Roland Martin and Raynard Jackson

Warning: the 'n' word is used in this article.

by Dick Mac

No! It's not OK to be a homophobe, even if you're black. This notion that black men somehow get a pass on homophobia is not acceptable.

Making jokes about effeminate men, or bisexual men, or homosexual men, or celibate men -- making fag jokes -- is no more acceptable than making nigger jokes. Sure, some people might laugh - some out of nervousness, some out of true hatred -- but we all know it's wrong.

CNN suspended Roland Martin, one of its commentators, last month after he tweeted a homophobic remark about David Beckham's underwear. Any man who was interested in seeing the Super Bowl ad for Beckham's underwear, according to Martin, needs to be beaten. He wrote:

Ain't no real bruhs going to H&M to buy some damn David Beckham underwear! ..If a dude at your Super Bowl party is hyped about David Beckham's H&M underwear ad, smack the sh@t out of him!

Why is Mr. Martin talking about some half-naked guy's underwear? Another quote comes to mind:

The lady protests too much, methinks.

I mean, look at his picture, he even looks like a closeted fag. Can't you see it?

Oh, I'm just kidding. Really! It's just a joke. Know what I mean?

Imagine if Dan Patrick or Boomer Esiason ever tweeted during the Super Bowl:

If a black dude @ yr Super Bowl party thinks yr daughters attractive, u better lynch him.

We would all be shocked. They would be fired (not suspended) and they may actually be arrested or sued.

Then comes forward "black conservative" (tee-hee - I know, poor thing), Raynard Jackson, to turn this into a racial issue and explain that gay people want special status. You see, since Martin is black, then Jackson is shocked that he has been "tarred and feathered" (his words) by the homosexuals.

The public dialog in defense of Martin has also included that old homophobic stand-by that being homosexual is not the same thing as being black. Duh-huh, no shit Holmes! Unless, of course, the homosexual is black, then it is exactly the same.

But nobody is saying that being gay is like being black!

Hating homosexuals is the same thing as hating blacks, however. It's hate.

And advocating violence against homosexuals is the same thing as advocating violence against blacks. It's illegal.

And sharing bigoted feelings about homosexuals is the same thing as sharing bigoted feelings about blacks. It's immoral.

Roland Martin and Raynard Jackson are sick men, they have hearts filled with hate. They do not need to be suspended from their jobs, they need deep psychological counseling.

I know, I know, Martin was only joking. You know, joking like this:

Look at his big eyes and his watermelon smile, he's a jungle-bunny, a little black Sambo, he's baggy-lipped and his big thighs make it hard for him to swim. You know, he's probably syphilitic! I mean, I'm not a racist, but he is a nigger, really, and he doesn't deserve any special treatment. But, you know, I'm really only joking. Know what I mean? It's all just a couple of guys shooting the breeze. No harm intended. Right?

None of that is acceptable. I should not even have written it. I want to highlight that we all know it's wrong to spew forth racist garbage like that; but somehow a huge part of our society thinks it's OK to spew forth that kind of garbage about homosexuals.

Using the notion that Martin was only kidding means that anyone who wants to spew forth the words I wrote above are allowed to do so because, well, you know . . . it's just a joke.

Ha - ha - ha.

Roland Martin, CNN, GLAAD and the silence of black leaders

David Beckham Is Coming To Town

David Beckham is coming to New York, well New Jersey.



Beckham's team, the Los Angeles Galaxy, will play Red Bull New York on Saturday night, at Giants Stadium. I will be in attendance.

Last year's match was a spectacular display of athletic prowess and sports excitement that ended with the Red Bulls beating the Gals 5-4. This year's match-up is receiving almost no attention. Odd.

My Red Bulls are struggling.

Star striker Juan Pablo Angel missed a number of matches with lower back pain that is exacerbated by playing on concrete covered in artificial turf. Sadly, most MLS teams play on concrete, instead of grass.



Phenom Jozy Altidore, who was instrumental in last year's victory over the Gals, was sold to Villareal, in Spain, and has not yet been replaced by anyone who can fill his shoes. The team has slid to the bottom of the standings.

The oft-injured Claudio Reyna has not played in some time, has not been announced fit for action, and is rumored to be considering retirement.

Angel is back, however, and could be joined on the squad by at least two newcomers. Venezuelan national team midfielder Jorge Rojas and Argentinean midfielder Juan Pietravallo have been signed by the Red Bulls and will perhaps provide some strength in the back, where our porous defense is allowing far too many shots on beleaguered goalkeeper Jon Conway.

Rojas and Pietravallo are eligible to start playing today, and should be on the game day roster Saturday if their work visas are sorted out. They are complete unknowns to us. There is no way of knowing if they will help the team, but they certainly cannot hurt, given rapid drop to the bottom.

Defenders Diego Jimenez and Gabriel Chichero are also supposed to join the team, but the front office has made no announcement. We need some new defenders. I am happy with Andrew Boyens, who receives much more fan criticism than he deserves; but our defense is really our biggest problem.

If Rojas and Pietravallo are not eligible to play on Saturday, then I fear a very difficult evening for my team. If Rojas and Pietravallo are eligible to play, then any outcome will be tempered by the excitement of their arrivals.

The Red Bulls have not replaced Jozy Altidore. There is no viable striker playing next to Angel. When Angel plays as the lone striker, he is triple-teamed by the opposing defense and unable to do much of anything. Coach Juan Carlos Osario has been experimenting with midfielder Dane Richards playing alongside Angel, but it has only been marginally successful. Oscar Etcheverry is on the roster as a forward, and should be able to work alongside Angel as a striker but has been unable to produce anything, and seems wholly uninterested in earning the money he is paid. Etcheverry should not appear on the field again.

Youngster Rickey Schramm is also on the roster. He is a developmental player, a forward, who has not been given any opportunity to play at the highest level. The 22-year-old should be out on the field getting experience and I think this match is the right time. Put Schramm up top next to Angel and give him an opportunity to play.

And we cannot forget John Wolyniec. Woly has been a stalwart for the team, and is perfect as a late-game sub. His unconventional style and his enthusiasm are uniquely suited to wrecking havoc on an opponent's back line.

The Red Bulls' midfield is our strength. Dane Richards and Danleigh Borman have proven to be excellent wingers, and Dave Van den Bergh has been the team's only anchor during this troublesome season. With Seth Stammler emerging as the midfield general and able captain, the addition of Rojas and Pietravallo make a crowded midfield.

But it's the defense that's the problem.

Goalkeeper Jon Conway does a perfectly good job in the net, and needs to have a more solid defense in front of him. Boyens, whom I mentioned earlier, has been a good addition to the team; but the rest of the defensive line is really a revolving door.

For some unknown reason, Coach Osario will not give Hunter Freeman a permanent position in the back. Freeman deserves to be starting every match, until such time as the team employs more talented defenders.

