Recently in European Championships Category

Maybe - or at least some of the post-season.

Robbie Keane arrives back from Ireland at LAX tonight and will be evaluated by team doctors tomorrow, a club spokesman said. He strained a thigh muscle - specifically the adductor for you medical professionals out there - by playing the entire 90 minutes last Friday against Andorra.

Initially it was feared Keane would be out at least four weeks, but it could be even longer than that and his national team coach is furious with the behavior of his captain and leading scorer because it could put Ireland's hopes of qualifying for Euro 2012 through a relatively easy two-game playoff series in jeopardy..

Wait until Galaxy Coach Bruce Arena gets ahold of him; the MLS playoffs start for the Galaxy in about four weeks and Keane had been acquired specifically to provide the firepower to bring the Galaxy an MLS Cup.

Galaxy officials said Thursday that athough he will be listed as questionable for Sunday's derby against lowly rivals Chivas USA (only because team docotrs have yet to evaluate Keane) he will miss the game and so could several other players.

With the Supporters Shield wrapped up the game is largely meaningless, although the Galaxy will hand out team awards and won't want to yield their unbeaten home record in their final regular season game of the season at Home Depot Center.

*Staggering Seattle fell short of the MLS finish line Saturday, missing their three leading scorers, falling 2-0 to the Philadelphia Union and handing the Galaxy their second straight Supporters' Shield.

The title capture was all but inevitable anyway for the Galaxy, who may have finished the season tired and depleted, but they outlasted the rest of MLS to make Sunday's penultimate game of the season against Chivas USA in Carson a coronation rather than confirmation of the rightful MLS champions.

What do they get for their efforts? Home field advantage throughout the playoffs and an automatic berth in next year's CONCACAF Champions League.

The 18-4-10 Galaxy are the third successive club to win back to back regular season titles and are now just four points shy of setting an MLS record for most points in a season.

*At a minimum the U.S. had to finally win its first game under Jugen Klinsmann Saturday against CONCACAF rival Honduras.

Done:

*Galaxy striker Robbie Keane is still struggling with the injury he had picked up before even going on international duty with Ireland.

*Here are all the results from around the world this weekend - and the upcoming games this week.

Although by then, the Galaxy could well have wrapped up the regular season title - Landon Donovan reportedly believes a win Saturday over Real Salt Lake in Carson would essentially accomplish that - so the fact the Irishman could miss the game against the Red Bulls to play for Ireland may well not matter.

Head over heels: Robbie Keane scored on his Galaxy debut Saturday and retains his place in the Ireland squad as expected for two upcoming European Championship qualifiers (AP Photo).

*I'm guessing Robbie Keane will head to Ireland directly after Sunday's game in New York, which means he'll miss the rescheduled Galaxy game in Kansas City on Labor Day.

The tough part will be traveling back from Russia for the home game against the Colorado Rapids Friday, Sept. 9.

Keane has described these games as "massive" and reiterated he's "100 percent committed to Ireland - when he's not with the Galaxy:

DUBLIN (AP) -- Captain Robbie Keane has retained his place in the Ireland squad for next month's 2012 European Championship qualifiers despite moving to the Galaxy.

The striker will travel back from the United States for the Sept. 2 home match against
Slovakia and the trip to Moscow to play Russia four days later.

Keane scored in his MLS debut Saturday as the Galaxy beat the San Jose Earthquakes 2-0.

Ireland tops Group B on goal difference ahead of Russia and Slovakia.

Coach Giovanni Trapattoni expects players to link up with the squad even if they are injured so they can be assessed by Ireland's medical staff.

*Did you know? According to MLS, "if the LA Galaxy defeat the New York Red Bulls on Sunday evening at Red Bull Arena, they will become the first team to clinch a spot in the 2011 MLS Cup Playoffs this season. No other scenarios exist by which an MLS club can clinch or be eliminated from playoff contention this week. "

Incidentally, the league also said today that the game will air in more than 100 nations - "the most international distribution of any regular season MLS game this year."

*From the About Time Department comes word the Galaxy will provide complimentary parking to fans attending Thursday's CONCACAF Champions League group game against Costa Rican champion LD Alajuelense at Home Depot Center. The game kicks off at 7 p.m. with parking lots opening at 5 p.m. for all fans.

Let's hope fans respond to this and show up in greater numbers than they did for the CONCACAF CL opener against Motagua.

From the Galaxy press release:

Alajuelense are currently tied with the Galaxy for the top spot in Group A with identical 1-0-0 records for three points.

Alajuelense won their Group A opener 1-0 over Mexican side Monarcas Morelia behind a late goal from Jonathan McDonald while the Galaxy defeated CD Motagua of Honduras, 2-0, on August 16 with goals from Adam Cristman and Landon Donovan.

In Costa Rican Primera Division play, Alajuelense are in first place with a 4-0-1 record for 13 points from their first five games of the season.

