This was a big year for Hudson River Blue. We redesigned the website, became a community-supported publication, and eliminated ads. We introduced a couple of newsletters, and launched a podcast. But more than anything, we expanded our coverage, publishing 635 articles in 2024 — including the one you're reading now.
Some of those posts made national news, and were picked up by outlets such as ESPN. Others disappeared like a morning mist in Central Park, and were noticed only by the most committed fans. And so we present to you Wrapped 2024, the top stories to appear on HRB this year.
We start with the Top 10 overall, the posts that reached far beyond our community in New York City. And then we look at the top posts* across different categories to better see the breadth of our coverage.
There was a lot of soccer in 2024. Read on to relive the highs and lows of an eventful year.
1. NYCFC, Red Bulls to skip 2024 US Open Cup, by Michael Battista
2. MLS said to be "Holding the US Open Cup hostage", by Michael Battista
3. Major League Soccer has a John Herdman problem, by Oliver Strand
4. 2025 could be the end of the MLS schedule as we know it, by Andrew Leigh
5. Leagues Cup Boycott: Here are the supporters' groups protesting the tournament, by Michael Battista
6. Death of a league? NISA no longer sanctioned, by Michael Battista
7. New York City FC to host Round One playoff game at Citi Field, by Hudson River Blue Staff
8. 2024 MLS player salaries revealed: 7 Takeaways, by Oliver Strand
9. Untold: Hope Solo vs US Soccer, by Oliver Strand
10. Red Bull Arena Hacks: 5 Things you should know, by Michael Battista
HRB Podcasts
Hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan launched the HRB Podcast with producer Andrew Leigh on September 5, and the audience grew as the season progressed.
Analysis + Opinion
Sometimes you need to take in the view from 35,000'. That's why we provide Analysis + Opinion.
1. 2024 MLS Year-End Awards: How we voted, by Andrew Leigh
2. Let's try to guess the next NYCFC head coach, by Andrew Leigh
3. New York City FC attendance returns to pre-pandemic levels, by Oliver Strand
4. New font, who dis?, by Oliver Strand
5. Matt Freese: Why was NYCFC's star goalkeeper snubbed by MLS and USMNT?, by Matthew Mangam
HRB Interviews
The bread-and-butter of HRB Interviews are the sit-downs with New York City FC President and CEO Brad Sims. We find him to be generous with the information he can share: Pay attention to what he says and you will better understand the future of the club. But the year's most popular conversation was the exit interview with NYCFC Source, a high school student whose social media accounts were required reading for the team's fans.
1. Who was NYCFC Source?, by Oliver Strand
2. Brooklyn FC CEO: "There's an appetite for the alternative", by Andrew Leigh
3. Brad Sims: New stadium will be "ridiculously great", by Andrew Leigh and Oliver Strand
4. Brad Sims: New York City FC will be a big club, by Andrew Leigh and Oliver Strand
5. Brad Sims: 6 Million fans can't be wrong, by Oliver Strand
Stadum Saga
New York City's Stadium Saga is now in its second decade, and the news is good. Senior Editor Andrew Leigh chronicled the achievements made by club this year, and ran the reader poll that settled what the new stadium in Queens will be called: Welcome to The Valley of Ashes.
1. Reader Poll: Welcome to The Valley of Ashes, by Andrew Leigh
2. NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL APPROVES WILLETS POINT STADIUM, by Andrew Leigh
3. Willets Point Renderings: Prepare to enter The Cube, by Andrew Leigh
4. Walking through the once, and future, Valley of Ashes, by Andrew Leigh
5. How Randall's Island fits into the NYCFC puzzle, by Andrew Leigh
US Open Cup Digest
Michael Battista's encyclopedic knowledge of the lower-league soccer scene in this country is something to behold: You want him on your trivia night team. You also want to read the Open Cup Digest, the newsletter he launched this year, if you are to fully understand the US Open Cup.
1. March Madness: The First Round of the US Open Cup begins
2. Smoke, Darkness, and Smell: The Third Round of the US Open Cup gets underway
3. $2 Beer Night: The US Open Cup Quarterfinals begin today
4. When the Heart and Brain Clash: The US Open Cup's Round of 16 starts today
5. US Open Cup Second Round: Baby Blues vs Baby Bulls
Oppo Research
Oppo Research has been a feature on this site for some time, but it came into its own this year under Matthew Mangam. The posts are truly insightful: That's what you get when you ask good journalists smart questions.