With Freeman and Boyens in the back, one more defender is needed to start.

Reading off a piece of paper, one sees that Jeff Parke and Kevin Goldthwaite have the experience needed to play on the back line. Parke has not been given ample opportunity to prove himself, and Goldthwaite has been given ample opportunity to make everyone raise their eyebrows and scratch their heads wondering what he is doing in the starting line-up.

If no new defenders arrive this week to train with the team, then I think Parke should be considered for a start against the Galaxy.

To make things more exciting, however, Osario should be playing developmental player Johnny Gilkerson, who has had two starts, with mixed results. He is young and should be played more regularly.

Sadly, most of the people in the stands at Giants Stadium will know little about Angel, Schramm, Richards, and van den Bergh. They won't be able to distinguish Stammler from Parke from Freeman from Boyens. They will know nothing about our frustration with Goldthwaite, Etcheverry, Reyna, Mike Magee and Chris Leitch. They'll care little for the progress of Schramm, Gilkerson, Borman, Luke Sassano, and Chris Megaloudis. Most of the people in the stands will be from the Metropolitan New York area, but will know little and care less about the Red Bulls.

Most of them will be wearing L.A. Galaxy jerseys with "Herbalife" emblazoned across the front and "Beckham" emblazoned across the back. They aren't there to see their local team, they are there to consume David Beckham.

And this is sad. Those New Yorkers and New Jerseyites who love David Beckham, but know nothing of their local team, are doing themselves a disservice. Juan Pablo Angel is a world-class player who is a joy to watch. Local soccer fans should be coming to the stadium to watch him, even when David Beckham isn't in town.

Major League Soccer is the best deal in town. Most families can’t afford to attend a baseball, NBA, NHL, or NFL game. The cost is prohibitive. MLS is not. The play is fast and furious, the players are strong and play hard, and the matches are exciting.

MLS is the best deal in town.

Come out and watch a match or two!

March Madness

For most of the sports fans I know, March Madness refers to the NCAA men's basketball tournament. For those of you who might not know what this is, I will attempt a judgmental and cynical description. (Why pretend that I find the condition college sports programs acceptable?):

Most universities and many colleges in the United States are home to professional basketball teams, called amateur teams, that are managed by a team of athletic, public relations, and logistics professionals, paid millions of dollars to ensure that the school secures as much money as possible from the billion dollars pool of funds generated by television contracts. The men who run this professional league (white men) lord over the men who actually earn the money for the schools (black men) and there has never been such a disparate economic arrangement in the United States since the abolition of slavery.

The orgasmic climax, this race for piles of cash, culminates each March with the tournament in which sixty-four teams are selected to play for the 'national championship' and the biggest chunk of money. You see, this is an amateur event, so we aren't supposed to talk about the money, but the men involved all do it for the money. The administrators will earn millions and a tiny percentage of the players will get contracts to play basketball in the National Basketball Association (the other professional basketball league in America designed for slightly older men).

Most of the players will be dismissed from school with no degree, no education, no prospects for future employment, and in some cases a pile of student loans coming due. We're not supposed to talk about those (black) men, though, because they are only supposed to go to college to learn, not play sports, and it's their own fault that they have nothing to fall back on. Besides, the money earned by the colleges has to be spent on paying the million-dollar salaries of the (white) men maintaining the leagues. Colleges are, after all, money-making institutions designed for profiteering, not charitable organizations focused on furthering human knowledge.

I have discussed this issue in articles titled Amateur Athletics and The NCAA and The Student Athlete. I think poorly of the NCAA and the billion dollar business that is college athletics.

For most sports fans in America, March Madness is that tournament. I have selected North Carolina to win it all, and I have enjoyed watching David-sized Davidson College upset Goliath after Goliath: Gonzaga, Georgetown, and Wisconsin, before losing a squeaker to Kansas in the last seconds. So, I think the industry is crooked, but I am entertained.

Besides the Davidson fairy tale run, my fave story of the NCAA tournament was Derrick Rose of Memphis, refusing to have stitches to close a cut because he is afraid of needles. This guy is tough as feathers, and I can only imagine how his prima donna behavior will shine when he leaves college and tries to work int he NBA.

Rose Refused Stitches Due To Needle Phobia

HOUSTON — Derrick Rose was not getting stitches.

No way. No how.

The weekend saw four NCAA tournament games played, but it also marked the opening night of Major League Soccer, the professional soccer league in the United States, and even though my Red Bull New York team was not scheduled to play, I was thrilled to watch.

The entire world is now playing professional soccer! Most leagues are Winter leagues, playing their season from September through May; but, because of our climate, the United States is a Summer league, playing its season from March through October.

March is the month when all nations' professional soccer leagues overlap, so I get to watch a maddening number of matches each weekend.

This past weekend I saw the following broadcasts:

From England: Derby v. Fulham, Manchester United v. Aston Villa, Liverpool v. Everton, and Tottenham v. Newcastle

From Italy: Lazio v. Inter Milan, Juventus v. Parma, AC Milan v. Atalanta

From Spain: Real Betis v. Barcelona

From the USA: New England v. Houston Dynamo, and Colorado v. Los Angeles.

From Scotland: Rangers FC v. Celtic FC

From Argentina: River Plate v. Arsenal

Many other matches from Spain, Germany, and Columbia were also broadcast in my television market, but I saw none of them. I get my fix of South American soccer during the week when Copa Libertadores matches are broadcast live, late at night.

Both MLS matches were a disappointment to me. Reigning champs Houston Dynamo played very poorly against the always-hateful New England Revolution, and the Colorado Rapids made mince-meat of the David Beckham-led Los Angeles Galaxy, in a poorly-officiated match with two red cards, violent tackles, too much blood, and anger verging on rage (even from Lady Landycakes himself).

Actually, I must admit that Landon Donovan showed remarkable leadership on the field and should be reinstated as the LA team captain. When bad calls were made by the ref, Landycakes was right there to negotiate on behalf of the player accused of unfair play, and when Ciaran O'Brien levelled a vicious late-game tackle on Carlos Ruiz, Landycakes bolted right at the perpetrator and shoved him back, leading to a purse-swinging festival that ended with O'Brien red-carded and dismissed from the game. Donovan's intensity, negotiating, and leadership did nothing, however, to prevent an embarrassing drubbing by Colorado. David Beckham should relinquish the captain's armband to Donovan, because he showed absolutely no leadership in a match that required strong guidance from a smart and determined leader. Bonnets off to Landycakes, ladies!

Referee Abiodun Okulaja was atrocious. I often sympathize with soccer referees because one official is expected to cover a field larger than an NFL field, so it is common for an official to miss a call or two throughout a match. This match was allowed to spiral out-of-control by the official and his poor performance jeopardized the safety of the players.

