Sunderland chairman Ellis Short has confirmed the departure of Steve Bruce as manager.

Skysports.com broke the news that Bruce's tenure at the Stadium of Light had come to an end.

Now Short has released a statement confirming that Bruce's near two-and-a-half year stint at the club was over.
Sky Bet odds

Martin O'Neill and Mark Hughes head the betting to replace Steve Bruce at the Stadium of Light. See all candidates. Bet now

"This has been a difficult time for everyone at Sunderland and is not a situation that any of us envisaged or expected to be in," said Short.

"It is my job as chairman to act in the best interests of our football club at all times and I can assure everyone that this is not a decision that I have taken lightly.

"Sadly results this season have simply not been good enough and I feel the time is right to make a change.
Thanks

"Steve has acted with honesty and integrity throughout, which is testament to the character and commitment he has shown during his time at Sunderland.

"I would like to personally place on record my thanks to him for his significant contribution to our football club over the past two and a half years and everyone here at Sunderland naturally wishes him the very best for the future.

"I would also like to thank our fans, who have endured a trying start to the season. Their support continues to be the driving force behind our club and is vital as we now look to the future."

A number of names are already being linked with the job, with Sky Bet installing Martin O'Neill as the early favourite, with Mark Hughes also strongly tipped.

3:42 PM

The club's 2-1 home loss to Wigan Saturday sealed Bruce's fate. In a statement, club chairman Ellis Short said:

"It is my job as chairman to act in the best interests of our football club at all times and I can assure everyone that this is not a decision that I have taken lightly. Sadly results this season have simply not been good enough and I feel the time is right to make a change.

"Steve has acted with honesty and integrity throughout, which is testament to the character and commitment he has shown during his time at Sunderland."

Sunderland currently sits 16th in the English Premier League, with two wins, six losses and five draws. The Black Cats only managed to record a single victory, against Bolton, in their last eight Premier League matches,

"I would like to personally place on record my thanks to him for his significant contribution to our football club over the past two and a half years and everyone here at Sunderland naturally wishes him the very best for the future," Short's statement continued.

"I would also like to thank our fans, who have endured a trying start to the season. Their support continues to be the driving force behind our club and is vital as we now look to the future."

Sunderland

2:45 PM

SOCCER SIX TOURNAMENT SERIES

FROST BITE CUP - December 10-11 Still time to register your Mens, Womens, or Co-ed team for the 8th Annual Soccer Six Frost Bite Cup next weekend in Savannah, GA. The pre-registration fee is only $275. Deadline is 12/5 Enjoy Players Party Pub Crawl & Discount Hotel Rooms Downtown for only $79 a night at The Inn at Ellis Square. SOCCER SIX WINTER MADNESS - 1/22-23 The 7th Annual Soccer Six Winter Nationals will be played in Myrtle Beach, SC at the Grand Park Soccer Complex at Market Commons. Oceanfront suites at Compass Cove Beach Resort only $70 a night. SOCCER SIX MEMORIAL TOURNAMENT - 2/18-19 Make plans now to be on hand for our Annual SS Memorial Tournament Presidents Day Weekend on Hilton Head Island. ATTENTION OLD GUYS ! The Soccer Six Tournament Series will now offer a Men's 50+ Division. Soccer Six Tournaments feature up to ten adult divisions... Men's A, B, 30+, 40+, 50+ Women's A, B, and Co-ed A, B & Rec. 2012 Soccer Six Schedule Jan 21-22 - Winter Nationals - Myrtle Beach, SC Feb 18-19 - Soccer Six Memorial - Hilton Head, SC March 3-4 - Shamrock Six - Savannah, GA REGISTER YOUR TEAM TODAY ! The Soccer Six Tournament Series is produced by Bear Foot Sports, organizing professionally managed soccer tournaments for over 20 years. For additional information please call 843/757-8520 or visit us on line athttp://www.bearfootsports.com/soccer.htm Pre registration and multiple team discounts are available.

