As the LA Galaxy battled club Real Salt Lake on Sunday evening in front of 46,000 screaming fans, another group of fans made noise back home. Landon Donovan, David Beckham and the lot played for the MLS Cup Final over 1,000 miles from Los Angeles at Seattle's Qwest Field. Meanwhile back in so-cal, the Burbank Bar and Grill, just 26 miles from Home Depot center was brimming with Galaxy fans. This particular party was set up by Galaxy Ambassador Steve Lasse, who plans on hosting regular viewings at this same venue for each Galaxy away game during the upcoming 2010 season. It was one of five major viewing parties arranged in the greater Los Angeles area, while thousand of others surely watched the match from their homes. According to Nielsen ratings it was seen in well over 850,000 homes.
Mike Magee tallied the matches first goal in the 42nd minute, assisted by Donovan and Beckham. During the halftime intermission minutes later, there were raffle give-aways of Galaxy hats, jerseys, and tickets for their March 25th home opener vs. New England. Also, in characteristic LA fashion, one could not entirely escape the Hollywood scene. One small section featured a short film screening that overtook the games audio for the maiden minutes of the second half. Upon the short films conclusion the cast and crew all chanted "Ga-lax-y, Ga-lax-y, Ga-lax-y!", and toasted the fans for their patience. Not much long after, Real Salt Lake tied the game on a goal by Findley in the 66th minute. It was the by-product of a blocked shot in the penalty area off the foot of Real's Yura Movsisyan. The equalizer prompted the game to head into two overtime periods, and 7 rounds of penalty kicks.
Although a startling and rare missed PK by Galaxy captain Landon Donovan opened the door for what became the eventual championship winner by Robbie Russell, soccer is positively on the rise in southern California. Both in between the touch lines, and the turn-styles alike, Los Angeles is priming for major success.
"PKs are one of those things where anyone can miss it, and anyone can make it", said Russell of Donovan's miss. "You look at some of the greatest players in the world. They've missed PKs."Donovan the regular season league MVP and winner of three MLS Cup Championships already falls into that category. Some fans at the BBG agreed with Russell's comments. One Galaxy fan, Ignacio, of Burbank wondered, "Why we can't go back to the Golden Goal rules?", referring to the sudden-death type of ending that has been around in years past. It is also similar to how a playoff hockey game ends in the NHL. Most critics of the Golden Goal rules however, argue that teams relied too heavily on a defensive style of play. Thus leading to excruciatingly long overtime periods.
Whether the games end on PK or Golden Goals, the game is here to stay in LA. Maybe next time you hear someone talking about billionaire Ed Roski and his City of Industry stadium concept, you should think of fútbol instead of football. Or at least tune into what is sure to become LA's next hot ticket. This MLS Championship may have gone to Utah but it is here in the southland that soccer is really surging.
Fan photo credits: Brandon Vondera
Findley & Movsisyan credits: AP Photos
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