Okulaja's unforgivable sin was making a call against Abel Xavier in the box that was not a foul. Xavier did come from behind, but he kicked the ball and the attacking player's stumble to the ground should not have been called a foul. When Xavier protested, he was yellow-carded for dissent. Later in the match, Xavier was called for a foul and bumped the ref during his vehement and dramatic protest. The ref had no choice but to book him a second time (this time for abusive language) which led to Xavier's dismissal. This took place in the 89th minute, and the match was long-lost, but it had also been long out-of-control.

I don't like Abel Xavier because he is a show-off and a hot-head and I think he is bad for the sport, but the calls by the referee would frustrate the most level-headed player and I hope that this ref is sent to officiating classes soon so that he can stop losing control of matches.

By midnight Saturday, I was soccered-out! Sunday allowed fewer opportunities for viewing, but I ended the weekend sated and a little maddened by so much soccer.

I am a lucky man, and March Madness for me is this weekend when I can watch soccer from all over the world, including the United States.

Next weekend, I make my way to Giants Stadium for the Red Bulls home opener. This will be the last opening day at Giants Stadium, as Red Bull Park should be ready for next season.


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Fever Pitch
Nick Hornby

Oh! Those Lovable Losers!

I have always had a soft spot in my heart for the underdog, the team from a small market who competes big, or the "other" team in a large market always overshadowed by the other club.

Growing-up a sports fan in Boston, my heart goes out to fans of teams that seem always to blow-it at the last minute.

These teams usually blow things in every arena: last minute losses (remember Bill Buckner?), bad public relations (remember Tommy Harper?), losing players to trading deadlines (remember Carlton Fisk?). It's frustrating, because the incompetence seems to permeate every level of the organization.

My dear friend, Liz, grew-up in Manchester, England, where her family support the Manchester City Football Club ("City"), not the international, foreign-owned mega-power Manchester United ("ManUre").

City does to its Mancunian fans what the Red Sox did to Bostonians for decades: let them down in the end.

This season, City has performed admirably under the direction of Sven-Goran Eriksson, the Swedish manager who has a long, storied and successful career.

"The wheels have come off," Liz insists, as we watch City drop from the top six (which six spots guarantee playing in very profitable continental playoffs next season) to a tie for seventh, with no outward sign of recovery.

In English soccer (football, as it is known in the rest of the world), the month of January is a team's final opportunity to trade for players who can help bring home the silverware before the season ends in the Spring. It is called the "transfer window," which in the USA we call the "trading deadline."

Yesterday was the final day of the transfer window and the action was not as furious as it has been in years past.

The big deal was expected to be Jermain Defoe leaving Tottenham, where he has been relegated to the bench even though he is one of England's most promising home-grown young players.

City was trying to beef-up its squad and made a move for Portsmouth's Benjani Mwaruwari, who is having a remarkable season. Benjani was set to arrive in Manchester for a physical yesterday, and the paperwork for the transfer had to be filed before midnight.

Travel delays complicated Benjani's trip to Manchester, and it is unclear at this time if he ever arrived on time for his physical.

According to the Portsmouth club, City informed them that the paperwork had been filed for Benjani, which would give Portsmouth seven million pounds with which to sign a replacement. So, at 11:55 P.M., Portsmouth filed the papers to acquire Defoe from Tottenham.

The Football Association ("FA") informed Portsmouth at 12:15 A.M. that the paperwork for them to transfer Benjani to City was never completed. Portsmouth could no longer rely on receiving the seven million pounds, and they would now have an extra star striker to pay.

According to City spokesman Paul Tyrrell: "Due to the late arrival of the player [Benjani] in Manchester, we were unable to complete the transfer."

In the meantime, City signed 19-year old Ecuadorian striker Felipe Caicedo, to a four-and-a-half year contract

It is unclear at this time who (if anyone) from City actually told Portsmouth boss Harry Redknapp that the paperwork for the Benjani deal was filed with the FA, so it could be that Redknapp (not anyone's favorite guy in England) assumed the Benjani deal would go through and acted prematurely. Although, it is hard to call it premature when there are only five minuets left to complete the deal.

According to the BBC:

Redknapp was puzzled at the collapse of Benjani's move, saying: "Our chief executive Peter Storrie was told the deal was done and then obviously after midnight we got a message saying the forms hadn't gone through for some reason.

"I think Peter's on the case with the Premier League to see where we go with it."

It's possible that Redknapp is the goat here; but, City finds itself looking incompetent, and unable to file their own paperwork properly (just like my old Boston Red Sox), even if it isn't true.

One of the teams is going to have an extra striker for this weekend's matches. Benjani is a wonderful addition to any team, so I hope it's City. But, can they afford two new strikers on their payroll?

Confusion surrounds Benjani deal

Man City complete Caicedo signing

Redknapp delight at Defoe capture

I've not heard from Liz yet today, so I hope she will chime in here and let us know what is going on, and provide a Citizen's viewpoint.

In other soccer news: new England national team manager Fabio Capello has selected his next 30-man squad to represent that country in upcoming matches. He has not selected David Beckham. Pundits say that it is because Beckham plays in America, and nobody in Europe takes American soccer seriously. I find it hard to believe that Beckham is not one of the best thirty English players available to Capello, irrespective of where he plays. There are many in England who agree that he should have been selected.

Top managers give Beckham backing


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Playing For Uncle Sam
David Tossell

Soccer in 2007

In 2007:

The Iraq national team was crowned champions of Asia.

The United States national team won the CONCACAF (North America, Central America and the Caribbean) Gold Cup championship.

Brazil won the Copa America and the Confederations Cup.

Boca Juniors, of Argentina, won the Copa Libertadores.

Manchester United was crowned champions of England.

Real Madrid was crowned champions of Spain (La Liga) after the final match of the season.

AC Milan was crowned the Champions of Italy's Serie A, the Champions of Europe and won the FIFA World Club Championship. I guess this means that AC Milan was the best club in the world in 2007.

Houston Dynamo was crowned champions of MLS.

David Beckham signed with the LA Galaxy. Becks and his wife, Victoria, took America by storm and have settled nicely in Los Angeles.

Juan Pablo Angel joined Red Bull New York, to become part of the crop of first-rate international players to join Major League Soccer, in 2007. The others, Beckham (Los Angeles Galaxy), Cuauhtemoc Blanco (Chicago Fire), and Luciano Emilio (D.C. United) all had a major impact on their teams, even if they did not deliver a championship. I pray that more international stars will join MLS and help increase the league's standing in the international market.

Jose Mourinho left Chelsea F.C. of the English Premier League after guiding them to two titles. It was believed that he would take over as England manager when Sven Goren Eriksson stepped down, but that job went to Fabio Capello,

Eriksson took over Manchester City F.C. and have turned them into a success story.