1. Oppo Research: 5 Things about Inter Miami, with Michelle Kaufman of the Miami Herald
2. Oppo Research: 5 Things about New York Red Bulls, with our very own Michael Battista
3. Oppo Research: 5 Things about Portland Timbers, with Sam Svilar of Stumptown Footy
4. Leagues Cup Oppo Research: 5 Things about FC Cincinnati, with Laurel Pfahler of Queen City Press
5. Oppo Research: 5 Things about Columbus Crew, with Ty Fisher of Massive Report
Player Ratings
We introduced Player Ratings in 2023. As always, the ratings are determined by Hudson River Blue readers — below you will find the top posts according to the size of the readership, and the number of responses.
1. 2024 Year-end player ratings, by Oliver Strand
2. Matchday 2: NYCFC vs St. Louis City Player Ratings, by Oliver Strand
3. Matchday 30: New York City vs Inter Miami player ratings, by Mark Radigan
4. Final 2023 NYCFC Player Ratings, by John Baney
5. Leagues Cup: New York City vs Tigres player ratings, by Andrew Leigh
1. Matchday 1: NYCFC vs Charlotte FC Player Ratings, by Matthew Mangam
2. Matchday 16: New York City vs San Jose player ratings, by Andrew Leigh
3. Matchday 2: NYCFC vs St. Louis City Player Ratings, by Oliver Strand
4. MLS Cup Playoffs Eastern Conference Semifinal: New York City vs Red Bulls player ratings, by Takashi Williams
5. Matchday 14: New York City vs Red Bulls player ratings, by Oliver Strand
Instant Reaction
Sometimes the best response to a game is the fuego take written minutes after the final whistle.
1. Leagues Cup doesn't bring the best out of NYCFC, by Andrew Leigh
2. Lionel Messi’s Yankee Stadium debut delivers — even if he doesn’t, by Andrew Leigh
3. Big Clubs, Small Pitch: AC Milan defeat Manchester City in The Bronx, by Mark Radigan
4. Instant Reaction: The importance of Matt Freese, by Matthew Mangam
5. Instant Reaction: How Lukasz Szpala lost control of the game, by Oliver Strand
Now Streaming
The most popular article to appear in the Now Streaming category is Untold: Hope Solo vs US Soccer — it's in the Top 10 sitewide, which came as a surprise. Something about the problematic goalkeeper resonates with a wide audience.
1. Now Streaming: Coleen Rooney – The real Wagatha story, by Oliver Strand
2. The 5 best soccer docs streaming right now, by Hudson River Blue Staff
3. The Final: Attack on Wembley, by Oliver Strand
4. Now Streaming: Together – Treble Winners, by Oliver Strand
5. Now Streaming: Beckham, by Oliver Strand
TST
Real talk: TST is fun. We leaned into our coverage of the ridiculous/fantastic tournament this summer, and the posts had some of the largest readerships of the year.
1. TST: A guide to all 48 men's teams, by Hudson River Blue Staff
2. TST Primer: Everything you need to know about The Soccer Tournament, by Hudson River Blue Staff
3. La Bombonera shut out Nani FC, win $1 million, by Michael Battista
4. TST: A guide to all 8 women's teams, by Hudson River Blue Staff
5. $1 million goal: US Women win first Women's TST, by Oliver Strand
Gotham FC
We need to cover Gotham FC more often, to be honest. They're a glamorous team that plays attractive soccer, and deserve more posts. Still, we did get out to Red Bull Arena on occasion.
1. Yazmeen Ryan is ultracompetitive, dangerous — and all sunshine and smiles, by Jenna Tonelli
2. Gotham FC advance to NWSL semifinals in front of record-breaking crowd, by Takashi Williams
3. 7 Gotham FC players selected for USWNT, by Oliver Strand
4. Gotham FC introduce new home, away kits, by Oliver Strand
5. Instant Reaction: Gotham's Galacticas deliver, by Oliver Strand
Brooklyn FC
A new professional club within the Five Boroughs, Brooklyn FC are off to a rocky start: The women's team is leading the USL Super League, but the debut of the men's team is delayed.
1. Exclusive: Brooklyn Football Club will join USL Championship, by Andrew Leigh
2. Brooklyn FC Firsts: 7 Opening moves from the new club, by Andrew Leigh
3. Brooklyn FC's USL Super League squad takes shape, by Andrew Leigh
4. Brooklyn FC debut postponed due to Maimonides Park turf, by Andrew Leigh
5. The first-ever Brooklyn FC kits are here, by Andrew Leigh
*Some articles could appear in multiple categories, including all of those in the Top 10. But we decided to include each post just once,
