Todd Lewis

Host of @FreeKickPod ⚽️ | Philadelphia Union Beat Reporter | Member of @soccerreporters | Isaiah 55:8-9

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

@ChrisDoran18 This was so well done! Thank you so much for sharing, Chris.

[Pablo Iglesias Maurer @MLSist]

I’ve poked around a bit more on former Philadelphia Union sporting director Ernst Tanner’s status at the club.

His suspension is over, but he’s still not with the club and still hasn’t completed his league-ordered restorative practices training.

https://t.co/2zPfvxer9y

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

Just announced: Philadelphia Union announced that Côte d’Ivoire Men’s National Team will play a friendly match against Union II at Subaru Park on Monday, June 8, at 7 p.m. ET.

There will also be a separate community training session that the public can view at Subaru Park as Côte d’Ivoire prepares for the World Cup, with the training session taking place on Friday, June 12, at 6:30 p.m. ET.

Both events will be free for the public, but a ticket will be required for entry.

🎟️ Tickets can be found here: https://t.co/PcYn4SXopS

📸 Côte d’Ivoire
#Doop

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

With the World Cup starting in just nine days, Philadelphia Union fans will certainly pay attention to the opening match between Mexico and South Africa, with Olwethu Makhanya potentially playing a role.

As we look ahead to the rest of the tournament, 44 active MLS players have been named to FIFA World Cup rosters. MLS has the most players of any league in the Western Hemisphere and the second most outside of the top five European leagues.

Overall, 103 players at the tournament have spent time with an MLS club.

🇭🇹 Danley Jean Jacques and Haiti open their group stage play against Scotland on Saturday, June 13 at 9:00 PM at Gillette Stadium.

🇿🇦 Olwethu Makhanya and South Africa open against Mexico in the opening game on Thursday, June 11 at 3:00 PM at Estadio Azteca.

📸 MLS

#doop

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

Scheer & Sugarman Own Disastrous 2026 Start as New Era Begins in Chester

In a Candid Press Conference, Sugarman and Scheer Admit Major Roster Mistakes and Outline Their Plan to Salvage the Season.

🔗 https://t.co/P6QsxZz9pQ

📸 Philadelphia Union
#Doop

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

@SaltyJawns @JoserNunez91 https://t.co/vrkukWxsVb

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

I've seen some fans on social media wondering exactly what recently announced Sporting Director Jon Scheer's involvement was during the last transfer window.

We know that once Ernst Tanner was placed on administrative leave in November, Scheer was still holding the title of "Director of Academy and Professional Development." In January, it was announced that former head coach Bradley Carnell, Scheer, and Assistant Sporting Director Matt Ratajczak made up the Sporting Collective.

Here's what Scheer had to say about his involvement with the players brought in during the last transfer window.

“I was part of the sporting leadership group, but while I was still at the academy and holding that responsibility, it’s different when you’re in the building supporting the process rather than being a key stakeholder or the decision maker,” said Scheer.

“But with that said, whenever there’s scouting and you approach transfer windows, that process goes months in advance. Clubs that approach it the right way, like we have over a period of years, are not only planning for one window but also future planning beyond that. So I can say that the group we’re tracking a lot of players they brought in. They were looking at those players over a long period of time, and the strategy was set forth months in advance prior to that window.”

#doop

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

I've seen some fans on social media wondering exactly what recently announced Sporting Director Jon Scheer's involvement was during the last transfer window.

We know that once Ernst Tanner was placed on administrative leave in November, Scheer was still holding the title of "Director of Academy and Professional Development." In January, it was announced that former head coach Bradley Carnell, Scheer, and Assistant Sporting Director Matt Ratajczak made up the Sporting Collective.

Here's what Scheer had to say about his involvement with the players brought in during the last transfer window.

“I was part of the sporting leadership group, but while I was still at the academy and holding that responsibility, it’s different when you’re in the building supporting the process rather than being a key stakeholder or the decision maker,” said Scheer.

“But with that said, whenever there’s scouting and you approach transfer windows, that process goes months in advance. Clubs that approach it the right way, like we have over a period of years, are not only planning for one window but also future planning beyond that. So I can say that the group we’re tracking a lot of players they brought in. They were looking at those players over a long period of time, and the strategy was set forth months in advance prior to that window.”

#doop

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

@JoserNunez91 @mbarrera1323 2x guest on @FreeKickPod as well 😉

@PhilWheddon is class. One of the nicest people I’ve met in the industry.

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

Thank you to everyone who tuned in live and interacted last night with me and @JoserNunez91 on @FreeKickPod!

Lots of great conversations on what was an extremely busy last couple days for the Philadelphia Union with a plethora of changes in the organization.

If you haven’t listened / watched the latest podcast yet, you can do so here on Twitter, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts!

📺 https://t.co/0476bzrRfb
📸 @carlgulbishpho1

#doop

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

Episode 417 - Philadelphia Union Fire Bradley Carnell, Name Jon Scheer As Sporting Director #doop https://t.co/OzMnvX4Ryr

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

Going live here on Twitter and YouTube at 8:30 PM tonight with @JoserNunez91 to discuss the changes made by the Philadelphia Union.