What did your club or country do?



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AMAZON AD

Women Dig Guys With Bulldog Faces

According to a study that examined male facial structures and patterns throughout evolution has conculded that women are attracted to men with relatively short upper faces.

My question is: What the hell is an upper-face and who the hell possesses a short one?

What intrigues me most about the proposition that women find masculine, bulldog-like men more attractive than other men is the trend over the past couple decades for male sex symbols to be more feminized.

David Beckham, one of the most well-known and well-photographed sex-symbols of this century is known as a metrosexual, which implies a certain softness and sensitivity, that I would think (in a very parochial way) would preclude him from being found attractive using this scenario.

According to an article at livescience.com,

Men with "mini mugs" might have been most attractive to the opposite sex and thus most likely to attract mates for reproduction, passing along the striking features to the next generation and so forth, said lead study author Eleanor Weston, a paleontologist at the Natural History Museum in London.

"The evolution of facial appearance is central to understanding what makes men and women attractive to each other," Weston said. "We have found the distance between the lip and brow was probably immensely important to what made us attractive in the past, as it does now."

Whereas past studies have suggested facial symmetry and facial masculinity play roles in this game of desire, none have provided evidence of an evolutionary shaping of male and female faces.

How do I know if I have a mini-mug or a bulldog face?

If David Beckham isn't considered attractive, then who is? What ape-like superstars do women find attractive?

Well, in an article on Yahoo!, LiveScience Staff Writer, Jeanna Bryner, writes

Among the men who fit the bill . . . from most to least masculine according to facial dimensions: Will Smith, Peter Andre, Justin Timberlake, Thierry Henry, Brad Pitt, David Beckham, Johnny Depp and Kanye West.

Will Smith most masculine? That's a list of pretty attractive men. I would have to include Johnny Depp, Thierry Henry and Brad Pitt on my list. And David Beckham is certainly very sexy in a mass-media sort of way. But, Bulldog Faces? Apelike?

Here are some pictures of guys with short upper-faces (pictures used without permission):

Johnny Depp

Thierry Henry

Brad Pitt

I wouldn't mind looking like a caveman!


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Thierry Henry
Oliver Derbyshire

Thank Goodness He Has Left Town

The last two weeks leading up to Saturday's soccer match between Red Bull New York (RBNY) and the Los Angeles Galaxy had been stressful.

There was quite a bit of talk around the RBNY fan base about the increase in ticket price for this match. Ticket prices were doubled on average from $20-$30 to $50 and $60 per seat. Many, including me, were dismayed by this ploy and I feared that the whole thing could backfire on my team. The reason for the increase in ticket prices was the new addition to the Galaxy squad.

David Beckham is now playing soccer for a team in Major League Soccer, and his arrival has caused quite a stir.

The hope of Beckham's arrival is that he will add consumer legitimacy to the league. That RBNY will now draw more than fifteen thousand spectators to their home matches.

RBNY has a solid fan base, a good supporters club in the Empire Supporters Club (ESC), and is situated in a lucrative market (metropolitan New York). But fifteen thousand attendees do not make the team financially viable or impressive in the media.

When teams like the New Jersey Devils and New Jersey Nets (both of whom have played in the same Meadowlands Sports Complex as RBNY) draw only fifteen thousand on average, they can survive because they play in established leagues (the NHL and NBA, respectively). So, the success of other teams in their leagues and their lucrative television contracts make those less successful franchises more viable.

MLS is still a fledgling league in its 12th year of existence. The owners and the league, all billionaires extrodinaires must subsidize growth of the league; but that will come to a halt some day. The league must start to stand on its own two feet (and checkbook).

Beckham's arrival, along with the arrival of other foreign players, is hoped to be the next big step in solidifying the league's standing in the US market. Beckham's arrival in Los Angeles a few weeks ago was marred by an ankle injury he picked-up as a member of Real Madrid at the end of the season in Spain. He played twelve minutes in his new team's exhibition against Chelsea, then sat on the bench for league matches against D.C., New England, and Toronto, before making a strong and successful appearance in a non-league match against D.C. United in the International SuperLiga semi-final.

On Saturday morning, I drove my family to visit some friends in Northern New Jersey. One of those friends was joining me for the big match. We had a couple conversations about how much time we should leave for the drive to the stadium and it was a more complicated discussion than any other time we attended a match together.

Why?

Over 66,000 tickets had been sold for the match, the stadium holds 79,000, and some of the parking lots were shut-down to accommodate construction, all of which generated helpful publications for the RBNY front-office offering guidance about how much time you should allow and where you would be allowed to park.

We left two hours before kick-off, weaved our way through the maze of security, construction and tail-gaters to find a rather excellent spot closer to the entrances and exits than we had hoped.

There was almost a full-hour before lick-off when we were safely ensconced in our seats, our excellent seats in Section 137, near the corner flag.

The stadium filled with nubile young women in Beckham shirts, and the phenomenon I don't quite yet understand: teenage boys in Beckham shirts swooning over the superstar. Are these boys excited about his excellent play or his excellent physique? They seem to know very little about soccer in general, the league specifically, and are ignorant about the details of Beckham's career that soccer fans can generally spout off with ease.

We had four of these lithe young men seated in front of us and they went wild when Beckham made his appearance for warm-ups, then when the team arrived for kick-off, each time time their studly hero touched the ball, and ultimately when he removed his shirt at the end of the match.

A phenomenon I like, but do not understand.

The match?

Spectacular. Within nine minutes the score was NY 1- 2 LA, which goals were scored in quick succession:

Juan Pablo Angel, the RBNY international superstar, All-Star MVP, league MVP candidate, RBNY leading scorer, Colombian international beauty, and New York team savior, netted a free-kick by shooting under the Galaxy wall.

Two beautifully crossed shots bent into the box by Beckham led to two goals by Carlos Pavon, putting LA into the lead.

The match settled down a bit, but play remained strong. When Beckham fell victim to hard but legal tackle, he leaped to his feet enraged that the tackle took him off his feet. It was a text-book tackle that any player would make and Beckham's reaction was completely out of proportion to the situation. If he thinks his arrival as the most famous player in MLS means he is exempt from defensive plays, he is grossly mistaken. He lashed-out at the defender and players had to be restrained to prevent fisticuffs.

Beckham's frustration showed again when in a defensive move he stepped on the foot of a NY midfielder and aggravated his tender ankle. The crowd roared its approval, and it took a few minutes before he could walk properly again.

The score remained the same until the closing moments of the first half when Dane Richards came down the field on the left side (he usually plays on the right), and when attempting to deliver a cross into the box saw the ball slam squarely into the face of David Beckham. The force of the blow was obvious ten rows up and Beckham was dazed as the play continued around him. The ball returned from Beckham's face to Richards' foot and he delivered it into the mouth of the goal, it deflected out to the foot of Clint Mathis who hammered home a shot that no goal keeper, including the excellent LA goal keeper Joe Cannon, could hope to stop. Score at the half: NY 2-2 LA.

