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As another year in the soccer world comes to an end, it is important to note it does so without a real feud between the international and club game. This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Although it is has always been this way, it does not make it right. Playing for your country in any sport should be an honour, yet it is on this premise that the international game has gotten away with so much in recent years. Should it really be an honour to have to leave your team in the middle of an important part of the season to head to some foreign land to play an international match that may or may not mean anything? Never mind the middle of the season, what about the start of it? Is that still an honour that should force players to go? Once again at the start of this European club season, a nonsensical international window was put in by FIFA, allowing countries to claim their players away from their clubs just hours before they kicked off a new campaign. At the moment, the relationship between the international game and the club game could be described as moderate. It is a high-profile game of chess being played out in front of billions of people using millionaire players as pieces on the board. Too many high-profile managers are afraid to speak out against governing bodies such as UEFA and FIFA while on the other side of the table sits the governing bodies plotting their next move. Chess players know how important it is to think three moves ahead and, although the 2014 calendar will be dominated by images of the World Cup in Brazil, the years to follow will feature a long list of international games that will mean very little. UEFAs decision to move to 24 teams for the 2016 European Championships in France mean even fewer qualifiers will matter. Countries like Spain, Germany and Italy, for example, could send their under 21 teams to all their qualifiers and easily reach the tournament. And these will be the games that matter. Sprinkled amongst them will be friendly games arranged for international managers to see their players close up and try things with them in a game. These are the matches the governing bodies know they need to change. As we move into 2014, the sports consumer is demanding something important all of the time. A tell me it matters attitude is forcing sports all over the world to come up with tournaments and formats that stop as many meaningless games being played as possible. And then there is soccer. A sport dominated by club teams that, in 2013, still allow countries to take their players all over the globe to play games that mean nothing. It simply cannot continue down that path for much longer. Players like Sami Khedira and Christian Eriksen picked up bad injuries in recent international friendlies that significantly affected their club teams. Imagine Lionel Messi breaks his leg playing one of these friendly games for Argentina? One of two things need to happen, and will happen sooner rather than later. FIFA/UEFA will come up with a format to make these games matter, to put countries in league tables – similar to their world rankings – where they will get benefits of seeding for major tournaments and play more teams within their league. This is likely to happen soon because if it doesnt, the clubs will eventually have every right to put pressure on their players to not go for meaningless international matches. A World Cup year is magnificent for the international game but the four years in between are dangerous for FIFA/UEFA, even moreso now that the major tournaments – Euro 2016, Copa America – feature very little serious qualification, if any, for the major countries. Here in Canada, of course, we watch as outside observers. As 2013 turns into 2014, the sport again reaches new heights in terms of popularity. More people than ever are watching Premier League, Champions League and MLS games on television. With the lack of success of the Canadian mens national team, it is little wonder why most conversations about the professional game in Canada surround club football. The international game remains popular and Canada will be a wonderful place to sit and watch the 2014 World Cup amongst so many people from different countries. It is, indeed, one of the many things that make this country so great. However, we must remember it is still Canada. The mens national team has a long way to go to get back on peoples radar but, as we head into 2014, it is clear the same cannot be said about the womens game. In 2014 and 2015 Canada are ready to welcome the world. The 2014 Womens Under 20 World Cup will be a great dress rehearsal for when the main event comes to these shores a year later. The challenge for all international teams is to come close to the cohesion – on and off the pitch – displayed by club teams. That is already an advantage for Canada, as one of their star players, Diana Matheson, recently told me. "We really are like a family, the core of the team has been together for a long time and as we get older, we are making sure that everyone new into the camp feels part of it," she said. Matheson and some of her teammates are not far away from seeing their faces everywhere across Canada during the 2015 World Cup. "We have a hope of how big we want it to get," she said. The Canadian Soccer Association is blessed to have the Under 20 World Cup in 2014 as a way of gathering excitement for the big tournament the following summer. However, as national team defender Carmelina Moscato told me, it is more than just a promotional tool and those playing for Canada in that event will benefit tremendously. "The tournament in 2002 was what changed our lives – eight or nine of us on the team right now, thats the core group. It was such a kickstart to our careers that its exciting to know that opportunity is here again and see the next generation of players blossom in their own country." "Playing at home is an incredible experience," added captain Christine Sinclair.If you wish to watch those games, you should know that venue packs for the FIFA U-20 Womens World Cup Canada 2014 are on sale now and start as low as $40 plus fees. Of note, purchased venue packs in host cities that