Tournament

12:10 PM

TheAmericans in Europe had a nice post-Thanksgiving weekend.

Timmy Chandler scored the only goal in his team's win over Kaiserslautern. Fabian Johnson's corner set upHoffenheim's only goal in a 1-1 draw with Freiburg. Jozy Altidore and AZ kept rolling right along with a 2-0 win over Utrecht. And Clint Dempsey' Fulham took a point off Arsenal.

Of course, Michael Bradley and Chievo didn't do so well, getting rolled up by Milan 4-0, and Rangers took a loss without Carlos Bocanegra, the club's first of the season. But all in all the top players had a nice week.

That won't do anything to change the rankings around much though. No player other than Chandler really did anything to impress, and there's no need to reshape the top five.

1. Clint Dempsey

Age: 28 Club: Fulham Position: Midfielder Last Week: 1 Comment: Dempsey had a nice outing against Arsenal, but the struggle to find goals continues for Fulham. Martin Jol has Dempsey playing wider to allow Moussa Dembele more freedom in the hole behind the striker, and the tactical switch hasn't paid off yet. The upshot is that Bryan Ruiz is starting to find his footing, and the attack has the potential and the talent to be potent in the near future.

2. Tim Howard

Age: 32 Club: Everton Position: Goalkeeper Last Week: 2 Comments: Howard has been very good for Everton lately and the club grabbed another win over the weekend, taking down Bolton 2-0. Everton is starting to put together a really nice run of form, and Howard continues to be a large part of the club's success.

3. Landon Donovan

Age: 29 Club: LA Galaxy Position: Midfielder Last Week: 3 Comments: Donovan sticks in third and will have a nice break before playing any meaningful matches.

4. Jozy Altidore

Age: 22 Club: AZ Position: Forward Last Week: 3 Comments: Altidore continues to play well and had a couple of chances in his 80 minutes of work over the weekend.

5. Carlos Bocanegra

Age: 32 Club: Rangers Position: Defender Last Week: 4 Comments: Bocanegra not being in the lineup coinciding with Rangers losing might be an indication of how important he is for the team.

Honorable Mention: Timmy Chandler, Nurnberg, continues to impress more as an attacking force than as a defensive stalwart, but at least for the USA his finish showed that he's not scared of that left foot.

8:19 AM

Los Arcos: Manuel Arellano

Team: Rover White

Position: Outside Midfield

Please support the people in our community! Manuel has added an enticing coupon at the end of this post. Print it and bring to the restaurant and let him know the soccer community supports him!

TEX-MEX

Address	3101 roswell rd, Marietta, GA 30062 · Get Directions
Phone	6785608222
Website	Add Website

	Walk-Ins Welcome Good For Kids Take Out Catering Waiter Service

"Los Arcos is quickly becoming my preferred spot for Mexican Food in East Cobb. While I don't spend much time in East Cobb anymore, my parents swear by this place and is there usual haunt for Mexican food.

The food is standard tex mex' fare, but what I think sets it apart is the service and the prices. Unlike other restaurants in East Cobb/Roswell Los Acros seems to have kept a focus on customer service and speedy service as they have grown more popular. They are quick to seat you, refill your drinks and the manager/owner is usually working the place.

Also, the prices are very affordable. I have noticed a trend where the price of Mexican food in the area inches up over time, but Los Arcos still has great lunch special($4 or $5 lunch with a drink) and nightly specials."

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Business Spotlight Los Arcos

7:09 AM

No. 1 in the NCAA Tournament, and now No. 1 in the MLSsoccer.com Top 20. Things are looking up for North Carolina.

On the strength of their 1-0 third-round tournament victory over Indiana, the Tar Heels supplanted New Mexico atop of the rankings after the Lobos were knocked out of the NCAA Tournament at the hands of South Florida on penalty kicks.

The Tar Heels will host upset-minded St. Mary's on Saturday in Chapel Hill (5 pm ET).