The stands were electric. Section 101, home of ESC, was rocking and rolling the entire half and right through half-time.

The second-half started as hard and fast as the first half, and Jozy Altidore, the 17-year-old phenom for RBNY scored in the 49th and 70th minutes to the great delight of the home crowd (and silently passive consternation of the Beckham fans who wouldn't know a set-shot from a red card).

Beckham is known for his delivery, not his goal scoring. As the first two LA goals showed, Beckham can place the ball squarely on any spot in front of the goal, at will. he is the international king of the set-piece, whether from the field of play or delivering in from a corner.

Corner shots are a staple of soccer. If the defense sends the ball out-of-bound behind the goal line, the offensive squad places the ball in the corner of the field and delivers an unimpeded shot into play. Nobody does this better than Beckham. He can score a goal from this position, but more often than not, as was the case with Carlos Pavon in the first half, he can place it right on the head or foot of a teammate standing all alone in front of the goal. It's almost like a magic trick. It's an amazing feat.

My fear about the sixty-six thousand fans attending this match is that they would be rooting fro LA, just because Beckham was here.

A wonderful surprise was awaiting me when Beckham took his first corner, but it was even more impressive when he took his second. As he approached the corner, a cacophony of boos greeted him. I had never heard such a roar of derision at a Red Bulls match. Of course, the boos have little, if any, impact on a professional athlete; but they sure warm the cockles of the heart of an aging soccer fan who suffers a near-empty stadium week after week.

I am a David Beckham fan. I love reading about him and watching him play. But when his club (L.A. Galaxy) plays my club, my admiration goes on hold and I cheer against him as I would any opposing player. And if ever his national team (England) should play my national team (USA), I will boo him again. My admiration of him is not blind. I want my team to win, and I will like him again right afterwards.

The 4-2 score stayed the same for less than a minute, when Landon Donovan (a/k/a Landycakes or Landon Divanon) delivered a goal for the visitors. NY 4-3 LA.

Seven goals had been scored. SEVEN!

Ten minutes later, Edson Buddle (formerly of my NY team), evened the score with an unassisted beauty; and with less than ten minutes remaining it seemed the match would end in a draw. Not the best result, but certainly better than losing at home to the likes of David Spice and Landycakes.

In the 88th minute, Juan Pablo Angel, delivered a very hard shot on goal that ricocheted from the arms of the goal keeper into the goal to change the score in our favor: NY 5-4 LA!

As time ticked away the last two minutes and four minutes of added time, RBNY became a defensive machine, burning precious seconds off the clock as the LA squad seemed to fall into depressed resignation.

A glorious finish!

We jumped for joy in the stands, the Beckham supporters slunk away to derisive calls from home-town supporters, my voice began cracking, and the teams shook hands and the media swarmed into place for the after-match interviews and pictures.

Beckham made his way to the Galaxy bench where he removed his shirt and a Beatlemania-like squeal rose from the stands. I once attended a Frankie Goes To Hollywood show filled with thirteen year old girls screaming in the same manner. I never thought I'd hear it at a sporting event.

Juan Pablo Angel, as talented and handsome as Beckham, was declared Man of the Match, and he was being interviewed for television and was followed on-screen by Beckham who was gracious, friendly, enthusiastic and proud of the match.

This was a success.

The Beckham machine had rolled through New York, as ominous as a Hillary Clinton campaign stop but far more entertaining, and we had survived the hype and come out on top.

Beckham is a star non-pareil. There is no athlete like him. No baseball player, basketball thug, hockey player, or NFL gentle giant who commands the adoration of so many men, women, boys and girls. Nobody sells more shirts (not even the Rolling Stones), and no star is as gracious and humble off the field.

The fear about ticket prices had been that thousands would buy over-priced tickets and Beckham would not play, and infuriating tens of thousands of potential new soccer fans. Not only did Beckham play for the entire match, it was one of the best matches any of us had ever seen played in the United States.

Red Bull New York delivered! Everyone was satisfied.

Beckham delivered. MLS is lucky to have him.

And thank goodness he has left town!


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Atta Boy, Beckham!

Last night, David Beckham started his first match for his new team, the Los Angeles Galaxy, of Major League Soccer (MLS). He had appeared previously, but because of a nagging ankle injury picked-up in Madrid earlier in the year, he had yet to start a match.

I am a fan of David Beckham, Becks, David Spice, Spice Boy, whatever you want to call him. He is a real star. He is good at what he does, he makes himself available to his fans, he's enthusiastic about his craft, and he's on top of his game from every angle. He's sort of the David Bowie of sports. Always on.

Beckham endeared himself to me even more deeply in the eighteenth minute of last night's match when he committed a hard foul against DC United's Jaime Moreno, the polar opposite of Beckham, a loathsome, self-serving athlete who deserves (and generally gets) no accolades. Atta boy, Beckham! Keep after that pile of shit and take him out at every opportunity!

Vitoria Beckham (née Adams), also known professionally as Posh Spice, was present, of course. She is the perfect star's wife: famous herself, very stylish, funny, accessible to the media, and just aloof enough to keep us guessing. Hardly the Iman of sports, but entertaining and appropriate nonetheless. (Is Iman technically Iman Bowie? I think not. But she is another perfect superstar-wife.)

The L.A. Galaxy have been plagued by injuries this season and the team is filled with athletes too awful to watch on a regular basis, including (but not limited to) Landon Donovan and Cobi Jones. I find each of those men so dislike-able that it is difficult to watch the team play. But, watch them I must because they play my team, Red Bull New York, at least twice a year.

And I am such a soccer slut that I watch at least two other MLS matches on television each week in which my team is not participating. And since ESPN is so heavily involved in the Beckham Comes To America fleece-job, er promotion, the Galaxy seem to be featured in the game of the week every week now.

So, I see more of Landycakes and Cobi than I care to admit.

Beckham also scored his first goal as a member of the Galaxy last night, a perfect 26-yard free kick to put the Galaxy up 1-0. There was not as much pandemonium from the 17,223 spectators as I expected.

The Galaxy went on to beat the DC Scum, 2-0. Thank you, LA.

Beckham's return to play means quite a bit to me, because the Galaxy visit New York this weekend, well, technically they visit New Jersey to play my team. Over fifty-five thousand tickets have been sold. At inflated prices (double). His first start for the Galaxy is a good indication that Beckham will play against the Red Bulls.

The inflated ticket-prices have been a source of discussion in the media, because Beckham's failure to appear in previous matches has left a bad taste in the mouths of many consumers who bought expensive tickets to watch the Galaxy in other cities, only to have Beckham sit on the bench. Because I am a Red Bulls season-ticket holder, I did not have to pay extra for my seats. Whew! My seats aren't worth $60.00 apiece, anyhow, and that is what the front office charged for seats in my section for this match.

