highthief

So, David Beckham has signed a $250 million/5 year deal to come play football (soccer) in Los Angeles of Major League Soccer.

Personally, I think this is a great move - Beckham probably no longer has what it takes to play first team for Real or Man U or a big European side, but he should do well in North America and will bring a lot of attention (as Pele once did) to North American soccer.

I think the MLS needs to continue to try to bring big names over and keep the profile of the game high. Even Beck's teammate Ronaldo might become available.

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Glory's Sun

I was excited when I heard about this. Now I hated Becks ever since he left Man Utd. but now that he's coming over not just for money but to try and build a league; he's redeemed himself.

Sure he's a bit on the older side but he should still have about 5-6 good years left in him. It's not only his playing skills that will be needed. His experience and knowledge of the business aspect of the big dogs in football will come in handy.

I don't think we'll see Ronaldo over here just yet. I think alot of European stars are going to wait and see if Becks falls flat on his face and come running back or if there is a spark and some cash left over, they may join him then.

Either way I think it's a starting block to get Soccer unAmericanized and moving in the right direction. Will it ever be as good as the Premier League? Of course not. Nothing is better than that.

highthief

Well, La Liga and Serie A are pretty good, also, but yes, I prefer the Prem as my avatar indicates!

Real is pretty much done with Ronaldo, so its possible, but I'm just not sure how hard he'll work. I'd rather see, if we're talking older players, Figo or Zidane come over.

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pig

Holy crap, I would shit myself if Zidane came to play in the MLS.

As far as Beckham goes, I wish this would start the movement of older European stars to the States for retirement. Who knows, we're losing ground internationally in both basketball and baseball - I'm hoping the MLS makes it longterm. I have to say I'm fairly impressed by his decision to make this move. Hope its not like Matthaus, more like Valderama.

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healer

Now all we need to do is get you supporting the right team.

I hope his move to the states is more than just for hype and publicity. The fact that he has the means/skill to give back to football by building up a whole league kinda justifies the price tag, but not really.

I'm sure I read that he was pissed at Posh for wanting to move to the states...*coughPussy-whippedcough*.

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fatbob

I think it shows a complete lack of ambition as a footballer personally. It is a money move, a chance to hang-out with his Scientologist friends and start a movie career or something (mibee?)
If you look at Larsson, Figo, Zidane, hey even Terry Sherringham it is clear that if you are good enough and keep fit enough you can play at the top level well into your 30s, Beckham could have fought for his place at a top club, Inter or Juve in Italy for example and the regained his England place?
You've got your late 30s to retire to US football.

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Willravel

He's totally aiming for a film career....damn sellout.

Glory's Sun

I think it's a bit premature to call him a sellout. If he comes over here and works hard, you should all eat your foot off. He may truly want the challenge of trying to build a sport in this country. We all know that soccer is huge in the youth ranks and then it fizzles out as kids get older. This might be the bridge that gaps the two. If it doesn't then it doesn't but we should at least give the guy a chance. He has plenty of money already without having to leave his country to get more.

I doubt we'd ever see Zidane over here. His country would disown him. Figo is much more likely to play. Figo would be a decent draw but wouldn't have near the amount of exposure as Becks.

fresnelly

I'm pretty cynical about this move, though I hope guccilvr and pigglet are right.

I imagine he'll play for 1-2 years, get paid a fraction of the $225mil, and then retire to focus on fully branding himself for the North American market. If he's really interested in promoting the game over here, he should buy at eam when he retires like Wayne Gretzky did.

Toronto is getting a team in this league next year, so there was a lot of local attention to this story and the hope that he'll grace our field with his presence.

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Willravel

The nice thing about being an American is that I have no loyalties to soccer. I'm not a fan, I'm barely even aware of it. If he doesn't sell out, then good for him. If he does...then whatever. I'm somewhat indifferent.

highthief

Becks doesn't have the pace to play at a top club any longer. He was never the fastest guy on the pitch and, having hit his thirties, he's slowed down further. He'd have no real chance beyond maybe a season at a top Prem, Serie A or La Liga side.

So, why not come over? As much as he gets stick in the media for his image, his wife, and so on, he's also a pretty smart guy who seems to love the game. So, he'll come over and get rich and make an impact both on and off the field, rather than beign stuck in Europe playing for some lesser English side, or worse, an SPL team!

