Beckham's Star Shines

In the end, it came down to two of the biggest football stars on the planet: Beckham and Ronaldinho. That's why I drove south on the 110 freeway on a sultry Sunday in Los Angeles. To see some stars. My first major soccer game (AC Milan vs the LA Galaxy July 19 in a friendly) turned out the largest crowd ever at the Home Depot Center, and I think everyone had a good time. Because we knew the stars.

The problem with the Los Angeles Galaxy-a Major League Soccer team just twenty miles south of where I live-is that American football is regarded as a minor league by the rest of the world. If you wake up early on Sunday mornings to watch the English Premier League on TV its easy to see they are superior (and faster) in their brand of soccer. So is the Italian league (Serie A) and La Liga in Spain. Yet Major League Soccer survives in the USA. In Seattle, the team owned by comedian Drew Carey sells out nearly every game! And they have no international stars.

To rectify this situation, The Galaxy paid millions for the David Beckham BRAND, but never ended up with Beckham the player. The PLAYER showed up on Sunday, and after a sluggish start seemed to be involved in nearly every play of consequence. His cross pass led to the Galaxy's first goal and he was a presence in their second. At the start of the game he was booed by a majority of the crowd every time he touched the ball. You see, Beckham went off to play for AC Milan last season and he wanted to stay. Who could blame him? Serie A action is so much better. At the end of the game people were chanting his name.

The Galaxy, led by their USA national captain Landon Donovan, came to play. After Milan scored their first goal on a fluke play, Beckham dribbled the ball from one end of the pitch to the other to set up a goal for Alan Gordon. In the second half he played a big part in the Galaxy's second goal by Bryan Jordan. Meanwhile Ronaldinho was in the mix for both of Milan's goals. With his cornrows he reminded me of a soccer playing Manny Ramirez, but unlike that reticent Dodger, Ronaldinho hung around to sign autographs after the game. And he played the whole match!

This was a festive occasion on a hot summer night. Drums pounding, horns blaring, and fans singing. The economy can't be that bad. It was $20 to park and a beer cost $9. Most expensive venue I have ever seen! But it was worth it because the stars came out on a hot summer night and I loved every minute of it.