We are so ready for The Soccer Tournament here at Hudson River Blue: The six-day soccer festival has no offsides, teeny-tiny goals, rolling subs, 20-minute halves, and 48 games scheduled for today alone.

Every game must end with a goal, and the winner goes home with a $1 million cash prize delivered via Zelle. As we put it yesterday, TST is pure, uncut soccer.

Last year, 32 men's and women's teams competed for that Zelle notification. This year, the tournament is divided into men's and women's divisions — both of which get their own $1 million prize.

The TST sickos here at HRB analyzed every squad in what is surely the most complete preview of the tournament, and divided the teams into four categories: The Contenders, The Harder They Come the Harder They Fall, The Sparkleponies, The Dark Horses, and Along for the Ride.

Read on to learn more about the HRB guide to all 48 men's teams participating in TST.

TST: Everything you need to know about The Soccer Tournament

TST is pure, uncut soccer: No offsides, rolling subs, 20-minute halves. The Soccer Tournament packs 118 games into 6 days, awards $2 million in cash prizes.

Hudson River BlueHudson River Blue Staff

1. The Contenders

La Bombonera

(Group D) Hailing from New Castle, DE, La Bombonera are built to win a 7-v-7 competition. The team have deep roots in Mexico, with plenty of players winning the 2023 Major Arena Soccer League title while playing for Chihuahua Savage. Others played for Mexico’s national beach soccer or futsal teams. Another TST team could sign Kylian Mbappé, but the La Bombonera squad could play circles around him with these TST rules and in these tight quarters.

Burnley FC

(Group B) Unlike other football heavyweights (see below), newly-relegated Burnley FC are taking this tournament seriously, and sending some intriguing players to North Carolina. The attack will be led by Albania U-19 forward Renaldo Torraj and 22-year-old Marcel Lewis, who Transfermarkt valued at $160,000 last year. Young legs will better handle the hot North Carolina days.

Como-Cagliari

(Group J) Como were in the inaugural TST, but now they’ve joined forces with fellow Serie A side Cagliari to double the Italianness and improve on their run to the quarterfinals one year ago. The team are mainly youth players making the trip over from Italia, but with previous experience in hand, they might be poised to go on a run at that $1 million. If the ultimate TST prize eludes them, at least Como will feel good about converting the next generation into pasta-eaters. The “Como Experience” being held on the event grounds during the tournament is a daily pasta cooking class for children.

Newtown Pride FC

(Group G) Last year’s winners cracked the TST code and took home $1 million. They deserved every penny: Newtown Pride compete in the Connecticut Soccer League, which is on the bottom tier of the US Soccer pyramid, but they outperformed other more prestigious teams. Their cohesive style of play and balanced squad were perfectly suited for the frenetic pace of TST — the farther they advanced, the better they looked. With last year’s breakout star Gabriel Costa back in the lineup, the Pride have to like their chances to repeat in 2024.

NEWTOWN PRIDE FC WIN TST FINAL, TAKE HOME $1 MILLION

The Connecticut Soccer League side win the inaugural tournament — and one of the biggest cash prize in North American soccer.

Hudson River BlueOliver Strand

North Carolina FC

(Group J) The home team, literally. TST takes place at North Carolina FC’s home, WakeMed Soccer Park, so you’d think familiarity and home comfort will be on their side. The roster is heavy on players with experience in MLS and the USL Championship, including a number of ex-North Carolina FC players, though they’re not what you’d call big-name vets of either league. The name recognition won’t matter for NCFC if they end up with the right mix of familiar, local players and make a deep run.

FC Roha Eagles

(Group F) With a squad mostly made up of Swiss lower-league players of Albanian descent, FC Roha Eagles have won tournaments before, and could advance. Think seven Xherdan Shaqiris and Granit Xhakas.

Sneaky Fox FC

(Group H) Mike Magee, who played 14 MLS seasons, has assembled a team full of “I remember that name” MLS players from the 2010s, including three players – Mix Diskerud, Chris Wingert, and Josh Williams – from the inaugural 2015 New York City FC team. They’re playing under the banner of Magee’s Sneaky Fox vodka brand and will look to see how far a team packed with MLS Old-Timers can go. 