will also be part of the FIFA Womens World Cup Canada 2015™ will give purchasers an opt-in opportunity to be placed on a priority list to purchase venue packs to the 2015 competition in the same official host city. The full pricing chart is available online at FIFA.com/Canada2014. Khalil Mack Womens Jersey . With the Pirates in the thick of the race in the NL Central, the timing couldnt be better. Liriano struck out a season-high 11 in seven innings to win consecutive starts for the first time this season and Pittsburgh beat the San Francisco Giants 3-1 on Tuesday night. Brian Urlacher Bears Jersey .com) - Charlie Davies netted a pair of goals, including the series-winner on Saturday, as the New England Revolution battled the New York Red Bulls to a 2-2 draw in the second leg of the Eastern Conference Championship at Gillette Stadium and advanced to MLS Cup final via a thrilling 4-3 aggregate victory. http://www.bearsrookiestore.com/Bears-Gale-Sayers-Jersey/ . -- The Oakland Raiders expect to have starting right tackle Tony Pashos back for Sundays game against the Houston Texans. Anthony Miller Jersey . In mens doubles, Vancouvers Vasek Pospisil and American Jack Sock reached the quarter-finals with a 7-6 (3), 7-6 (3), 6-4 win over Croatian Mate Pavic and Andre Sa of Brazil. Roquan Smith Bears Jersey . Wawrinka, who is seeded fourth, is in the top half of the draw with Serbian Novak Djokovic. The Swiss star outlasted Djokovic in a five-set quarterfinal thriller last year and stunned Spaniard Rafael Nadal in the final to capture his first-ever Grand Slam title.Any NFL team that drafts Michael Sam will be taking on much more than a rookie pass-rusher. But experts say the smart approach for a team that signs the leagues first openly gay athlete -- from a marketing and public relations standpoint -- is to simply let Sams on-field play speak for him and his team. "While this is a significant announcement given the sport, the general hope is that hes just accepted as one of the other men on the roster, and therefore his marketability is still simply tied to his ability to play well on the field and ultimately make the team," said Paul Swangard, managing director of the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon. Sam declared Sunday that he is gay in interviews with ESPN, The New York Times and Outsports. The Missouri All-American had already come out last August to his coaches and teammates, who respected his privacy. Now Sam is entering uncharted territory as he prepares for the NFL draft. The SECs co-defensive player of the year was projected to be a mid-round selection. At 6-foot-2, 255 pounds, Sam will likely have to transition to outside linebacker, which could impact where hes drafted. But announcing hes gay could also have an impact on his draft status. "Im not naive to think there arent potentially some owners or executives out there who will say, Eh, Im not so sure now." said Golden State Warriors President and Chief of Operations Rick Welts, who came out publicly in 2011. "But also, I hope, there are a lot who would say, Theres an opportunity to do something that I think our fans would actually embrace. And if were supposed to win football games, if this guy helps us win football games, thats somebody we should have on our roster." Sam, 24, joins a growing list of active athletes to publicly come out, including Robbie Rogers, a winger for Major League Soccers Los Angeles Galaxy, and Brittney Griner, who plays for the WNBAs Phoenix Mercury. Conner Mertens, a kicker for Division III Willamette University, came out as bisexual late last month, and is believed to have been the first active college football player to publicly announce his sexuality. Griner, as one of the WNBAs brightest stars, was the centerpiece of the Mercurys marketing campaign. She also made a point of supporting causes that are important to her. "There was nothing about heer that was difficult in marketing.dddddddddddd We supported what she wanted to do with bullying and the LGBT community. We made those connecting points," said Amber Cox, president of the Mercury before leaving to go to the Big East last fall. Nike has also thrown support to LGBT athletes, signing both Griner and Jason Collins, a former NBA player who came out last year, to sponsorship deals, and launching its "Be True" campaign. Profits from the .BeTrue collection are being donated to the LGBT Sports Coalition to support the goal of ending discrimination in sport. Mark Elderkin of the Gay Ad Network, an online media platform for national advertisers, said NFL teams need only look at Sams track record. "Theyre going to make their choices based on who the best college athletes are. And theyre going to choose Michael if they deem him the best pick. So, I think they need to focus on the facts, and his performance over the years, his All-America status and everything hes done for Missouri," Elderkin said. "Also his relationships with the fans, and with the positive energy he has around his teammates and their full support, shows that hes not going to be disruptive to the team in any way, but is going to add value." But its still a reality that gay athletes face a backlash. Derogatory comments were easily found among the positive posts on social media and other online commentary following Sams announcement. A Pew Research survey last year of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender adults in the U.S. found that just 4 per cent saw pro sports leagues as friendly toward LGBT people, while 59 per cent saw the leagues as unfriendly and 36 per cent saw them as neutral. Still, even over the past year there have been significant overall victories in gay and lesbian rights, most notably two U.S. Supreme Court decisions in June. One ruling cleared the way for ending a ban on same-sex marriages in California; the other struck down a 1996 law passed by Congress that banned federal recognition of same-sex marriages. It remains to be seen how growing tolerance extends to the NFL playing field. "I think the point thats being made in a lot of the discussion is, Lets just move on," Swangard said. "If the guy makes a team, then he makes the team. His sexual orientation shouldnt be the story." ' ' '