David Beckham is committed to the LA Galaxy.  I know, because he said so in an interview yesterday.  Five times.

Say you don’t care if you want and smackback with lines of ZZZZZZZZ’s, but ask yourself, do you really want to read another holy-crap-I-can’t-believe-it-Clemens-lied-about-roiding story?  Every day another headline on it. Like something new happened.  But I read the dope and it’s the SOS.  What the F?!

Back to Beckham.

David Beckham (first response to moronic ESPN interviewer):  I’m very committed to the MLS and to the Galaxy but looking to 2010 and the World Cup with England I knew I had to play at the highest level and I knew I had to play in Europe so I wanted to extend my loan deal with Milan.

Walter Gibson translation:  Soccer in America sucks.  Soccer groupies in America suck. Actually, there’s no such thing as soccer groupies in America.  Just gold-digging whores. Italian women are hot and they keep their mouths shut so that their older brothers don’t go mafia on their best lays.  I like it in Milan.

David Beckham (second response):  I want my fans to realize I’m still committed to the Galaxy.  I am still committed to the MLS and being an ambassador.

Walter Gibson translation:  The Galaxy is a team in Los Angeles, where people have guns. Yes, we have soccer hooligans in England, but when I come back to California, I just want to pick up my (35 million dollar) check without being shot by some (asshole) American.

David Beckham (third response):  I want to be involved in the MLS going forward because I believe it will get bigger.  I wouldn’t have committed myself to the Galaxy as an MLS ambassador if I didn’t believe the sport would grow.

Walter Gibson translation:  When my playing career is done, I want to make even more money.  It’s really unlikely the MLS will ever be any good, but if it is I want to make sure that I have an option to cash in.

David Beckham (fourth response):  At the moment I’m contracted to the Galaxy and I’m committed, but like I said leading up to 2010 everybody knows I need to play football at the highest level.  Still, I’m committed to the Galaxy.

Walter Gibson translation:  The dollar is gaining on both the Pound and Euro lately, so in between soccer games in Europe, I’ll grab a seat in first class, get a wank from the flight attendant, and come back to the Home Depot Center to make some dough and buy Posh a new Benz.

David Beckham (fifth response):  I’ve already said that I will be going back to the Galaxy and I am committed to the Galaxy and my team-mates there, but at the moment I need to be playing my football here (in Italy).

Walter Gibson translation:  The espresso here is really good.  And the gelato too.  Come to think of it, life is good here.  I read the paper every morning at a café at the Piazza del Duomo. 

It’s nice, a lot nicer than the corner of Wiltshire and S. Figueroa.  The paper said that Landon Donovan is coming back to the Galaxy for the beginning of the season.  That should help.

I’m starting for one of the best teams in the world and I’m scoring goals.

I work my ass off on the pitch and play at the highest level so I can represent my country with pride.  Soccer players are always on loan.  It’s part of the game.  Blow me.


Italy is birthplace to Ferrari, Ducati, and Sophia Loren.  Questions?

For more Eddie Shore, check out www.dailyballbreakers.com (real guys holding sports accountable), or if you hate the WNBA, try www.dbbsports.com.

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He may often get slighted for the tone of his voice, his wife, and some of his fashion and lifestyle choices, but credit must go to David Beckham for the way he handled himself during an intensive 10-minute interview held on ESPN.

Far more Jemery Paxman than Larry King, the female ESPN questioner fired the tough questions to "Goldenballs," pinning him down on putting his hand in his pocket to fund his AC Milan loan extension, forcing him to respond to Alexi Lalas’ claim that Beckham will be booed on his return to the LA Galaxy, and quizzing him on what the implications of the deal are towards to the MLS.

On his own financial commitment, Beckham admitted that he had invested some of his own earnings to make the deal happen before qualifying his actions saying that his football career has always been about the football, as opposed to money, and so this decision was a no-brainer.

On Lalas’ negative comments, Beckham claimed that 95 percent of LA Galaxy fans support him and, “while there be a far amount of criticism, and I can understand that,” he put the ball back in Lalas’ court.

Beckham said, “It’s a shame that certain people come out and add to that and give it more chance of happening, but at the end of the day I’m bigger than that, bigger than criticising people.”

On his commitment to the MLS and whether he will opt out of his final two years left on his contract with the Galaxy, the footballer did his best to reaffirm his ties to the MLS, saying he believes soccer will grow in the US.

Beckham also said he has every intention of seeing his commitment through with the Galaxy. However, he refused to deny that ensuring his participation in England’s 2010 World Cup campaign is paramount, thereby leaving his future playing options on the table.

Beckham’s tough question-and-answer session with ESPN can be seen here.

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The Recent Results: Last year’s run through the playoffs to the MLS Cup Final makes NY’s season hard to define. If this were any other league in the world (i.e. no postseason), they would be losers for finishing fifth in the East. But, this isn’t any other league in the world, it’s MLS, so I think you have to consider NYRB’s 2008 season a huge success.