Toronto Athletic FC

(Group L) The returning 2023 finalists, Toronto Athletic FC were formerly known as SLC but are now named for their sponsor, a premier Toronto-area youth soccer organization. While the faces on the roster won’t pop out to many, there’s a lot of futsal experience here. Combined that with a smattering of Canadian lower league experience and you have a squad that looks ripe to take that final step to one million dollars.

Wrexham Red Dragons

(Group F) You have to like a squad with Mark Howard in goal. The 37-year-old started 10 games for Wrexham this past season as they earned promotion to League Two. He’s the most recognizable name on a roster that features players culled from the lower tiers of England’s professional leagues. Some are thirty-somethings in the twilights of their careers, others are teenagers looking to earn a spot on the First Team. Even General Manager Shaun Harvey will be in North Carolina: Wrexham looks to be in it to win it.

Zala 

(Group G) AJ DeLaGarza leads this team, which is also connected to an app of the same name that tries to create customized “wellness” plans for people based on algorithms and health data. DeLaGarza won MLS Cup three times and is now back to TST looking to improve on the semifinal loss Zala suffered in 2023. He’s got a squad heavy on former MLS players like Graham Zusi, CJ Sapong, Justin Meram, and the biggest name of them all if you’re NYCFC: Tony Rocha, 2021 MLS Cup winner and noted human victory cigar. 

TST: A guide to all 8 women’s teams

The Soccer Tournament sickos here at Hudson River Blue analyzed the squads of all eight women’s teams participating in the 2024 edition of TST.

Hudson River BlueMichael Battista

2. The Harder They Come, the Harder They Fall

FC Bayern

(Group E) The German giants made waves when they announced Harry Kane would headline their seven-a-side squad and try to earn silverware this year. JK! This team are composed entirely of U-19 players from the FC Bayern World Squad, an international development project run by the club’s youth program. Intriguingly, Bayern are in the same group as best frenemies Borussia Dortmund.

Inter

(Group D) Inter might have won the Scudetto this year, but can they do it on a Sunday night in Cary, NC? This TST squad is mostly club legends who are decades removed from their playing careers, plus a few academy prospects whose lifeblood will be extracted, sterilized, and administered to the others through IV drips on the sideline.

Borussia Dortmund

Bayern are playing the kids, Inter are playing the olds — and Borussia Dortmund are doing a bit of both. This TST squad have club legends in the 40s, but they also have players like Moritz Leitner, who was starting for Norwich City in 2021. Will that be enough? We'll see when Dortmund play Bayern today at 5 pm ET. (The game will be broadcast on ESPNU and ESPN+.)

Villarreal CF

(Group J) El Submarino Amarillo will become the first team from Spain’s La Liga to join the TST field. The squad are headlined by two players with local New York-area ties: Midfielder Marcos Senna, who played for Villareal and the Spanish national team but also spent three seasons with the New York Cosmos at the end of his career; and striker Giuseppe Rossi, the New Jersey native who spent five seasons with Villareal and somewhat infamously chose Italy over the United States for his international soccer. 

3. The Sparkleponies

Agüero Team

(Group A) Outside of the team’s namesake, no real names pop out on this squad. It doesn’t feel built for 7-v-7, with a lot of Club Atlético Independiente representation — which makes sense considering it's Sergio Agüero’s home club. Could win a game or two, but won’t make a deep run.

AU Vodka Swans

(Group C) Why limit yourself to a shirt sponsorship when you can colonize the team name? Enter AU Vodka Swans, the TST squad from Swansea City AFC and AU Vodka. The defense will feature AU Vodka owner Charlie Morgan (Forbes 30 under 30 Europe), the attack 47-year-old Swansea legend Lee Trundle. What can go wrong?

Banheiristas FC

(Group D) The Banheirista brand is huge on social media – 5.61 million YouTube subscribers and over 900,000 followers on both Instagram and TikTok – and this is a team almost entirely comprised of content creators and influencers.