I have seen Beckham play once before, on the England national team, and I am excited about the prospect of seeing him play again. He is a joy to watch. And this time, I get an added bonus: I get to boo him!

That's right! David Beckham plays for LA, a team I hate almost as much as I hate DC and New England. LA has to lose this match. I am a New York supporter, and I will boo all the Galaxy players, no matter how famous or pretty.

The supporters club at the stadium creates chants for everyone to sing during the match. My favorite one for this Saturday will be used if Beckham sits on the bench. It is sung to the tune of "Frere Jacques":

David Beckham, David Beckham.
Can you play? Can you play?
What a shame you're sitting
You might as well be knitting!
That a girl! That a girl!

That chant has everything sports needs: derision of the opposing player and/or team and slightly misogynist overtones deriding the sex and/or sexual orientation of the opponent. Nothing terribly offensive, just a bit of a laugh!

I will applaud for him when he arrives on the field, and I will applaud for all the players when the match is completed. But every time that Galaxy wanker touches the ball, I will boo. I do not wish him any ill, I just hope he fails to score and I hope his team loses.

Is that wishing him ill? Maybe it is.

I will be nice to his wife though! I wouldn't boo her!

Congratulations Becks on your first start and your first goal! Here's to many more of both!


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David Beckham Limps To Los Angeles

David Beckham leaves Europe with one more medal as he helped lead Real Madrid to their first La Liga championship in four years. Unfortunately, he leaves Europe with a limp after hurting his ankle in the last match of the La Liga season!

Nevertheless, Beckham has won another championship; and that is why he is so valuable. He's a winner. Nobody crosses a ball like Beckham. Nobody.

I have seen David Beckham play for England and he is brilliant. He is very exciting to watch and we are lucky to be getting him in the USA.

I am a supporter of Red Bull New York, my "local" MLS team where I hold a season ticket. On August 18, the Los Angeles Galaxy (Beckham's new team) come to town. I can't wait!

Galaxy boss waits, worries for news of Beckham injury

AFP - June 18, 2007

LOS ANGELES (AFP) - An ankle injury that saw David Beckham removed from the field in the 66th minute of his final match for Real Madrid on Sunday has Los Angeles Galaxy officials waiting and worrying about his health.

Beckham limped off the field 24 minutes from the finish but his Real Madrid teammates rallied to defeat Real Mallorca 3-1 and capture the Spanish league title in Beckham's last match before he joins the Galaxy next month.

"We have not had any indication on the nature of the injury," said Galaxy's general manager Alexi Lalas. "Right now he's still a Real Madrid player."

Beckham, 32, signed a landmark deal worth up to 250 million dollars and 27.5 million in player salary with the Major League Soccer club in January, but the five-year contract does not begin until July 1.

Beckham is expected to join the Galaxy in mid-July, but the severity of the ankle injury - first suffered while playing for England on June 6 - will likely decide just when Beckham can first suit up for the US team.

"He was obviously carrying an injury but it's nice that he can now have a rest and recuperate. He's going to need it," Lalas said.

The Galaxy are 2-4 with three drawn and rank next-to-last in the US league with only nine points. At fifth in the Western Division, the Galaxy rank six points behind Colorado for the last playoff berth with four months remaining in the regular season.

But Beckham did manage to help bring Real Madrid a Spanish crown during his stay, even if it came in the final moments and with him on the sidelines as a spectator when the rally came for the decisive victory.

"We couldn't be happier for David and Real Madrid, and we send our congratulations to him and his team," Lalas said.

"It was an incredible finish to an incredible season and it's a wonderful way for him to end his time in Spain before he heads off to America for a new adventure with the Galaxy."

Congratulations, David Beckham! Welcome to America!



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Ronaldo To AC Milan?

Media owned by Italian mogul Silvio Berlusconi, are reporting that Brazilian soccer star Ronaldo will join AC Milan (also owned by Berlusconi), and will abandon los galacticos of Real Madrid.

See a Eurosport.com article here.

January is the month in which soccer players transfer from team to team, midway through the season. There is always speculation and sometimes, as in the case of David Beckham, there are fantastic changes in the air!

I have clung to the fantasy that Ronaldo would come to New York for piles of cash provided by the Red Bull beverage company, owners of the Red Bull New York MLS franchise.

I do hope that Red Bull New York makes a big signing of a European star, maybe not His Chubbiness Ronaldo, but someone who can have a major impact.

I will publish a transfer list before the end of the month.

Beckham to Los Angeles

I have seen David Beckham play. Up close. It was wonderful. He is a good player. He is not the greatest player who ever played the game, but he is a huge star and his presence exudes that stardom. His enthusiasm is infectious and his good looks are appealing. (See my article of March 18, 2005.)

In 2002 I started talking about David Beckham signing with the MetroStars, then the Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise in metro-New York.

Beckham and his wife, Victoria, are huge fans of New York City, and they are more New York than any other Europeans I can think of, including John Lennon and David Bowie.

The rumor I had heard those many years ago was that Becks was being offered an ownership percentage of the team, in lieu of salary, to keep the team under the league-imposed salary cap.

The Beckhams in New York. It has the sound of cash registers. It rings ka-ching over and over again. It sounds like music to a talent agent's ears. From New York, the Beckhams would conquer America, gracing the covers of GQ, Parenting, Architectural Digest, Teen Vogue;she with a TV show, or as a panelist on American Idol. Him on every sports show, charming and friendly in the face of unkind questions.

I'd heard that Beckham was searching for a town in Northern New Jersey or on Long island in which he could open the US branch of his soccer academy; but that he was unable to find a municipality interested in his venture. (See my article of April 15, 2005.)

When his search took him to Los Angeles, I knew he would never sign in New York, and the Bekhams would become Hollywood icons.

Then MLS re-wrote its rules to allow teams to spend beyond the salary cap. It was dubbed the "Beckham Rule" and it paved the way for the obvious.

Last week, it happened. David Beckham, currently a midfielder for Real Madrid of La Liga, signed with the L.A. Galaxy and will receive fifty-something million dollars a year for five years.

How does a team that sells twenty-something thousand tickets at twenty-something bucks a seat pay that salary?

Not with ticket sales, or their meager a television contract. It is likely that shirt sales will cover that salary. The number of Beckham shirts sold on Earth each year is astronomical, and those shirts will be sold irrespective of the team branded on the front: England, Manchester United, Real Madrid, or L.A. Galaxy. There are probably five million fans around the world with the word "Beckham" on their backs. Give Beckham five bucks a shirt, and you've covered most of the contract right there!