The Man in Charge: Juan Carlos Osorio is a damn good coach in my opinion. Sure, he’s a bit brazen and he definitely likes to manage his team like a dictator runs his country, but you cannot argue with his results so far. He is going to need to rule with an iron fist this year though, because his squad looks like it may lack depth and talent.

On the Offensive: Juan Pablo Angel, if healthy, is one of the most prolific scorers in MLS history. He is going to need to be injury-free though because it doesn’t look like he will have a ton of help. Dave van den Bergh is gone now, and I don’t see anyone on the current roster who is fit to step into his clogs. Stammler can play, but he’s no DVDB.  

For the Defense: NYRB’s D sucked in 2008 and I really do not think the organization did anything to shore up this problem in the offseason. The backline looks like it will be inexperienced and paper thin. I am not sure why they sit on the sidelines while other teams go out and try to improve their starting eleven. It can’t be lack of energy, right?

Movie They Resemble: I thought about selecting We’re No Angels here, just for the pun on Juan Pablo’s name and the fact that the film was carried by two actors, just like NYRB execs are hoping two (or even one) player can carry their squad in 2009.

But, I eventually decided to go with my favorite movie about New York, Ghostbusters. New York has still never won a major trophy, so they have many demons they need to finally bust.

Will 2009 be the year? I doubt it. I think this year could be disastrous for them. Just like New York City in the movie, NYRB could be inundated with even more ghosts this year. Like Bill Murray’s character Peter Venkman says in the film, it could be “real Wrath of God stuff, human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together, mass hysteria!”

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Truthfully, I'd like to get on with the rites of spring—Opening Day in baseball and crunch-time of the NBA season—but other than the regular banter about the trials and tribulations of the Blazers (the pesky Mavs made it a season-sweep Wednesday), all folks seem to want to talk about in Portland, lately, is soccer.  Specifically the MLS.  I'll continue to play along.

While I like soccer to some degree, I do not particularly care for the MLS. 

I have no particular animus towards it, but the league has largely struggled from the beginning and has had a tough time signing, cultivating, and keeping stars—Beckham excepted, to a degree—so the play suffers.

I am, however, a World Cup fan—admittedly, my standards may be entirely too high for the MLS as a result—and the occasional Fox Soccer Channel watcher. 

By no means would I falsely state, as did Portland City Commissioner Nick Fish on Wednesday, that I am the biggest soccer fan in the room.

The issue here is the future success of the league and to build a strong national soccer presence.

Why bang one's head against the wall and try to meld the traditional with the non-traditional here in the United States?  The MLS, for instance, would be one league well served by taking—steadfastly—just one specific path in the way it is structured.

Picking and choosing between different league structures based on disparate athletic cultures may be the ultimate downfall of the MLS.

Promotion and relegation is the traditional manner in which soccer leagues exist in Europe. 

The legal monopoly, or anti-trust exemption (de facto or de jure), is how it works in US leagues, with Major League Baseball setting the precedent in the early 20th Century. 

Professional sports leagues in the United States (and, largely, Canada) are essentially static with the exception of expansion.

If we had a hierarchy like Euro soccer (not the current hierarchical model which exists in MLB, the NHL, and now—to an extent—in the NBA, replete with farm teams), the shenanigans such as the ones that just went down at Portland's City Hall over ballpark financing would not likely exist—at least in the manner they did.

Consider this: The MLS and the handful of USL divisions have, for example, 18-team leagues and play every season so that a few teams would be promoted—i.e. go up a league—and a few would be relegated—go down a league.

Granted, the financial structuring of such an association would—no doubt—change, but it makes sense.  This would cultivate soccer domestically, with the end result a hungrier and better-quality brand of soccer. 

The other key, as Mr. Miyagi oft taught, is patience.

Assuming the ultimate goal is to field a top-notch U.S. national team, such cultivation would help dramatically. 

Top American players would have a vested interest in playing at home, while top foreigners—in the prime of their careers this time—might also choose to play here.

The other uplifting and dramatic effect would be that a specific club's supporters would have a direct investment in the success of that club.

More groundswell and grassroots involvement with soccer at the club level would lead to more tickets being sold, more money for the club, and thus more money to invest in infrastructure, i.e. a new privately-financed stadium

The cycle continues upward, especially if that club is traditionally at the top of the table ("standings" in the American Language).

Right now, the MLS has potential, but it wants to swim against the current, modelling itself after the Big Four. 

Is there room for them in the American sporting landscape with such a paradigm?  Doubtful. 

Would there be room for soccer if they took the traditional model and ran with it?  Likely so.

This takes time, however.  Our country's recent tradition of hasty and poor decision-making does not make this prospect any easier, I'm afraid.

Whining about the lack of regional or traditional rivalries to gain favor with the league brass and immediately secure a franchise does not do any good in the long run. 

If we want Yankees-Red Sox, Cardinals-Cubs, Habs-Bruins, Lakers-Celtics, or Cowboys-Redskins scenarios, the only way is to cultivate such matchups in a proper manner.