They’ve got 14 “content” people listed on their team page, and two of their players, Caio Lo and Vitor Lo, each have over one million (two million in Vitor’s case) Instagram followers. Based on their socials, the Banheirista bread and butter seems to be soccer skill and trick videos, so there’s likely to be some camera-friendly flair on display during these matches. Will they win? Maybe not, but they’ll likely look cool while losing. 

The Concafa Soccer Club

(Group B) The team is led by Pat McAfee, longtime NFL punter turned sports talk show star. You have to think of Concafa SC as part of the “Pat McAfee Show Extended Universe,” with people who appear on McAfee’s show involved as “content creators” and the team’s name a referential call-back to that show. USMNT and MLS veterans are involved, as Geoff Cameron and Brek Shea are playing and legendary goalkeeper Tony Meola is the head coach. It’s a slight shock that New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers isn’t involved in some form, given his deep and problematic ties to the McAfee Universe.

Desimpedidos

(Group F) A Brazilian content company that makes trick-shot highlight videos for their YouTube channel (9.84 million subscribers) and TikTok (2.2 million), expect to see some heavily edited clips from Desimpedidos on their Instagram feed (7.9 million) and X account (2.5 million). They once got Ronaldo and Marta to compete in the Clear Shampoo challenge — too bad they couldn’t get them out to North Carolina.

Fitbodega Vancouver

(Group C) We could talk about Fitbodega Vancouver's players, most of whom are from college teams or the fringes of Canada’s MLS clubs. But we’d rather talk about sponsor Fitbodega, whose line of supplements includes cognitive brain boosters, mushroom extract, and Ultra Cleanse Smoothie Greens — what better way to get ready for a match?

Kingdom FC

(Group L) Another returning face, Kingdom are once again led by reality TV stars Paulie and Cody Calafiore. The team were the only blemish on eventual champion Newtown Pride FC’s record after beating them in one of the opening games of the 2023 tournament. They’ll look to reach farther than last year after losing in the first round of the knockouts. There’s a handful of NY/NJ guys here from college and the lower leagues. Including former multi-time Cosmopolitan Soccer League Golden Boot winner and U.S. Men’s Deaf National Team player Chris Katona.

Nani FC

(Group A) This looked poised to be a must-watch team because of the presence of one man: Mario Balotelli, the legendarily mercurial Italian striker. Sadly, Balotelli dropped out of the tournament due to a contractual conflict with his Turkish club. Instead, it will be down to Orlando City SC alumni Nani and Dom Dwyer to carry the big-name attacker load. They’re joined by a handful of Portugal national team veterans, plus various players with futsal and beach soccer backgrounds. Super Mario will be missed, but this team could still provide highlights. 

Pasha Luxury FC

(Group H) Hasan Pasha isn’t just the starting midfielder of Pasha Luxury FC, the medical student-turned-property developer is also the sponsor of the team. That explains the high-end condo on the crest. The team unironically claims to be “the fusion of soccer prowess with a touch of opulence.” Ah yes, “the luxury of soccer at its finest.” Sign us up.

Saturdays Football

(Group F) A soccer lifestyle brand with one store in Los Angeles and another in New York City, Saturdays Football look to be in the tournament for free advertising on ESPN+. Call us cynical, but we’re skeptical of any roster with four people whose position is “Content.”

4. The Dark Horses

City Soccer Society FC

(Group J) The TST side from the City Soccer FC, a West Palm Beach club that competes in the semi-pro United Premier Soccer League, looks like a good pickup side: Some beach soccer pros, some college ballers, some lower-league players.

Freedom United SC

(Group K) Representing the United States Air Force Academy, specifically the recent golden period of the program that began in 2017. Mostly an alumni team with some former professionals. One notable face is Kyle Parker, who trained with NYCFC and scored a goal against Club Necaxa in a 2016 friendly.

Hashtag United 

(Group I) This team from Essex, England exists because of YouTube. Hashtag United’s founder and chairman is Spencer Owen, a.k.a Spencer FC on YouTube, where he’s got 1.95 million subscribers. Hashtag United started as another social outlet but morphed into a real-deal football club, one which now has a men’s team competing in England’s seventh tier, the Isthmian League Premier Division, and a women’s team in England’s third tier, the FA Women’s National League. Hashtag won its TST group last year but lost to Como 1907 in the Round of 16. They might be known as social media content-centric, but their football pedigree is real and they had a taste of TST success in 2023. 

