It’s been a busy week in Chester with the announcement of new signing Agustin Anello, the unveiling of the 1776 Kit, Snow Ball and more. With less than a week to go until the team heads to Trinidad & Tobago to kick off the Champions Cup campaign, it’s almost go time!

In the email today:

1. 🇺🇸 Union Go 'All In' With 1776 Kit

By Casey Hughes

After 16 years, the Philadelphia Union finally stopped playing it safe and went all in with the unveiling earlier this week of their new primary jersey for the 2026-2027 seasons.

The “1776 Kit” features a plethora of references to the city’s importance in the formation of the country in which it resides. 

The Union have always kept a theme of the revolutionary spirit primarily utilizing bits and pieces of Benjamin Franklin’s 1754 “Join or Die” political cartoon to do so. It depicts a snake sectioned off into the British colonies and was a prominent figure in the prelude to the American Revolution.

To connect American roots to modern-day soccer, the club features “Join or Die” banners hanging around Subaru Park, merchandise with antiquated political rhetoric, and the coveted rattlesnake mascot: Phang.

A mere walk around Subaru Park could give a foreigner a basic U.S. history lesson.

Since their first season in 2010 the Union have had a generic navy and gold kit. But heading into a summer that will bring the FIFA World Cup to town, the club is finally embracing boldness, fully rounding out their revolutionary theme.

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2. 🐍 Union Roster Not Quite Complete

With the start of the Philadelphia Union season now less than a week away, the roster is nearly full but not quite complete.

The team announced the addition of striker Agustin Anello on Tuesday.

The Miami-born 23-year-old was acquire from Boston River in Uruguay for $2.5 million, which brings the offseason transfer fee spend to around $9 million.

But the signing of Anello and the recent announcement of center back Geiner Martinez hasn’t address the biggest hole in the roster heading into the 2026 campaign: left back.

Frankie Westfield, Nathan Harriel and Ben Bender have all played left back in preseason but none seem the ideal replacement for Kai Wagner, whose magical left foot led so much of the Union’s attack down the left flank.

Reports surfacing Friday morning indicate that 20-year-old Congolese left back Philippe Ndinga is the latest potential signing. The reports say the transfer fee could be around $2.2 million to acuire Ndinga from Degerfors in Sweden.

A left back acquisition would signal the end of a big offseason with the potential for additional lower profile additions still a possibility, whether via promotion from Union II or via intraleague trade.

While it remains to be seen how the team will rebound from the turnover, the 2026 edition of the Philadelphia Union is far younger with a potential ceiling perhaps higher than any team in club history.

3.💧Water Cooler: New Addition Results

Which New Addition to the Union Are You Most Excited About?

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Ezekiel Alladoh (17)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Japhet Sery Larsen (0)
🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Geiner Martinez (3)
🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Stas Korzienowski (3)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Finn Sundstrom (0)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Whoever the new left back is (2)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Other (0)
25 Votes

via @beehiiv polls

4. 📱 Social Post of the Day: Fanzone

4. 🔗 Link Roundup

• Milan Iloski had a brace and then the wheels came off in a 4-2 loss to CF Montreal in the Union’s final preseason match on Tuesday. Check out Evan Konigsberg’s match report.

• After suffering his fifth concussion last season, West Chester native and former Union II midfielder Zach Zandi made the difficult decision during the offseason to retire from the game but he’s also continuing with Colorado Springs Switchbacks as a member of the technical staff.

• It was anything but pretty but the U.S. Under-17s qualified for the FIFA World Cup with Malik Jakupovic leading the way with his 8th goal of the competition.

• Roland Alberg has been back in town this week, reliving some of his fondest memories of his playing career now as a coach and academy director at the Snow Bowl in Chester.

• Keep track of summer team roster announcements with the Philadelphia Soccer Now Summer Roster Tracker.

• Keep track of local college soccer signings and transfers with the Philadelphia Soccer Now College Signing Tracker.

• Keep track of local offseason local player movement with the Philadelphia Soccer Now Offseason Transfer Tracker.

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