The Galaxy reported 2,000 season tickets sold in the week following the Beckham signing. That's excellent. I am hoping to re-subscribe to my New York season ticket this year.

This article from Associated Press, courtesy of the San Mateo Daily Journal, discusses the numbers in relation to merchandising American sports stars, but seems focused on just the United States and seems to miss the power of the international market (which for Americans doesn't really exist):

The new $250 million man?
The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES — David Beckham is big. But is he $250 million large? Bigger at the bank than Shaq or Kobe or A-Rod?

The world’s most recognizable soccer player agreed Thursday to a five-year contract with the Los Angeles Galaxy that Anschutz Entertainment Group, the company that runs the team, touted as being worth $250 million over its five-year term.

The deal will make him the highest paid player in Major League Soccer, but reaching the total headline-making figure will hinge a lot more on Beckham’s prowess as pitchman than his play-making ability.

His contract with a team in a lower-profile league is a small slice of the deal — the really big money comes in expected commercial opportunities. Translation: There’s no guarantee he’ll get the $50-million-a-year average described in the announcement.

Marketing experts agree that though the 31-year-old tabloid darling isn’t a household name in the U.S., he’s better positioned than most superstar athletes to cash in off the field. Still, some doubt he’ll lure such a windfall in just five years.

"It’s overinflated," said Ryan Schinman of Platinum Rye Entertainment, an entertainment consulting company. "I just don’t see it."

Consider that, according to Forbes Magazine, in the year ending June 2006 the only active athlete in the U.S. to earn more than $50 million in salary and endorsements was Tiger Woods. Next in line: Phil Mickelson ($47 million); Kobe Bryant ($31 million); Shaquille O’Neal ($30 million); Alex Rodriguez and Tom Brady (each $29 million).

Beckham was estimated to have earned $27 million between his salary at Spain’s Real Madrid and his deals with Adidas, Gillette and others, according to Forbes.

Neither the Galaxy nor Denver-based Anschutz Entertainment Group replied Friday to requests for details on how the deal was structured. David Carter, executive director of the University of Southern California Sports Business Institute, was skeptical about the financial estimates.

"It sounds like a great number to use in the media — one likely that is both cumulative, based on many of his relationships, as well one that includes incentives for milestones reached," Carter said.

There’s no question the signing created a buzz. The Galaxy said that within hours of the announcement the team sold 2,000 new season tickets. Their season begins April 8.

The team averages 22,000 to 24,000 fans in its 27,000-seat stadium in suburban Carson, although attendance was down last season when the Galaxy missed the playoffs.

"He’s one of the most marketable and highly identifiable sports figures in the world," said Kathleen Hessert, president of sports marketing consultant Sports Media Challenge.

Hessert saw evidence of Beckham’s appeal all over the Internet — the agency has tracked heavy interest in the soccer star, particularly among women, in blogs and chatrooms.

"If his signing with the Galaxy gets more women to buy tickets, that’s going to create a huge surge because where women go, they usually bring their families as well," Hessert said.

That could easily make Beckham a sought-after pitchman for companies marketing to soccer moms and their daughters, Carter said.

"He can be used to sell traditional consumer goods linked to sports such as footwear and apparel, as well as be compelling force to sell Happy Meals to families on their way (to) an MLS game," Carter said.

Beckham should also be able to parlay his celebrity status into a showbiz career. It doesn’t hurt that his wife, Victoria Beckham, became a celebrity in her own right as pop star Posh Spice.

Beckham is represented by arguably the most powerful Hollywood talent agency — Creative Artists Agency — and has ties to "American Idol" creator Simon Fuller, who managed the Spice Girls. AEG owner Philip Anschutz also owns Walden Media, a film production unit specializing in family-oriented fare such as the "The Chronicles of Narnia" films.

"There could be a lot of interesting crossover opportunities that might get him closer to that ($50 million) number that you might not see typically with other athletes," said Derek Aframe, vice president with the Octagon sports marketing agency based in Norwalk, Conn. "Time will tell."

Toss in Beckham’s established Hollywood connections, such as actor Tom Cruise, and his prospects brighten — especially given that endorsement dollars tagged to a film can reach into the tens of millions of dollars.

Still, it’s unlikely any film or television deals would fetch Beckham seven figures or supplant his primary source of income as a soccer player, Schinman suggests.

"He’s not Denzel Washington making $25 million a movie," Schinman said. "He’s not even going to make $7 million in a film."

———
Associated Press Writer Jacob Adelman contributed to this report.

David Beckham is huge.

Beckham is bigger than Shaq and Tiger Woods and Barry Bonds. There is no comparison.

Beckham's market base includes Japanese teenage girls, homosexual men which make up five to ten percent of the world's population, boys of every nation except the USA, adults throughout the world, television viewers, movie makers and their audiences, pop music fans, other sports stars, the wives and children of other sports stars, everywhere there is Beckham.

Beckham is bigger than any sports star, and maybe even any movie star, that has ever graced our magazine covers.

When John Lennon said The Beatles were bigger than Jesus, he was correct. And Beckham might be bigger than The Beatles and Jesus combined!

With Beckham in America, it might become impossible to count his legions, but the numbers are astronomical.

Will other international soccer stars follow?

Of course! That is why MLS passed the Beckham Rule.

MLS has been very careful, so far, to avoid the mistake of the old North America Soccer League (NASL), which went bankrupt in the mid-1980s by signing washed-up Europrans for very high prices. The New York Cosmos managed to fill Giants Stadium with Pele, and George Best built a retirement nest-egg playing for Fort Lauderdale.

MLS has grown itself inorganically, in a test-tube, as a single-entity league. And the experiment has been a success. Sure, MLS does not enjoy the viewership of the NHL, which makes it almost invisible; but there seems to be a plan in place that can succeed. And if the players cooperate, everyone might get rich from soccer in the United States.

Bloomberg discusses it:

Beckham Galaxy Move May Spur European Exodus to U.S.
By Ryan Mills

Jan. 15 (Bloomberg) -- David Beckham's switch to the Los Angeles Galaxy may tempt other ageing European players to the U.S., offering an alternative to Middle Eastern leagues.

Beckham will definitely stir things up," Mick McGuire, deputy chief executive of England's Professional Footballers' Association, said in a telephone interview. "Players will go for the remuneration, the lifestyle and the opportunities on offer after they've finished playing."

Beckham, the 31-year-old former captain of the England national team, will join Major League Soccer in August, at the end of his contract with Real Madrid. His five-year agreement, MLS said, may be worth more than $250 million -- the biggest deal in team sports.

The move was eased by the league's decision to let each team pay one marquee player an unlimited salary from this year. While Beckham said three days ago his switch wasn't designed to hasten the flow of older talent from Europe's richest leagues, some players are considering their futures.