Hoosier Army

(Group K) The first-ever alumni team to take part in TST is back for a second straight year. Representing the eight-time NCAA national champions, this is a squad with plenty of ex-professional representation. Midfielder Brad Ring is especially bringing the Indiana love as the all-time leader in appearances for the Indy Eleven, the state’s only professional soccer team. Last year, the Hoosiers won two group state games including against Borussia Dortmund but did not advance out of the group stage due to tiebreakers.

Hoya Nation

(Group K) An imposing unit of Georgetown University alumni representing the one-time NCAA champion and five-time Big East Conference champions. At least 11 names on the team have played professional soccer previously. This includes former NYCFC II midfielder Jack Beer and defender Jimmy Nealis, who last made an appearance in these pages during a wild USOC qualifying match last fall. Additionally, Hoyas assistant coach Connor Klekota will also be taking part.

Kwik Goal FC

(Group H) The team formerly known as Conrad & Beasley United is back and with more attacking firepower. USMNT vets Jimmy Conrad and DeMarcus Beasley return, but bring with them two former MLS MVPs: Dwayne De Rosario, 10th on the all-time MLS career goals list, and Sebastian Giovinco, the diminutive Italian star of 2010s Toronto FC who loved a goal against NYCFC.

Speaking of NYCFC, fullback RJ Allen is taking a break from his work at New Jersey United AC and his family’s Toms River, N.J. pizzeria to help lead Kwik Goal to glory. Friend of the blog KEVIÑCHO will also be there as part of Kwik Goal’s content team, so here’s hoping TST gives him a better time than what he’s currently getting following Sporting Kansas City.

Manhattan Kickers FC

(Group I) The heavyweight New York City youth academy Manhattan Kickers FC is fielding a team of program alums. The squad includes Rafael Bustamante (New York Pancyprian-Freedoms of the Cosmopolitan Soccer League), CJ Williams (NYCFC Academy, New York Red Bulls Academy), and Jimmy Barrios (Zum Schneider FC of the Cosmopolitan Soccer League).

La Mexicana Express

(Group A) This team of former pros and pick-up ballers regularly enter indoor tournaments — and win. Will their style of play translate to the fields in Cary, NC? The X-Factor is Lulinha, a former Brazil U-17 player who scored 16 goals in 16 appearances for his country.

Nati SC

(Group B) After being knocked out of the group stage last year, Nati SC is hoping its players have learned from the experience. Because this is still just an FC Cincinnati alumni team with former Bengals wide receiver Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson. They lost close games last year so depending on how things fall, an escape from the group stage is possible.

Raleigh Rebels FC

(Group I) Essentially a bunch of local dudes who are returning from the 2023 tournament. The side went undefeated and won an all-North Carolina group last year against Duke Alumni, North Carolina FC, and Charlotte FC. However, they lost their first knockout game to ZALA FFF, 4-3. A lot of unknowns on this team, but defender Esdras Padilla has one cap with the Honduras national team and winger Charles Eloundou previously played for the Colorado Rapids.

Reggae Rovers

(Group B) Described as “The Rhythm of Football,” this team are a collection of players hailing from multiple Caribbean island nations. Almost everyone on the squad has played professionally at some level, with a good number also having national team caps. Forward Kevaughn Frater not only brings USL experience, but valuable indoor soccer pedigree after spending the past two years with the Baltimore Blast in the Major Arena Soccer League.

Supra United FC

(Group G) A youth academy from Dallas, Supra United FC put together a TST team because, why not? The roster is stacked with former players from MLS and lower-league European teams, and could do some damage on the field.

The Town FC

(Group E) Officially the reserve side of the San Jose Earthquakes in MLS NEXT Pro, The Town FC enter TST the same year it enters MLSNP. Interestingly, the roster does not have any Quakes alumni or academy players. Instead, its a who's who of former Major League Soccer talent such as defender Christian Dean, midfielder Amobi Okugo, and forward Tristan Bowen (whose bio says he played for “Chivas” but he really meant “Chivas USA).