*But MLS failed to announce the expected opponent on July 27 - Barcelona. Observers are noting the Italian (doh!) Spanish club has room in its schedule.

Not quite the "major" news promised this morning.

Tweeted Alexi Lalas:

2011 MLS All-Star game at Red Bull Arena...and the word "major" feels it has been taken advantage of yet again.

Still, in my book the lame announcement perfectly matches the lame MLS All-Star game that clogs up the calendar and means absolutely nothing.

Details here.

MLS holds a conference call later today where Commish Don Garber, the Galaxy's Landon Donovan and New York's Thierry Henry will talk gush about, um, I'm not sure what.

Updated (via AP)

Red Bulls forward Thierry Henry said on the conference call he hopes the All-Star game opponent is either Barcelona or Arsenal, his two previous clubs.

Barcelona last month announced a preseason U.S. tour that includes games against
Manchester United at Landover, Maryland. (July 30), AC Milan in Miami (Aug. 3) and Mexico's America at Arlington, Texas (Aug. 6).

"If it's Arsenal or Barcelona, it's going to be pretty special if I'm involved," Henry said.
"Arsenal and Barcelona, not only I played there, but I think they are the two teams that play the best football right now in the world."

*ESPN announced today it has acquired the rights to the 2012 and 2016 European Championships. Details here.

*USWNT Coach Pia Sundhage has announced a large squad of 32 players for a camp in Florida starting Thursday.

Pasadena City College product Yura Movsisyan, right, scored in his third consecutive Euro 2012 qualifier as Armenia beat minnow Andorra 4-0 Tuesday. It was the 23-year-old's third goal in five games for his native Armenia.

The U.S. immigrant, who has a green card and could have played for the U.S., might have been useful in Philadelphia as the U.S. played to a desultory 0-0 draw with Colombia.

The best thing about the game (again): the midfield performance of Jermaine Jones, especially in the first half, who clearly has Bundesliga vision and class.

U.S. lineup: 18-Brad Guzan; 2-Jonathan Spector (13-Eric Lichaj, 46), 5-Oguchi Onyewu (capt.) (16-Michael Parkhurst, 46), 21-Clarence Goodson, 14-Heath Pearce; 19-Maurice Edu (9-Eddie Johnson, 46), 15-Jermaine Jones, 4-Michael Bradley; 11-Stuart Holden (22-Benny Feilhaber, 59), 17-Jozy Altidore, 23-Brek Shea (8-Clint Dempsey, 46)

In other games Tuesday it was:

* Mexico 2 Venezuela 2

* England 0 Montenegro 0

* Croatia 2 Norway 1

*All the results are here.

Newly-acquired Chivas USA midfielder Sal Zizzo, a San Diego native who grew up supporting the Padres (and who lookS like he was taking this seriously), throws out the first pitch Tuesday night at Petco Park. Chivas USA plays CD Guadalajara there Sept. 14 in their second annual friendly game. The Padres beat the Dodgers 2-1, incidentally. (Photo: Juan Miranda, Chivas USA).

*Pasadena City College product Yura Movsisyan scored his first goal for Armenia in just his second international game Tuesday against Macedonia in a Euro 2012 qualifier. Movsisyan opened the scoring in the game, but Macedonia scored six minutes (!) into second half stoppage time to level the score at 2-2.

Croatia drew 0-0 with Greece, BTW.

Mexico needed a late goal Tuesday to beat Colombia in a friendly:

Good news for those of us who don't want their TV viewing experience ruined by that droning racket. And the lack of true singing and chanting because of them at the World Cup was a travesty:

NYON, Switzerland (AP) -- UEFA has banned fans from bringing vuvuzelas into stadiums for European Championship and Champions League matches.

UEFA said Wednesday it wanted to protect the culture and tradition of fans singing at European soccer matches from the "negative effect" of the South African plastic trumpets made famous -- and notorious -- at the World Cup.

"UEFA feels that the instrument's widespread use would not be appropriate in Europe," the organization said in a statement.

All 53 European soccer nations have been told to enforce the ban at UEFA's national team and club competition matches.

Vuvuzelas provided the World Cup soundtrack in South Africa, right, where every match was accompanied by a low-pitch drone likened to a swarm of buzzing bees.

FIFA refused to ban vuvuzelas despite repeated calls from players and broadcasters, defending them as part of South African soccer culture.

However, they have since been banned by organizers of events such as basketball's world championship and the Little League World Series, and by most English Premier League clubs.

Europe's soccer authority acknowledged Wednesday that the vuvuzela had a place in world soccer culture.

"In the specific context of South Africa, the vuvuzela adds a touch of local flavor and
folklore," UEFA said, before adding that they would change the traditional atmosphere at European matches. "The magic of football consists of the two-way exchange of emotions between the pitch and the stands, where the public can transmit a full range of feelings to the players. UEFA is of the view that the vuvuzelas would completely change the atmosphere, drowning supporter emotions and detracting from the experience of the game."