Meanwhile, Creighton, Connecticut and UCLA all pushed their ranking up a spot and will seek to clinch spots in the College Cup this coming weekend.

Creighton will host No. 7 South Florida on Saturday (2 pm ET), while Connecticut hosts Charlotte on Sunday (1 pm ET).

UCLA travels to Louisville, Ken., to play the No. 5 Cardinals on Saturday (7 pm ET). The Cardinals, who shot up from No. 10 this week on the heels of a 4-2 win over Maryland, weren't the only ones who made a jump this week.

Charlotte surged to No. 6 after a win over defending champion Akron.

Rank School Record Last Week
1 North Carolina 19-2-2 2
2 Creighton 20-2-0 3
3 Connecticut 19-3-2 4
4 UCLA 17-4-1 5
5 Louisville 14-6-2 10
6 Charlotte 16-4-2 12
7 South Florida 13-3-4 7
8 New Mexico 18-0-4 1
9 Maryland 14-4-3 6
10 Indiana 13-4-5 8
11 UCSB 15-7-1 9
12 Akron 15-4-4 11
13 James Madison 13-5-2 16
14 Boston College 14-7-0 14
15 Brown 12-5-3 15
16 UC Irvine 16-6-1 16
17 SMU 13-7-1 17
18 Coastal Carolina 18-4-0 18
19 Furman 14-4-4 19
20 Rutgers 10-7-4 20

3:40 PM

Both Arsenal and Manchester City are fielding interesting lineups for their Carling Cup quarterfinal clash, and they're a bit ambiguous. Arsenal could be playing a 4-3-3 with Park Chu-Young as a wide forward or they could be playing a 4-4-2 with either Tomas Rosicky or Yossi Benayoun as a winger. Manchester City's lineup looks like a 4-5-1, but that would mean that natural fullback Pablo Zabaleta was playing in midfield, something that he's done before. We'll just have to wait and see what it looks like on the pitch. Here are the lineups.

Arsenal Lineup (4-3-3): Fabianski; Djourou, Koscielny, Miquel, Yennaris; Frimpong, Benayoun, Rosicky; Oxlade-Chamberlain, Park, Chamakh

Manchester City Lineup (4-5-1): Pantilimon; Onuoha, Savic, K. Toure, Kolarov; Johnson, de Jong, Nasri, Hargreaves, Zabaleta; Dzeko

2:21 PM

I've been reflecting on Gary Speed with a good friend. It's been a tragic moment in the very public world of modern sport. This end of his, the outpouring of grief, the sadness pushed out upon the masses from every form of media coverage. The result is the private spilling into the public. We witnessed the obviously stricken Shay Given plucking through his match with Swansea and coming up with a brilliant save in a match that was carried out because "Gary was a footballer and that's what he would have wanted". I read that last bit, the part in quotes, from a report that I'm afraid I did not footnote. Where it was written is unimportant but the sentiment is.

Games went on because that’s the way he would have wanted it. Funny how we as the ones left behind, are left to glorify, celebrate, and mourn the lives the victims of suicide. Those victims whose lives have become so bleak they cannot see the value in carrying on. I am if nothing empathetic to people who suffer from depression. I am also touched by it through extended family and by former in laws who have had depression run its course and manifest itself in suicide. So these next words I will choose carefully for fear of offending those who do not deserve to be offended.

Taking one’s own life or murdering another for that matter is an expression of narcissism, and narcissism is evil. I am not saying Gary is evil, but what he did was. His action left his children fatherless. His action was greedy. His action was willful and desperate and repugnant. The football public and his family are left to glorify his action by making apologies for him, and we celebrate his life in a very public way with very public people. How he must be happy looking on. Shame his children won’t have his words of wisdom, re assuring words, words of acceptance, words of approval, words of words that they so rightfully deserved from him. All because it became so much about him, no one else dared to matter.

Opinion

12:34 PM

BUY YOUR TICKETS NOW!

