Buckle your seatbelts, because I am the new purveyor of Lunch Links — that time of day when the FloFC managing editor aggregates the best and juiciest content related to D.C. United, the MLS, the U.S. men's national team, Concacaf, Italy, and everything in between. 

D.C. United: Tantalizing New Bag Policy, Rebounding From A Loss

1. Right here on FloFC, Captain Streff gathers some comments from head coach Ben Olsen and captain Wayne Rooney about the loss to the Montreal Impact. Needless to say, they weren't super thrilled with the loss!

2. The fans wanted a new bag policy, and the fans were given a new bag policy. Hurrah! Here it is in all its glory. You still can't bring your luggage from the airport, though, so you'll have to find a place to store that. 

Remembering Davide Astori In Italy

3. Fiorentina and Atalanta face off today in the semifinals of the Coppa Italia in Florence at 2 PM CT — Canadian viewers can watch the game right here on FloFC — and the game is going to be an emotional one. Monday, March 4, marks the one-year anniversary of the tragic death of Davide Astori. FloFC's Adam Digby and Chloe Beresford visited Fiorentina's training session yesterday to soak up the scene.

Around The MLS: Duolingo In San Jose

4. Jon Arnold wrote this great piece on Goal about how the San Jose Earthquakes — last year's worst team in the MLS — are using Duolingo to gel. 

5. Your team wins the Supporters' Shield because . . . straight from the MLS, this piece begins with an Emily Dickinson quotation and includes a GIF from Arrested Development. I'm not sure there's anything else you could ask for, actually.

Extended Reading Session: Soccer & Racism

6. SB Nation's Kizito Mazu went to the Yale University Soccer Conference — I guess that's really a thing! — and came back with this very compelling piece in which he discusses racism in the sport of soccer with a sociologist professor. It's not a short article, but there's a lot to digest there.