The ban will take effect when qualifying for Euro 2012 begins on Friday, and when the group stage of the Champions League and Europa League starts in two weeks.

European broadcasters, who developed sound filters during the World Cup to try to control the vuvuzela noise, will likely be pleased by the ban.

Valuable television rights deals help to ensure that the Champions League earns more than $1.28 billion in commercial revenue each season.

FIBA called vuvuzelas "controversial instruments" when it banned them from the basketball world championship, which is being played in Turkey.

FIBA cited medical advice that the 120-decibel noise in indoor arenas could permanently damage the hearing of players and spectators, and have a "direct negative impact" on the game by making it difficult for referees to communicate.

It isn't, at least not yet, as this Associated Press story points out.

As soccer's popularity grows in the U.S. we'll see a similar situation here - the would-be owners of MLS clubs willing to plunk down a $40 million expansion fee are counting on it. And of course, this story doesn't mention it, but ESPN has long been rumored to be interested in securing the rights to EPL games in the U.S.

GENEVA (AP) If one sport can survive the global financial crisis, it's the world's favorite game: soccer.

Yes, individual clubs will certainly suffer - some losing sponsors or investors and perhaps players who become too pricey. But cash flowing into the top end of the market, from television deals and multinational backers, is unlikely to dry up.

If anything, soccer at its highest level is poised to become an even stronger TV draw in
hard times when people want cheap entertainment.

Look at the numbers.

The 2010 World Cup is already sold, and FIFA expects to bank $3.2 billion before
kickoff.

UEFA earned a net profit approaching $400 million from this year's European
Championship, and the Champions League will pull in $1.115 billion this season.

Also, television deals for the 2009-12 Champions League seasons are already done in
the main markets, where prices are reportedly up 10 percent, and rights to show the
English Premier League - where huge revenues help explain overseas interest in clubs
- will soon be sold for the 2010-13 seasons.

Industry experts believe the domestic deal for Britain will beat the current 3-year cost of
$2.94 billion paid by subscription broadcasters Sky and Setanta. Global television and
new media rights will earn English league clubs another $1.73 billion in that time.

Philipp Grothe has traded football media rights for two decades. Last week, his
Swiss-based Kentaro agency struck a six-year deal with the U.S. Soccer Federation to
distribute national team matches.

He believes that when money is tight, football is a reliable commodity.

"Only the big live events in sport, i.e. football, generate the mass audience," Grothe said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "They are the ones delivering to
sponsors and broadcasters the big audience numbers."

The World Cup is one of the globe's most-watched sporting events, and FIFA claims the
2006 tournament in Germany had an accumulated television audience of 26.3 billion
viewers on 376 different channels.

FIFA, which relies on the World Cup for 90 percent of its revenue, has budgeted to get
$3.2 billion from television and marketing rights to the 2010 tournament in South Africa.

"FIFA believes that this is a realistic forecast," FIFA spokesman Pekka Odriozola said in
an e-mail. "Certain contracts are secured with bank guarantees. All TV partners have
fulfilled their contractual obligations."

The Zurich-based body has six commercial partners for the World Cup.

One, Coca-Cola, is signed until 2022. The Emirates airline paid $195 million to sign through the 2014 tournament in Brazil.

UEFA, which declined to discuss marketing strategy, had revenue of roughly $2 billion for its three-week tournament in Austria and Switzerland, but has not started selling Euro 2012, scheduled for Poland and Ukraine.

UEFA's club football commitments seem solidly grounded. It has signed four commercial partners - Ford, Heineken, MasterCard and Sony - out of six intended for the 2009-12 Champions League seasons.

The competition's playing format has been copied around the world, though not its riches.

European champion Manchester United earned $67 million in prize money and television shares last season.

Critics say the Champions League has created a self-perpetuating elite, leaving other
clubs unable to bridge the gap. UEFA president Michel Platini, however, wants the power to ban indebted clubs from the competition.

His words were widely interpreted as an attack on the English teams that now dominate
the Champions League.

Chelsea, last season's runner-up, owes more than $1 billion, though its interest-free loans from Russian owner Roman Abramovich are not yet vulnerable.

Manchester United, valued at $1.8 billion by Forbes Magazine, has big debts, but it also
has a global brand.

When shirt sponsor AIG received a bailout from the U.S. government last month, there
was speculation the insurance firm might pull out of its 4-year, nearly $100 million deal.

That might seem like a financial nightmare, but Grothe said it would be a win-win scenario for the club.

"Man United would get a hefty signoff fee to release (AIG) and the day after they could
close a deal which is even bigger," he said.

An important test of soccer's prospects will come next month, when domestic television
rights are offered in Germany to broadcast the Bundesliga.

Public broadcaster ARD and subscription service Premiere are favored to win the deal,
with the price is expected to be more than $544 million a season.

Spain 1 Germany 0

Spanish Eyes Are Smiling.