Now, a song for the Manc:


We won it at Wem-b-ely (sic)
We won it in Gay Paris
In 77 and 84 it was Rome

We've won it 5 times
We've won it 5 ti-imes
in Istanbul, we won it 5 times

When Emlyn lifted it high
He lit up the Roman sky
Thommo in Paris and Souness did it aswell

We've won it 5 times
We've won it 5 ti-imes
in Istanbul, we won it 5 times

At Wembley we won it our home
Took 26,000 to Rome
20,000 to Paris when we won it again

We've won it 5 times
We've won it 5 ti-imes
In Istanbul, we won it 5 times

Stevie G's eyes lit up
As he lifted the European Cup
21 years and now its coming back home

We've won it 5 times
We've won it 5 ti-imes
In Istanbul, we won it 5 times.

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Glory's Sun

alot of people do have loyalties however, and if things go right, maybe we'll see alot more of it. Oh and it's called FOOTBALL. I hate the word soccer. It's sad that you are barely aware of it. There's alot of beauty in football.

grr

Willravel

It's called football internationally, but in the US it's soccer. Football in the US, is that boring sport where the Patriots cheat. I'm sure soccer/football is a fine sport, but I'm just not as interested in it (unless germany is owning italy or france, then I love football).

Glory's Sun

I was born in the US and I still don't get how American Football is called football.

it's just odd. Soccer should be called football and football should be something else.

It's interesting to see how the Galaxy are handling things already. They've sold 1,000 tickets after the announcement, they've scheduled a tour of asia (where becks is big) and they announced they were going to unveil a new logo and market themselves internationally. That's a whole lot for one new player. I guess it shows that Becks isn't done with the sport yet. He may be fading in Real .. but his fading skills are alot better than some of the top dogs here. Hopefully he can help change that.

highthief

One for when you're feeling sentimental:

It was back in nineteen-sixty-five
On the very first day of May.
Me Dad sang and danced for the lads in Red
as he walked down Wembley Way.
Ian St. John scored the goal that won
The Cup we'd never won before.
And as his son I love to wear
The scarf my father wore.

It is old but it is beautiful
And its colours they are fine
It was worn in Paris Wemberly
In Rome and on the Rhine
My father wore it as a youth
In the bygone days of yore
And as his son I love to wear
The scarf my father wore.

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Glory's Sun

hahaha check out the image on the wiki page for Liverpool F.C.

Love what Gerrard has done with his hair

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liverpool_F.C.

Charlatan

I had no idea that LA had a soccer team let alone one that could afford $250 million.

I am very interested to see how this goes if for no other reason than a desire to soccer grow professionally in North America. Though, if Pele couldn't do it, I don't know who can.

From what I've been reading and what I've seen, Beckham isn't the greatest player ever or even the greatest player of his generation. What he is is an above average player with great marketing. And quite frankly, marketing is just what soccer needs in North America. If he can achieve similar things to what Gretzky did for hockey in the US then Beckham has done his job.

I also found it kind of funny that the manager who made this all happen was Simon Fuller (the "bad guy" on American Idol, also the manager of the Spice Girls). Only in LA.

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Halx

the $250 mil isn't in salary, its also in endorsement deals too.

I personally believe this will fall flat. It'll look bad and very embarassing. Not as bad as the XFL, but.. ya..

The US is not interested in soccer.

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highthief

Well, first off, when Pele came to the New York Cosmos it was huge. They sold out every game at home and away. The problem with the NASL was A) financial mismanagement and B) they didn't keep the ball rolling.

The MSL has been very, very well managed and I see this as fitting in with the grand strategy.

As for Beckham, no, he's not the best player of his generation, but he is much more than "an above average player". He'd be in a top XI team of his era, no doubt. And he speaks English - unlike other candidates like Zidane, Figo, Ronaldo, et al.

While I agree the US is behind the times on football, it will eventually take over the US as it has the rest of the world and will work its way into the national culture on a professional level as it already has among amateurs and kids.

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Charlatan

Good point about the management and that he is English speaking. I'm in the let's wait and see camp.

I also agree that amongst kids and amateurs, soccer is probably in the top three, if not number one.

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- Old Man Luedecke

pig

The other trend I've been noticing is that the US is losing ground internationally in basketball and baseball. I think that baseball, in particular, is starting to lose is domestic audience - which could long term open up some room for an expanded soccer audience.

Did I read above that Reyna is coming back to the US as well?

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Halx

Hey hey hey, we're not *behind* on "football" ... we just don't like it. If a game doesn't consistantly have more than 5 scoring plays in an average game, we probably aren't going to watch it. Hell, look how successful Hockey is at the moment... NOT.

Also, I read this entry by Mark Cuban about what makes sports interesting... I'll post about it soon, but the gist of it is, personalities and conflicts make us watch. We just don't see any of that in the MLS.