DECEMBER 9-11, 2011
REGIONS PARK • HOOVER, AL

Tickets are now on sale for the 
2011 Men’s College Cup
Soccer National Championship.

Tickets are limited so purchase yours today!

TICKET OPTIONS - Tournament Pass       $35  * Includes one general admission ticket for each of the (2) semi-final games and the championship game. - Hospitality Book         $185 * Includes one general admission ticket AND hospitality pass for each of the (2) semi-final games and the championship game. * Hospitality room is heated, has private restrooms and has a great view of the field. * Hospitality includes 1 meal per day, snacks, soda and beer.

Tournament

12:07 PM

 2012 Crown Cup in Birmingham, Alabama!

• CLICK HERE TO REGISTER!

Dates:  February 18-19, 2012

Where:  Birmingham, AL

Facilities: 

Sicard Hollow Athletic Complex (Artificial Grass, Four 80x120yd Fields!  Used for both 8v8 and 11v11)

Liberty Park Soccer Complex (Natural Grass Fields)

Who:

Boys & Girls Ages U09-U14

Division Format:

U09-U10 (6v6)

U10 (8v8)

U11-U12 (8v8)

U12 (11v11)

U13-U14 (11v11)

We are looking forward to having you at our wonderful facilities with some great competition and experiences for all!  Apply today!

Tournament

11:08 AM

2nd Annual COAST WINTER CLASSIC

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
February 11th and 12th, 2012Click here to register

Welcome to the Coast Winter Classic! This tournament is for U13/U14 boys and girls teams looking to get their Spring Season started with some highly competitive matches! All games will be played at the new Market Commons sports complex as well as newly renovated Doug Shaw Stadium. To view more information about the tournament and to register, please visit the tournament website by clicking here.

Tournament

8:34 AM

Nov 29 Fixtures from the English Premier League


Saturday, December 3 (GMT)                                
Newcastle United        v Chelsea              (1245)   
Blackburn Rovers        v Swansea City         (1500)   
Manchester City         v Norwich City         (1500)   
Queens Park Rangers     v West Bromwich Albion (1500)   
Tottenham Hotspur       v Bolton Wanderers     (1500)   
Wigan Athletic          v Arsenal              (1500)   
Aston Villa             v Manchester United    (1730)   

Sunday, December 4 (GMT)                                
Everton                 v Stoke City           (1500)   
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Sunderland           (1600)   

Monday, December 5 (GMT)                                
Fulham                  v Liverpool            (2000)  

epl

8:27 AM

Soccer tourney to bring record crowd

Organizers of the Women’s College Cup are expecting a sellout crowd when the semifinal and final rounds of the Division I women’s soccer national championship begins Dec. 2 at KSU Soccer Stadium.

Starting Dec. 2, Kennesaw State University will be hosting its first national championship event in history.

The Women’s College Cup, which is the NCAA’s Division I women’s soccer national championship tournament, will be held to play the semifinal and final rounds of the tournament.

More than that, the event itself has nearly sold out of its available tickets. With the tournament down to the final eight teams, there are 800 tickets left in general admission — not including the 800 tickets the NCAA requires KSU Soccer Stadium to withhold for the four teams’ respective fan bases.

“I noticed that about three weeks ago, ticket sales were increasing at a better rate and that’s why we’re hoping that over these last two weeks, we can get another push after the holiday once we know the final four teams,” tournament director Katie Egloff said. “I think it shows that (KSU) is ready to be at this level. To host a national championship is a great honor for any school. With Kennesaw (State) having been Division I for only a short time, it shows confidence in the facility and the university to put on this event.”

With approximately 1,600 tickets left in total, KSU Soccer Stadium is already filled to approximately 80 percent of its 8,300-seat capacity. According to Egloff, the tickets are being purchased mainly by general soccer fans and youth groups. Women's Professional Soccer's Atlanta Beat is hosting a youth showcase featuring the North Atlanta Soccer Association during the same weekend in the Cobb County area and many of the parents are buying up tickets for the national championship matches.

