MLS News Briefs: From Net to Net by TJ Boyce - July 4, 2007 |
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Week 14 |
 Klopas wants to get back in the game. (photo: Simon Bruty/Getty) |
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| ▪ Galaxy Ship Jaqua to Houston | ||
| ▪ MLS Weekend Review | ||
| ▪ From the Bleachers | ||
| The Honduran forward has been training with the Galaxy since being signed on June 20th and should see action right away. Pavon, 33, recently put his skills on display in the 2007 Gold Cup, scoring five times for his country en route to being named the top scorer of the tournament. In Honduras' 5-0 rout of Cuba in the group stage, Pavon notched a hat trick before halftime and added another goal in the second half, a performance that got the attention of the Galaxy. ...... Major League Soccer has announced that musical acts The Academy Is and Kinky will be performing as part of All-Star Game festivities later this month. Mexican rockers Kinky will kick off the Pre-Game Show, while The Academy Is will headline halftime of the ASG, to be held on July 19th at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado. Both bands will also perform at the inaugural MLS Soccer Jam, a free event open to the public that will feature soccer exhibitions, interactive displays and more, which takes place on the eve of the All-Star Game from Skyline Park in downtown Denver. In this year's game, the league's best and brightest will face off against Scottish powerhouse Celtic FC, to be televised on ESPN2 and TeleFutura beginning at 9 pm ET. ...... Over 1,000,000 tickets have been sold for the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Canada, putting it on pace to break the event's attendance record of 1.15 million set by the 1983 tournament in Mexico. The maximum number of tickets available for this year's 52-match competition is 1.3 million, with attendance of over 200,000 reported through just the first nine games. Canada, living up to its reputation as a North American soccer hotbed, is hoping to parlay the U-20 WC success into hosting future FIFA events, including the 2011 Women's World Cup. The tourney success has gone hand in hand with Toronto FC's birth, and the club's numbers show the same kind of passion. The waiting list for season tickets has grown to over 3,000 in recent weeks, an impressive stat that has many MLS clubs envious. Despite the huge demand for tickets, there are no plans to increase the size of BMO Field - capacity 20,195 - with one exception: extra seats will be added for TFC's August 5th meeting against the Los Angeles Galaxy, expected to be David Beckham's first league game with his new team. ...... D.C. United forward Nicholas Addlery has been named MLS Player of the Week after scoring his first career MLS goal and adding an assist in United's 4-1 victory over the Colorado Rapids last Thursday night. Addlery's road to MLS has taken him around the world. He played in the Pro League of Trinidad & Tobago in 2003 and 2005, and spent last year with Dong Nai FC in Vietnam. After signing with the Virginia Beach Mariners of the USL earlier this year, the club unexpectedly folded before the season began, leaving him without a team. But in April 2007, Addlery was impressive in a trial for D.C. United, prompting the club to offer him a contract. ...... As Major League Soccer prepares for it's time in the world spotlight, a key sponsor has decided not to continue with the league. Honda, a sponsor for all 12 years of the league's existence, will be ending their agreement with MLS at the end of the year. A spokesperson for Honda, whose logo had been featured on the back of Chicago Fire jerseys, said the decision was based on the changing competitive landscape and shifts in marketing strategy. Their decision leaves Anheuser-Busch as the last sponsor to be with the league since its inception in 1996. ...... Leaders of a group called PHX Soccer Development are hoping to convince MLS executives to bring a professional team to Arizona in the next few years, citing the area's large Hispanic demographic and the popularity of recent soccer events held there. MLS President Mark Abbott will visit the region on July 11 to hear the group's pitch for an expansion franchise. Over a million Hispanic people live in Maricopa County alone, according to the 2005 census. Earlier this year, more than 60,000 people attended the USA-Mexico friendly held at University of Phoenix Stadium, a game won by the United States in front of a mostly pro-Mexican crowd. |
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