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highthief

Yeah, I think this is very true about baseball - kids aren't playing it as much, they're playing soccer. Crowds are down except in the traditional markets - Chicago, Boston, NY.

Hockey is never likely to be successful in most of the US. In Vermont and Minnesota, sure, but really, if the kids can't play it (which is the case throughout most of the US) its unlikely to develop a big audience.

Soccer? Soccer you can play anywhere, from the slums of Rio and Sao Paulo to the manicured fields of California. The only time you can't play is when there's a foot of snow on the pitch!

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analog

*looks at the date* Is it time to bash the Pats again already? That must mean they're doing well. That's great!

aberkok

Am I the only one who thought of this?....

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Willravel

I just don't feel right bashing the Saints.....

DJ Happy

This is a Posh Spice move, nothing more. I doubt Beckham even had a say in it, but after him getting caught playing away he probably owed something to his malnourished missus. It's no secret she has had her heart set on a Hollywood career for some time now, and now all of a sudden she lives in LA.

Beckham probably couldn't care less anyway. It's all very convenient for him as his proper football career was pretty much over anyway - Real weren't interested in re-signing him, his international career is shot and his ego simply couldn't handle being a role player on a side like Portsmouth or Blackburn - and now he can hob-nob in LA with his and Posh's new best pals Tom and Katie while being paid an absolute fortune to continue being an over-hyped marketing man's dream in a city where image isn't everything, it's the only thing.

P.S. Simon Cowell is the bad guy on American Idol, not Simon Fuller.

Grasshopper Green

Ahhhh...instant gratification. Your statement is one of the reasons I find "football" so exciting. In basketball, and to a lesser degree American football and baseball, there is always a point around the corner, and I think you are right about this; my dad and I discussed this very idea when Salt Lake City got a football team a couple of years ago, and I think it's unfortunate. I've not watched a lot of baseball games on TV, and only one live one, and it was the most boring event I've ever had the misfortune to witness. Perhaps it was the teams (it was minor league), perhaps it was just a badly played game, but I really would have fallen asleep if the seat hadn't been so damn uncomfortable. American football is mildly entertaining, but nothing I'd ever sit down to watch on purpose. I quit watching basketball years ago; it just lost it's appeal to me.

Then there's football...the holding of breath every time the ball gets near the goal and the utter frenzy of excitement after those rare goals...sure beats the "so what, someone just scored again" I feel towards basketball and the boredom of watching too much standing around in baseball. Just an opposing point of view from someone who doesn't take sports too seriously, but still enjoys watching


As for David Beckham, hubby and I are excited for this news, we're also hopeful it will bring a level of exposure to the sport that hasn't previously been there. I guess we'll have to see.

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Formerly Medusa

DJ Happy

I don't know why anyone would be excited at the prospect of watching David Beckham play football. Truth of the matter is he's not a very exciting player to watch and never has been.

Glory's Sun

Becks may not have been that exciting but let's face it, he's alot more exciting than a lot of people in the MLS ranks. This is a great move for him and the MLS. The MLS is in need of major marketing. This set the ball in motion. Becks move here could help land a few other notable world players which in turn makes MLS as a whole better, which in turn makes the US better as a whole in the football world. Becks has knowledge and experience that few in the MLS ranks have or ever will have IMO. He was captain of the England squad forever and he won countless cups in the hardest league out there. He's not just bringing a slower pace over here, he's bringing his image but most importantly his head.

cameroncrazy822

I think it will put asses in the seats for the league in the short-term. Unless other top notch and or formerly top notch players sliding down the wrong side of 30 start to come over, the league and thus US interest will wain. I just don't know how many of these type contracts MLS can afford to offer. You can't blame the guy for taking the money. He already lives a rock star/ movie star life... what better place to play/live than Hollywood? I read that he will make like a million dollars per week during the length of his contract. He'll certainly be able to afford to buy his old lady a few very much needed sandwiches with that kinda scratch.

Glory's Sun

So, with Becks first MLS game looming against Chelski, he's saying his ankle is bothering him. That sucks for L.A. and their 250 million investment.

Something tells me he just doesn't want to play against Chelsea.. he knows they'll be gunnin' for him the whole match.

highthief

Well, other than Steve Sidwell, I understand that Chelski took it easy on Becks for the 12 minutes or so he was on. Fat Frank, Terry, and the Coles probably don't want to injure their England team-mate.

I think he'll be making his full debut, as a starter, against Toronto first week of August.

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Glory's Sun

Yeah I saw during game Chelski said they were going to take it easy..

I just wish I could have been a fly on the wall in the Chelski locker room after the game..

bet they were dogging Becks to the fullest extent.