World Cup winners from Brazil's Pele to Germany's Franz Beckenbauer spent the tail end of their careers in North America in the 1970s and '80s. In the past decade, the Middle East has been the destination of choice for thirty-somethings.

Gabriel Batistuta, Argentina's record scorer, and French World Cup-winner Frank Leboeuf sought a final paycheck in Qatar. Portugal's 34-year-old Luis Figo, voted the world's best player in 2001, last week agreed to join Saudi Arabia's al-Ittihad from July in a contract that Agence France-Presse said may have been worth 4.5 million euros ($5.6 million).

Davids and Dallas

"There will still be interest from the Middle East, but western European players are definitely interested in the U.S.," Humphrey Nijman, who represents Dutch striker Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, said in a telephone interview. "You'll definitely see more going out there."

Edgar Davids, 33, who's played 74 games for the Dutch national team, is in talks to join FC Dallas when his contract with London's Tottenham expires in June, coach Steve Morrow said. Dallas is prepared to double his pay of 50,000 pounds ($98,000) a week, the U.K.'s Mirror newspaper reported.

Ronaldo, Brazil's 30-year-old three-time world player of the year, is also considering a switch to the U.S., Spain's El Mundo newspaper reported. France's Michel Platini, a former three-time European player of the year, said he had fewer options when he quit in 1987.

"I'd have been tempted to do the same thing, but there was no soccer in America when I retired," he said in an interview.

Pele and Crowds

Pele, who helped his country win three World Cups, came out of retirement in 1975 aged 34 to sign for New York Cosmos, helping the team draw crowds of 75,000 to Giants stadium. While Morrow expects Beckham will lure more fans, McGuire of the players' union said U.S. soccer has a way to go.

"Players won't be going for the quality of the league; that won't change overnight," said McGuire, who spent three months with the Tampa Bay Rowdies in the late 1970s. "You're unlikely to play for your country again."

The MLS operates a system of centralized contracts and pays salaries up to a maximum $400,000. It would exceed that for anyone deemed worthy of a premium. Franchises will now pay that portion of a new player's salary above the cap.

Teams will initially be allotted one "designated player" slot, and they will be able to trade in one more. Teams that take on a second star will receive $325,000 toward his salary. The average wage in England's elite Premiership is 676,000 pounds, a sum that can double with bonuses, the Independent newspaper reported.

Disgrace

Not all MLS players approve of the change. Colorado Rapids' Terry Cooke, who was a trainee with Beckham at Manchester United, is concerned wage inflation may threaten the league. The North American Soccer League collapsed in 1985.

"Any player will get what he can get, fair play to him, but the way the league is structured is a disgrace," Cooke told the BBC Web site.

While the MLS is counting on Beckham to raise soccer's profile, foreign players can benefit from the relative anonymity of a sport that trails in television ratings. Top-ranked golfer Tiger Woods ranks 14th on Davie Brown Talent's list of celebrities that offer most value to advertisers in the U.S. Beckham, before his move, was 875th.

"America is a nice retirement home," Mel Goldberg, a lawyer who represents players including Liverpool's Craig Bellamy, said in a telephone interview.

The MLS doesn't want to be seen as a league where players come to top up their pensions and will use Beckham to attract youth to the sport, MLS deputy commissioner Ivan Gazidis said. The U.S. exited last year's World Cup without winning any of its three matches.

"This league is littered with players thinking it's just a vacation," said Galaxy General Manager Alexi Lalas. "That doesn't help the league or the teams and we soon get them shipped out."

To contact the reporter on this story: Ryan Mills in London at at Rmills5@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: January 15, 2007 05:53 EST

Last year I'd heard that Ronaldo, athletic chubbiness personified, would leave Real Madrid and sign with New York, because he can barely play at the level of professionals in Spain, and he (like so many nouveau riche) loves New York.

Today's press insists that Beckham wants to leave Madrid today. Now! Wants to move to Los Angeles to start promoting his new team. This from the Independent Online in New Zealand:

Beckham wants to leave Madrid ASAP

Madrid - David Beckham is keen to leave Real Madrid immediately, according to reports in the Spanish and US media.

Sports daily Marca claims on Monday that Beckham and his representatives are looking for a way to rescind his contract with Real Madrid in order to move out to Los Angeles as soon as possible.

Initially, Beckham was going to see out his Real contract until June and move out to California in August.

However, most signs now point to Beckham leaving Madrid quickly.

Real would be keen to see the back of him
On the one hand, his new club, Los Angeles Galaxy, and the Major Soccer League want him in California as soon as possible.

On the other hand, Real would be keen to see the back of him, now that coach Fabio Capello has made it clear he will not pick him again.

Marca quoted MLS chief Don Garber as saying that "I am given to understand that David's lawyers are working to find a friendly exit from Madrid... We want to have him over here as soon as possible."

In addition, LA Galaxy head coach Frank Yallop wants Beckham in his squad for the start of the new Major League Soccer season in April.

Yallop's side start their season on April 8 when LA Galaxy visit MLS champions Houston Dynamo.

'Neither do I like the way that Beckham has behaved'
The former England captain shocked the footballing world last week by agreeing a five-year contract with the Galaxy.

The way in which Beckham announced the deal last Thursday has not gone down well in Madrid.

Capello said on Saturday that he had decided not to pick Beckham again "since he has announced that he is joining another club".

The Italian coach also stated that forwards Ronaldo and Antonio Cassano would neither be considered for selection, and that he was
going to build a new team in Madrid without most of the club's veterans.

On Sunday Capello's new-look team beat Zaragoza 1-0 at home, with Beckham looking on from the stands.

The tight win vindicates Capello's decision to get rid of Beckham and several other ageing "galacticos".

On Sunday, Real president Ramon Calderon backed up Capello, and made it clear that he also did not like the way that Beckham had announced his Galaxy deal.

"Neither do I like the way that Beckham has behaved," Calderon told radio station Onda Cero, "announcing a deal with another club by video conference".

On Monday television channel TeleMadrid claimed that Calderon "would not be opposed" to a deal whereby Beckham's Madrid contract was rescinded quickly.

Beckham has been of massive help to Real's global merchandising strategy, though his on-field contribution has been more modest.

Real's last success was the Spanish league title in June 2003, secured just days before Beckham's arrival.

Since then - despite Beckham's deadball skills and fighting spirit - the Spanish giants have won nothing, their most barren spell for more than 50 years. - Sapa-dpa

Published on the Web by IOL on 2007-01-15 12:09:18

©Independent Online 2005. All rights reserved. IOL publishes this article in good faith but is not liable for any loss or damage caused by reliance on the information it contains.

His wife is already house-hunting, and I'm sure there is something in Malibu that will suit her needs. There should be no trouble affording a respectable home for the family of five. And if they choose a gated-community, I think they will meet any socio-economic or racial qualifications required.

It's really happening.

David Beckham is coming to play in the United States.