- Olwethu Makhanya named to South Africa World Cup squad
- Bradley Carnell out as head coach
- Jon Scheer named Sporting Director
- Ryan Richter named interim manager of the first team
- and our overall thoughts from today’s press conference

Come join us, would love to answer any questions / see your thoughts on the latest news!

🔗 https://t.co/f8HGZTIY51

#Doop

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

Philadelphia Union Sporting Director Jon Scheer admitted that they got it wrong in terms of getting rid of too many veteran players and bringing in younger players this past transfer window.

"When Jay and I talk, or different members of the ownership group talk, they're not asking about who we are selling, who we are selling, who we are selling. That was a decision the group made, ultimately. We all want to win, and that's first and foremost from our ownership group all the way down through.

We got the balance wrong. I think that's clear. We still are convinced, though, that winning comes out of effective player development. So this doesn't mean that now we'll go to just a different extreme for the next five windows. That has helped us have sustainable success.

But you have to make sure that, again, the process of how you get to the decisions of who you bring in, who you keep, and how you develop. These are things that we have to be really aligned on as a staff moving forward. And I have no doubt that we'll be able to have the most flexibility and optionality going into the summer window than we've ever had before."

As of February when MLS released the amount of GAM available for each team, the Philadelphia Union have $4,393,417 available to spend this summer.
#doop

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

Philadelphia Union Principal Owner Jay Sugarman said it was a collaborative effort to move on from Bradley Carnell.

Also admitted that they knew bringing in a lot of new players this offseason that it would take time to gel, but they don't believe they saw that gelling.

"Well, as you know, we work collaboratively and try to make sure we're taking as much information as we can before we make tough decisions. So this was a consensus decision that we needed to move in a different direction.

We certainly hoped throughout the entire first half of the season that we'd see the progress we wanted to see. We knew coming in that we had a lot of new players and that it would take time to gel. We just didn't see that gelling happen between the players, and we saw a bit of a loss of confidence. That's a hard thing to turn around."

#doop

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

In addition to Bradley Carnell being let go, Union II head coach Ryan Richter will fill in as interim head coach of the first team.

Jon Scheer has been announced as the clubs next sporting director, a role he’s been filling as an interim since the club announced on March 16th with former sporting director Ernst Tanner suspended.

The Philadelphia Union will began a global search of their next manager.

#doop

[Philadelphia Union @PhilaUnion]

Club Statement: https://t.co/lhP9vT04qM

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

BREAKING NEWS:

Olwethu Makhanya has MADE South Africa’s 26-Man Roster for the 2026 World Cup!

South Africa will face:

🇲🇽 Mexico on June 11th @ 3:00 PM est
🇨🇿 Czechia on June 18th @ 12:00 PM est
🇰🇷 South Korea on June 24th @ 9:00 PM est

South Africa will play Mexico in Mexico City, Czechia in Atlanta and South Korea in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Huge honor and congrats to Olwethu!

📸 Philadelphia Union
#doop

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

Philadelphia Union Head Coach Bradley Carnell Frustrated With Lack of Depth in 6-4 Loss to Inter Miami.

Carnell Deserves Time to Turn It Around After Delivering Supporters’ Shield — But Depth Issues Must Be Addressed.

📸 Philadelphia Union
🔗 https://t.co/ZYyTZZZKXW

#doop

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

Episode 416 - Yet Again The Union Collapse on The Road in 6-4 Loss To Inter Miami #doop #mls https://t.co/EcFU2Yw8zb

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

@DaveMReports Thanks, David!

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

Philadelphia Union Head Coach Bradley Carnell Frustrated With Lack of Depth in 6-4 Loss to Inter Miami.

Carnell Deserves Time to Turn It Around After Delivering Supporters’ Shield — But Depth Issues Must Be Addressed.

📸 Philadelphia Union
🔗 https://t.co/ZYyTZZZKXW

#doop

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

And let’s not forget that during his second season in St. Louis CITY something very similar happened. St. Louis sold his top goal scorer in Nicholas Gioacchini. They let John Nelson go, and traded Jared Stroud and Lucas Bartlett.

Carnell came into a team last season that was stronger than any team he had at St. Louis, just for it to be ripped apart in year two.

Tough situation for any coach.

[Todd Lewis @ItsAToddLife]

Really clear message sent by Bradley Carnell in his opening statement after the game talking about the lack of depth in this Philadelphia Union squad.

"I don't think anyone was expecting a tennis scoreline here tonight, in the way we started the game. I thought we were excellent, and it shows what we can do within the principles and within the philosophy, really frustrate them and show the good side of our game model.

And then, unfortunately, we [had] to flip the script and show exactly where the struggles are this season, in terms of our depth, in terms of our quality, in the final stages of the game. We kind of just fell off. The guys dug deep in the first half, battled their way through, and I thought we took our goals [well].

But you can never shut them down. They've shown that the games have been wild. I just wish we could have kept it tighter in certain moments, but everyone dug deep. I'm just sorry for the way the end of the game went. The guys didn't deserve that.

Yeah, we expect more to close out the game. Everyone [dug] deep and we lacked the depth and the quality at the end of the game."

Remember Jim Curtin, Andre Blake, Alejandro Bedoya and Kai Wagner have all talked about the lack of depth during their times in Philadelphia.

#doop