Trident FC 

(Group K) Details are slim on a team that, in their own words, were put together “in a short 48 hours” after receiving “a fortunate invitation from TST.” Here’s what we know: Trident FC is backed by two investment bankers, coached by Thomas Rongen of “Next Goal Wins” fame, and features current Atlanta United academy coach Kevin Kratz in midfield. 

Tobacco Road FC

(Group C) A highly respected soccer outfit from Durham, NC, with a senior program in USL League Two and close connections to Duke University. The organization will be pulling triple duty during TST. The USL2 has a road game on Wednesday night (Cedric Burke coaches both). Plus the TBFC is also taking part in the National Amateur Cup over the weekend, where it is the defending regional champion and a U.S. Open Cup spot is up for grabs.

Sire 7

(Group L) If you liked the English Premier League in the late 2000s/early 2010s, this might be the team for you. Stephen Ireland, of Manchester City fame, is the big-name addition to this team, which went by Villita FC in last season’s tournament. Other Premier League veterans you might recognize on this team include Tom Huddlestone, Bakary Sako, Adrian Mariappa, and Ciaran Clark. If the MLS Old-Timers are threats to win this tournament, then so too is this collection of experienced players from some of England’s top clubs.

5. Along for the Ride

DC Hyper

(Group G) A development academy and futsal club based in the nation’s capital, could DC Hyper advance to the knockout round? They have youth in players like FC Cincinnati U-19’s Matthew de Matos, and experience in 42-year-old former LA Galaxy and DC United starter Marcelo Sarvas.

Dueling for Lincoln FC

(Group E) Sponsored by a nonprofit in St. Louis that supports families that lose children to juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia with the Heartbeat Animal Program, which puts the recorded heartbeat of a loved one in a stuffed animal. The Dueling for Lincoln FC squad is made up of former college players.

Gracie FC 

(Group D) The Renzo Gracie Academy in Midtown Manhattan is legendary: Some of the top Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Muay Thai, and MMA fighters in the world are trained in those sweaty rooms. Gracie FC were winless in the group stages last year, but the school is coming back for more, and sending a squad of (mostly) Brazilians to Cary.

Guard Pass: @RenzoGracieBJJ teaches his favorite way. Learn more at https://t.co/csDLTXeZOj. pic.twitter.com/WaGAcM8aUE

— Team Renzo Gracie (@RenzoGracieTeam) February 5, 2024

Say Word FC

(Group A) Eliminated in the group stage last year, it’s hard to see Say Word FC advancing in this tournament. The club from Greensboro, NC have 22-year-old collegiate Tyler Yates in goal, 38-year-old Renato Hanžek in defense.

Socceroof

(Group C) With three locations in New York City, Socceroof’s facilities are a mainstay of local indoor soccer leagues. But can they field a competitive team? The roster features players who logged minutes in local lower-league clubs: Daniel Cordiero (FC Motown), Michael Corbi (Kingston Stockade), and Amari Thompson (Greek-American Soccer Club). Maybe the message of support from Juventus and USMNT star Timothy Weah will give them a boost.

Summer of Soccer

(Group I) This is the team with Christian Polanco of The Cooligans on it, which gives hope to soccer creatives everywhere: If you post enough, you might eventually get asked to play.

Cooligan Christian is also joined by a pair of ex-players turned MLS broadcasters, Ricky Lopez-Espin and Jamie Watson. The roster also includes a variety of ex-UNC Tar Heels, so maybe a home-field advantage will enter the equation for them down in Cary, N.C. Also, current All Elite Wrestling star Claudio Castagnoli is on here, so expect some violence.

Tenfifteen FC

(Group L) The name comes from Romans 10:15: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news.” The Dallas-based club is led by Zach Lloyd, who made 180 appearances for FC Dallas and is currently the head coach of Lone Star Republic. 

Tranqui10 FC

(Group H) Is it a team? A clothing brand? Hard to say, but Tranqui10 FC will field a regulation squad in Group H. So we’re told.