By comparison, the KSU Convocation Center holds 4,900. For the school, that means that this event will be the largest of its kind on campus. On top of that, the attendees will all be mostly new to Kennesaw State.

“Seventy-five percent of our crowd will never have been to our stadium before,” athletic director Vaughn Williams said. “Now, we are expanding the blueprint and the traffic plan. And we’re making sure that people have an enjoyable experience from parking to when they come into the event. We’ve definitely had to spend a little more money with event management. 

“I would say it would be the largest athletic event. It will be a sold out crowd.”

On top of the added fervor for college soccer, holding a national championship holds much larger ramification for a brand-new athletic department and an athletic program at large that has only been in Division I for three years.

“To host a college cup, this is the first Division I national championship that the university will hold,” Williams said. “I think, from an overall aspect, it will bring a lot of attention to Kennesaw State and Cobb County for those couple of days. We are honored to host it.”

On top of the visibility of having extra patrons in the stands during the Women’s College Cup, the two semifinal matches and the national championship game will all be televised either on ESPN or ESPN2 according to Williams.

“It gives us the visibility that we want and that we have talked about since we’ve got here,” he said. “Any time you can on ESPN or ESPN2 showcasing your location and your facility, I think most people will be blown away by what we have here. I know ESPN really enjoyed our site.”

KSU Soccer Stadium already has hosted Women’s Professional Soccer’s Atlanta Beat, the U.S. women’s national team, Major League Soccer and international men’s soccer.

by William Bretherton
wbretherton@mdjonline.com.com
Read more: The Marietta Daily Journal - Soccer tourney to bring record crowd

Women's Soccer

8:58 AM

The Atlanta Youth Soccer Association is a non-profit organization dedicated to the task of promoting and enhancing the culture of soccer in Atlanta, Georgia.  The organization shall provide the opportunity and training for the youth of Atlanta, to learn the game of soccer through the development of individual skill, fitness, teamwork, and fair play. The Atlanta Youth Soccer Association (AYSA) provides recreational and select leagues for boys and girls near downtown Atlanta.  The Recreation league fields teams from three years (U-4) through eighteen years (U-19).  The Soccer Academy program offers enhanced training for U-10, U-11 and U-12 players.  The Inter Atlanta Select club (Athena, and Classic) fields teams from U-13 through U-19. The emphasis of AYSA is to create a fun and safe environment within which players; parents and coaches may enjoy the game of soccer.  Developmentally appropriate physical and social skills and lessons are emphasized according to each age bracket defined by the Georgia State Soccer Association. http://aysa.net/

AYSA Youth Soccer

1:19 PM

Atlanta Youth Soccer Association 

AYSA was successful at the Challenger Cup Tournament last weekend:Boys Blue: Champions U9 Boys White: Champions U9 Boys Black: Finalists U10 Boys Blue: Champions U10 Boys White: Finalists U11 Boys Blue: Champions U12 Boys Blue: Champions U12 Boys White: Finalists U12 Boys Red: Finalists U12

AYSA Youth Soccer

2:57 PM

Nov 25 English Premier League fixtures (times
GMT).

Playing on Saturday
Stoke City           v Blackburn Rovers        (1245)   
Bolton Wanderers     v Everton                 (1500)   
Chelsea              v Wolverhampton Wanderers (1500)   
Manchester United    v Newcastle United        (1500)   
Norwich City         v Queens Park Rangers     (1500)   
Sunderland           v Wigan Athletic          (1500)   
West Bromwich Albion v Tottenham Hotspur       (1500)   
Arsenal              v Fulham                  (1730)   

Playing on Sunday
Swansea City         v Aston Villa             (1330)   
Liverpool            v Manchester City         (1600)  
  
 
 (Compiled by Infostrada Sports; editing by Toby Davis)

3:42 PM