Timbers-Sounders already has momentum in the Pacific Northwest.  In fact, it might even be the fiercest rivalry in American soccer. 

It will gain credence with the country at large only if the MLS and its sister leagues are legitimized, nationally and internationally, and that is with a relegation-promotion system.

The old athletic rivalries, in the U.S. and abroad, became what they are from years of play—and organically—through their respective fanbases.  Fiat and an unruly commissioner does not make fans invest in such a process.

Remember, soccer is still relatively new on the scene. 

The NASL had traction for a time, but flickered out like a distant star largely because of poor management, the chief error being rapid expansion.

Will the MLS fall to the same fate?  It is not looking good, but aside from picking through Nostradamus quatrains to find out, the next best guess might be in the hands of a magic eight ball.

Perhaps our President of Change wants in?  He wants to tinker with the BCS, so why not the MLS?

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Major League Soccer announced today that the Seattle Sounders will host Major League Soccer’s premier event, MLS Cup 2009, at Qwest Field on Sunday, Nov. 22 at 8:30 p.m. 

From the official MLS press release:

Even before their debut match in Major League Soccer, Seattle Sounders FC already have attracted a large fan base. The club has sold more than 20,000 season ticket packages, which now include a ticket to MLS Cup 2009, the League’s 14th annual championship game.

Seattle kicks off its inaugural season on March 19 in the opening game of the 2009 regular season.

“The city of Seattle and Qwest Field will be a tremendous setting for our country’s marquee soccer event of the year,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber said. “The stadium was designed with soccer in mind and we believe the buzz surrounding Sounders FC will add to the electricity at our championship game.

"We hope to see supporters clubs from all around the League join us in the Emerald City in November, regardless of which two teams advance to the final.”

Qwest Field will become the eighth stadium to host Major League Soccer’s championship game. Qwest Field is quickly becoming one of the nation’s premier soccer venues.

The stadium has hosted numerous large-scale soccer events including exhibition matches for the national teams of Brazil, China, Mexico, Canada, and Venezuela, as well as exhibitions for some of the world’s top clubs including Manchester United, Real Madrid, Celtic and Chelsea FC.

Qwest Field also was a host venue for the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup and will serve as a host venue for the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

“This is a tremendous honor and reward for our season ticket holders and an added incentive for our coaches and players,” said majority owner Joe Roth.

MLS Cup is the pinnacle of professional soccer in the United States, as a nearly eight-month long journey ends with one team being crowned the champions of Major League Soccer.

In 2008, the Columbus Crew captured their first MLS Cup championship at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif., by defeating the New York Red Bulls 3-1.

That is turning out to be a great season for Sounders fans. First they get to see the MLS Cup, and season ticket holders get a ticket, but Seattle fans can also expect to see a couple of high-profile European teams visit the Northwest this summer.

Congratulations, Seattle.

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There has been a lot written about the “timeshare”  arrangement between the LA Galaxy and AC Milan for the services of a certain David Beckham. The deals and sub-deals are confusing but I will try to explain it as best I can.

Basically AC Milan agreed to pay MLS $1 million to extend the current two-month loan until the end of the season. In addition Beckham paid $3 million himself to continue the loan deal paid and an exhibition game between the Galaxy and AC Milan was arranged for July 19.

Milan were already scheduled to tour the US this summer and had three games scheduled. What they did was extend the tour by one game. In addition to the Galaxy game, AC Milan are rumored to be playing Chelsea in Baltimore in July.

Last week MLS Commissioner Don Garber mentioned that one of the “major deal points” of the negotiations was the modification of Beckham’s opt-out escape clause.

Basically, Beckham had the right to walk away from MLS at the end of the summer, but now he will have to buy himself out. of his contract. Published reports have the value of the buyout as high as  $11 million.

I am not sure why Beckham would agree to this change. Come November Beckham is going to have to cough up $11 million if he wants to play for AC Milan next year, which is what he needs to do if he is going to play for England in the 2010 world cup.

In an interview with the Sun last week Beckham said:

“I have a right to own an MLS franchise, which I will action immediately after I have stopped playing football.”  Beckham claimed he was pleased with the deal because “it allows me to continue my commitment to develop soccer in the United States, which is something I’m passionate about,” and “my family is happy and settled and will remain in Los Angeles.”

There is no word from MLS on whether this is a new franchise that Beckham will get getting or when this will happen. I would expect that Beckham will retire in the next two years, so does that mean that Beckham will be getting a franchise that will play in the 2012 season?

With Beckham’s profile and status, there are not many cities that Posh would be happy spending time in. So does that mean that the Miami franchise option is back on the table? 

I expect that the MLS will crank up the publicity in anticipation of Beckham’s return this summer. Unlike in 2007 when he first came to the U.S., will anyone be paying attention this time?

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There's a been a lot of chat about how the going price for an MLS team—$40 million—is way too high.

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