkout Valair's work at SixOneFive Soccer for their continuing coverage of the World Cup and on BlueSky.If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with MLS, as well as all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

MLS will be shifting to a fall-spring calendar in line with most of the world's soccer seasons starting in 2027. To make this happen, they will play a mini season in the spring of 2027, implement a winter break and stop playing regular season games in May and June. What's more, they're also bringing in a new league format, a single table of sorts with five divisions of six teams. There's also a change in access to MLS Season Pass on Apple TV to discuss.It's a massive series of changes to soccer in North America, will it work? Why is it being done? Who wins and who loses? All that and more is discussed in this week's show.If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with MLS, as well as all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join host Sam Lattof from the Blazing Musket as he dives into the intricate world of USL and USLPA negotiations with special guests Matt Entriken from Raising Anchor and Oliver Scholes beat writer for Hartford Athletic. In this episode, they explore the history and future of the CBA and the challenges players face.If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!Our guests join from:Raising Anchor a podcast covering Rhode Island FCAnd contributing writers for The Blazing Musket Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The World Cup draw is on the horizon next month and this just completed round of qualifiers has the field nearly entirely settled. Who's joining the US, Canada and Mexico? Our in-house international competition reporter, Jake Catanese, is in this week to get us caught up with the entire field. Who's on their way, who's slipped up, who are the shock entrants, will Italy ever qualify again? Jake's here to cover it all.If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with the US prep for 2026 and Jakes's coverage, as well as all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're back for the November Roundtable! The USL playoffs for both the Championship and League One are rolling on with heavy involvement from New England's USL contingent.There's all that and then off the field, North Carolina FC has stopped operating as a USL Championship team for now, with a plan to come back. Texoma FC has self regulated to USL League 2 and Tony Scholes is coming to help the USL get ready for Pro/Rel from the English Premier League.It's a lot discuss and we tackled all of it!Our guests join from:United in Green podcast covering the Vermont GreenFrom the Forest to the Tide podcast covering Portland Hearts of PineRaising Anchor a podcast covering Rhode Island FCAnd contributing writers for The Blazing MusketYou can find all these podcasts on The Blazing Musket as part of our podcast network along with Revolution RecapWe hope you like this episode and be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review if you do wherever you get your podcasts from! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The MLS playoffs are in full swing and providing some great games and drama, while those eliminated going into the dark winter of the off season. It's an interesting time for MLS, as it almost always seems like it is. The playoff format is loved by some, hated by other, the Apple TV deal continues to divide opinion, teams are spending more than ever before but is it enough?There's always so many talking points around MLS and we have Ben Wright with us this week from SixOneFive Soccer and Backheeled.com to share his thoughts and find out how you can share yours!You can find Ben's on SixOneFiveSoccer.com, Backheeled.com and on BlueSky.And don't forget to take the MLS End of Season Fan Survey!!If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The New England Revolution's second team just completed a successful 2025 season, rebounding from a disappointing 2024 season. That was the ultimately failed goal of the first team in 2025, what led Revs II to a playoff appearance? Josh covers Revs II in more depth than anyone else on earth and he's here to give us the lowdown on the team's success, key players, who could help the first team in 2026 and beyond and how they might position themselves for future success.If you're a Revs fan, checking in on the second team as the long off season begins is a great way to tide you over until the first team gets its new coach.If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with Revs II and Josh's coverage as well as all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After just one phase of four rounds of ticket sales for the World Cup has been completed, affordability has gone out the window for most soccer fans. Getting tickets is just the start, securing travel, hotels and parking present tall hurdles all on their own. And there's many questions over just how welcoming the US will be to the rest of the world, will US fans themselves even be willing and able to travel to games?It's a wild experiment in late stage capitalism's propensity to suck the money and fun out of everything.Luckily, Danny Navarro, better known as TravelFutbolFan, is here with his experience, insight, humor and wise words on how to enjoy soccer in North America next summer.You can follow Danny on BlueSky or check out the website here.If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's hard to believe how far Hartford Athletic have come since July, when we last devoted an entire episode to the club. Since then they've invested in their squad, got healthy and got on with winning a Cup, locking in a playoff spot and going 13 straight unbeaten on the road. It's an incredible turnaround for a Club normally associated with being USL bottom dwellers.Chris Behlke, President of The Bonanza, a Hartford supporters group, and Oliver Scholes, who covers Hartford for The Blazing Musket, joined this week to revel in all the good fortune of the last three months. Get caught up on everything Hartford Athletic, just in time for their upcoming playoff appearance.Check out The Bonanza at their tailgate at any Hartford Athletic home game or their website, right here.And be sure to keep with Hartford thanks to Oliver's coverage on The Blazing Musket.If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There are millions of youth soccer families across the US but only a handful have had the experience of not one but two members of the family becoming professional players. The Buck family is one of those families, with Noel Buck out in San Jose after breaking through with the Revolution, while his brother, Joe, is gearing up for the playoffs with Revs II.What was this journey like, when did Stephen begin to think his boys could make it and how did a family tragedy bring the whole Buck family closer to together? Stephen joined us to talk about it all.If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Each month or so, several members of The Blazing Musket and our podcast network get together to talk all the biggest topics affecting soccer in New England. This month we talk about the racism row in Hartford, a big private equity investment in the USL and a general discussion on the fate of coaches.Our guests join from:United in Green podcast covering the Vermont GreenFrom the Forest to the Tide podcast covering Portland Hearts of PineRaising Anchor a podcast covering Rhode Island FCAnd contributing writers for The Blazing MusketYou can find all these podcasts on The Blazing Musket as part of our podcast network along with Revolution RecapWe hope you like this episode and be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review if you do wherever you get your podcasts from! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sam Lattof pops into the show this week as the playoffs are on the horizon for three of New England's five pro teams. What's in store for RIFC, Portland and Hartford as they wrap up their regular seasons with playoffs expected to follow. And what of the New England Revs, who are officially out of the playoffs for the third year in the last four, what's left for them in 2025? And finally, the Boston Legacy continue to step closer to taking the field in 2026, apparently on grass at Gillette!We'll go through it and get Sam's thoughts on everything to get you ready for the year's most consequential season.You can follow Sam on BlueSky here.If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The New England Revolution finally parted ways with head coach, Caleb Porter, after nearly two full seasons of little to no success. It's a momentous occasion that has us breaking new ground once again! Listen in to a special Revolution Recap/Blazing Musket Podcast crossover episode as we discuss Porter's tenure, the fallout and the future of the New England Revolution.You can keep up with Revolution Recap wherever you get your podcasts from!If you're enjoying the show be sure to like, subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts from!To keep up with all the soccer in New England, head over to The Blazing Musket! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.