⚽️ Union Move Up to Sixth in Concacaf Rankings

_{LAST MATCH: Union 4 - New York Red Bulls 1}

_{NEXT MATCH: vs. FC Cincinnati}

_{Saturday, September 16, 7:30 p.m. | Apple TV - MLS Season Pass}

Good morning. The Philadelphia Union are moving up in Concacaf Club Rankings while some of their top players are spending the international break with their national teams.

In the email today:

The Philadelphia Union moved up two places to sixth in the latest Concacaf Club Rankings of teams in North America, Central America and the Carribbean. They’re the top-ranked MLS team - the top five are all teams from Mexico - and one of just two MLS teams in the top 10.

Our take: You can’t really put too much stock in rankings like this but the key takeaway here is still that the Philadelphia Union’s consistency in MLS and performances against other teams in the region in Champions League and Leagues Cup have not gone unnoticed outside of MLS circles.

2) 🇻🇪 Martinez Goes 90 Minutes in Venezuela’s 1-0 Loss to Colombia

Jose Martinez started on the right side of the midfield in a 4-3-3 and played all 90 minutes of Venezuela’s 1-0 loss to Colombia to open their qualifying campaign for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

• Jesus Bueno didn’t dress for the match but he also reportedly picked up a knock in training so it’s not clear whether he would’ve been picked for the team or not.

• Venezuela plays Paraguay on Tuesday.

3) 🗓️ Meme of the Day: Union Fans Waiting for the Next Game

4) 📊 Poll: National Team Call-Ups

Have additional thoughts? Reply directly to this email to comment, and see if we include your response tomorrow.

5) 🔗 Link Roundup:

• 🐍 Philadelphia Union II will be playing under the lights tonight at Subaru Park as Toronto FC II comes to town. Union II really need points to keep their playoff hopes alive.

• 🇦🇷 Werder Bremen in Germany is the latest club to be connected to Julian Carranza as a possible future destination for the Argentinian striker.

• 🎓 The Philadelphia Union Academy starts their MLS Next season this weekend and new this year is a U16 team. Get to know the coach of that team, Guillermo Hamdan Zaragoza.

• 🇺🇸 The USMNT will play Uzbekistan for the first time on Saturday in St. Louis. Here’s a scouting report.

• 🇺🇸 Retiring USWNT veteran Julie Ertz - the wife of former Philadelphia Eagles tight end Zach Ertz - will play her final game on Sept. 21 in Cincinnati.

The newsletter today was written by: Matt Ralph @MattRalph_

Thanks for reading!