A lawsuit against the MLS Players Union (MLSPU) that was part of American youth clubs' quest to receive compensation for their former players who go pro was dismissed by the U.S. District Court Eastern District of Texas, Sherman Division.

I'm sure anyone who's raised an adolescent or teenager can attest to the idea that teenagers don't get as much sleep as they need.

The international break created opportunities for three U.S. teenagers to see friendly game action with their Bundesliga clubs. Weston McKennie and Nick Taitague made their first-team debuts at Schalke 04 in a 3-1 loss to second division Hannover while McKinze Gaines saw first-team action for VfL Wolfsburg in a 1-1 tie with second division Arminia Bielefeld.

In the age of academies, pre-academies, soccer classes for 18-month-olds and curricula demanding coaches precisely plan practices for 6-year-olds, you don't hear much talk about free play and street soccer anymore.

You can never relax while driving and the same is true when officiating a soccer game. Years ago, I heard many officials say, "I'm just a linesman," and a new crop of officials say "I'm just an assistant referee" when given an assignment not in the middle. Although the term for that official might have changed, unfortunately the attitude of some officials has not as it's a privilege to be given an assignment, no matter where you are on the field.

In January 1999, the U.S. Soccer Federation created the U-17 national team Residency Program in Bradenton, Florida. The first class of 20 players included Landon Donovan, DaMarcus Beasley, Oguchi Onyewu and Bobby Convey. Their coach was John Ellinger, who reflects on the impending end of the program.

Youth sports programs often can only run with the help of parent volunteers. Whether your role on the team is crucial (team manager) or mostly on the sidelines, it's vital to keep sportsmanship and a helpful attitude front and center. Here's how you can help!

The USA, which earned a seed for the 2017 World Cup, was drawn into Group F, with Ecuador, Senegal and Saudi Arabia. Of the three first-round foes, only Senegal, a 2015 semifinalist, has ever advanced past the round of 16 in previous U-20 World Cups.

Sophia Smith, the 16-year-old who's been on a scoring tear for U.S. youth teams, hails from the same youth club as Mallory Pugh. So comparisons are tempting.

After guiding the USA to the Concacaf U-20 Championship title, Tab Ramos will coach at his third U-20 World Cup, marking his 10th world championship as a U.S. player or coach.

America's biggest teenage star couldn't get time off work to be part of the USA's Concacaf U-20 Championship win last weekend. The 18-year-old Christian Pulisic, in Borussia Dortmund's 6-2 win on Saturday over Bayer Leverkusen in front 79,100, scored his fifth Bundesliga goal and made his fifth assist.

The U.S. U-20 national team faces Honduras in the Concacaf U-20 Championship final on Sunday, but the main goal has already been achieved. Coach Tab Ramos' team qualified for the 2017 U-20 World Cup by beating El Salvador, 2-1, on Friday.

I'm a big believer in using warmup-based training programs as part of the overall effort to reduce the numbers of injuries in athletes. I've previously written about the FIFA 11+ and we include videos with support from Dr. Bert Mandelbaum in our Sideline Sports Doc injury recognition course for coaches. The early evidence about the FIFA 11+ showed dramatic reductions in many types of lower extremity injuries in soccer with no downside.