Alexi's Ballon d'Or Ballot, Champions League is BACK, do you REALLY need to play in Europe?

Alexi Lalas and David Mosse are back with a LIVE episode of State of the Union! The 2026 Ballon D’or top 30 finalists have been announced, and we go through all the names and pick out our biggest surprises, snubs and more. Alexi then reveals his personal top 10 Ballon D’or ballot before we give Rose Lavelle her flowers for being the only American nominated for the Ballon d'Or Féminin. After, Alexi and Mosse break down the return of the Champions League, that saw Real Madrid top Inter Milan, Liverpool beat Atletico Madrid and Arsenal just hold off Napoli. Looking ahead to the weekend, AC Milan meets Lazio as Christian Pulisic watch continues and in the Bundesliga, Malik Tillman takes on Noahkai Banks. In #AskAlexi, Alexi goes deep on the very best and the very worst of US soccer and in One for the Road, we tip our cap to USMNT legend, Eric Wynalda, who just took a manager stop in Estonia. CHAPTERS:0:00 - Intro2:33 - 2026 Ballon D'or top 30 finalists revealed11:10 - Alexi's Ballon D'or ballot: Will Messi win another?22:53 - The Champions League is BACK: Erling Haaland, Martin Ødegaard dominate30:04 - Alex Freeman's UCL Debut: Does playing in Europe REALLY matter?34:21 - 3 can't miss matches USMNT matches: Musah battles Lazio42:32 - #AskAlexi: The best and worst of US Soccer53:42 - One For The Road: Eric Wynalda the manager Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices