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Wizards 2 Galaxy 0.

This was a game that looked like it involved the two last-place teams in the league, at least until the Wizards scored two goals in two minutes to dispose of the Galaxy.

The largest Wizards crowd of the season - 26,113 - watched as the Galaxy winless streak reached 12 games, a stretch that has seen L.A. go 0-6-6 while getting outscored 28-16.

How bad is this?
*The winless streak is longer than any Chivas USA endured during its horrific inaugural season.
*New York hasn't been this bad in almost a decade, back when they were called the MetroStars.
*The Galaxy are within striking distance of tying the all-time MLS winless streak set by Real Salt Lake, something they will do if they fail to win any of the rest of their games.

Here are the all-time MLS winless streak "leaders:"
Team Number When set
Real Salt Lake 18 8/10/2005-5/6/2006
Real Salt Lake 15 9/23/2006-6/17/2007
Columbus Crew 13 6/10/2006-8/16/2006
New York 12 7/14/1999-9/5/1999
Galaxy 12 6/21/2008-?
Chivas USA 11 5/14/2005-7/2/2005

Incidentally, defender Eduardo Dominguez may have made the best move of the night and he wasn't even on the field. The Argentine flew home to be with his wife who was due to give birth to the couple's first child.

Game story.

And David Beckham is clearly not with us.

Watch and weep:

Perhaps this video makes the point even better. The Galaxy have just six MLS games left in the season.

Brad Guzan finally secured the work permit he needed today to join Aston Villa of the EPL.

Chivas USA this morning posted a tribute video to Guzan:

"Brad was the first goalkeeper to defend the colors of Chivas USA in Major League Soccer. This organization has seen him grow from a 20-year-old rookie to a U.S. Olympian, the reigning MLS Goalkeeper of the Year and now a member of one of England's great clubs," said Chivas USA President and CEO Shawn Hunter. "We trust that Villa supporters will soon see what Chivas USA fans have known for some time: that this is a very special young man with the potential of becoming one of the great goalkeepers in the international game."

With all the money flowing into the game in England these days, Guzan has hit the proverbial jackpot, although he won't make as much as the 25 richest young footballers in England.

Closer to home, with the Galaxy and Chivas USA on the road there's no live local top-class soccer (I'll have a best of what's on the box below), but this is always a fun event:

And yeah, Rod will really be there this year.

Nansen Field is a gorgeous little private facility where you can sip a beer on the sidelines while watching the games (bring a blanket or lawn chairs and a picnic lunch).

I wrote about this event three years ago and it's pretty much the same. Here's a reprint of the story from the Daily Breeze archives:

Pop star Rod Stewart performs in concert in Manchester, England, tonight, but his heart will be in Rolling Hills Estates.

A group of English expatriates take on their Scottish counterparts today in a fifth annual soccer game at Nansen Field with the Bob Stewart Caledonian Trophy at stake. Bob Stewart, Rod's father, died in 1990.

His singer son customarily plays in the game -- for Scotland against the nation known as the "auld enemy"-- and his picture usually adorns posters advertising the game. As many as 800 people have watched the game in past years.

"The majority of people do come out to see him and take pictures," said Keith Wales, the event's chief organizer for Brits at Nansen, one of several groups of various nationalities who share the venue. "It's a tradition now and he wouldn't want us to not have it."

Stewart has played at Nansen, a secluded, superbly maintained field with a clubhouse on aptly named Hidden Valley Road, for about four years, his touring schedule and 60-year-old legs permitting.

Stewart has contributed several signed items, including a soccer ball, hat and T-shirt, that will be sold at a silent auction.

Proceeds from the auction and event itself go to pay off legal bills incurred when in 1989 the Norwegian government, which contended it owned the 9.5-acre property, moved to sell it.

Locals balked and Norway sued. A judge eventually ruled that the true owner was a nonprofit group founded in 1952 so taxes didn't have to be paid on the property.

But the group was left with a $320,000 legal bill; that's now down to about $121,000.

To compensate for Stewart's absence, organizers have made the event a doubleheader.

A U.S. team will take on a team of German expatriates in the opening match.

Several well-known former soccer players have been invited to take part in both games, including former English international Gary Mabbutt.

Thomas Dooley, a German native who made 81 appearances for the U.S. National Team, will line up for the Germans against Hall of Famer Paul Caligiuri.

"What a little traitor, huh," laughed Dooley's former national team teammate who coaches at Cal Poly Pomona. "It's going to be a nice reunion with some of the guys."

But it's the world's oldest international rivalry between England and Scotland, which dates back to 1872, that is the main draw.

A piper leads the teams onto the field, British food is the order of the day and spectators are encouraged to wear their national colors.

"At the moment (the series) is tied at two apiece," Wales said. "People like to come to this game whether (Rod) is there or not. Families come with kids."

The trickiest thing about the event for newcomers is finding the field. You basically just head out of Torrance and up the hill to the Palos Verdes Peninsula.

Here's a Google map:
View Larger Map

Finally, here's the highlights of the weekend TV schedule:
Today - CD Guadalajara-Tecos (delayed) 9 p.m. KAZA

Saturday- Chivas USA-Chicago Fire 5:30 p.m. FSN
W-League Championship Pali Blues-FC Indiana 8 p.m. Fox Soccer Channel (delayed)

Sunday - Galaxy-San Jose Noon FSN
4 p.m. Chivas Guadalajara- Barcelona 4 p.m. Fox Soccer Channel

Have a great weekend and I'll let Rod serenade us toward quitting time today.

Galaxy Preview

But more importantly, it's BritWeek (more on that later).

Game preview here.

As usual, Red Bull Claudio Reyna is out injured for this one, proving yet again he's not New York's answer to David Beckham.

Speaking of Becks, the folks over at StubHub sent over these stats that show average Galaxy ticket prices on their site have almost tripled, while the volume of ticket sales has soared compared with 2007.

1st home game $26 (2007) Vs. $55 (2008). Sales volume increase: 450%.
2nd home game $28 Vs. $51. Up 60%
3rd home game $18 Vs. $46. Up 2000%
4th home game $32 4/26 Vs. $55. Up 400%

The Becks effect?

Meanwhile, the Galaxy, late in getting their youth development program going, have belatedly made a commitment.

From the press release:

Galaxy Rios, the official youth development program of the LA Galaxy, will enter a team in the USL Super-20 League for the 2008 season.

The LA Galaxy, who are one of three MLS teams to have a club placed in the Super-20 League, will be one of six teams in the Pacific Southern California League.

The coach: Galaxy Director of Soccer Paul Bravo.

The roster includes UCLA products David Estrada, Kyle Nakazawa of Palos Verdes Estates, Brian Perk and Michael Stephans; Rafael Garcia and Camillo Rojas of Cal State Northridge; Amani Walker of UC-Irvine; and U.S. Under-18 National Team player Tristan Bowen, the first player ever signed to the Galaxy Rios, and his brother Travis Bowen.

Wonder what the S.F. Quakes think about Nakazawa's departure from their squad?

Galaxy Rios opens their season 5 p.m. Sunday against the Ventura County Fusion at Ventura College.

Here's the complete season schedule:
May 24 vs. Poway Vaqueros 1:30 p.m. Home Depot Center
June 4 at Riverside MGFM (Kickoff TBD)
June 8 at Lancaster Rattlers 4 p.m. Lancaster National Soccer Center
June 15 at Poway Vaqueros 2 p.m. Poway High School
June 22 vs. Bakersfield Brigade 1 p.m. Home Depot Center
June 29 vs. Ventura County Fusion 5 p.m. Home Depot Center
July 5 at Bakersfield Brigade 5 p.m. Bakersfield Christian High School
July 12 vs. Lancaster Rattlers 1 p.m. Home Depot Center
July 13 vs. Riverside MGFM Kickoff TBD Home Depot Center

Chivas Deals

Over in England, Chivas USA midfielder Jorge Flores scored a goal and an assist in the first two friendlies for the U.S. Under-20 National Team on its short tour there.

Flores scored the game-winner on a penalty kick Wednesday in a 2-0 win over Bolton Wanderers Reserves and grabbed an assist a day later in a 2-1 win over Manchester United Reserves by a score of 2-1. The team plays Liverpool Reserves today.

The Chivas USA U-18 and U-16 teams both play Pateadores in away games this Saturday at Cal-State Fullerton.

The U-16 team, with two consecutive wins against conference opponents, plays at noon against first-place Pateadores team, with the U-18 game following at 2:30 p.m.

U.S. Women

The match in Sweden marks the return of U.S. head coach Pia Sundhage to her native country where she will face her home country for the first time as U.S. coach.

Local Games This Weekend

The Fusion's PDL team hosts the San Fernando Valley Quakes at 7:30 p.m. in the nightcap.

Other games include:
Fresno Fuego at Southern California Seahorses 7 p.m. La Mirada High
San Jose Frogs at Lancaster Rattlers 7 p.m. Pete Knight High.

BritWeek

Missed the earlier videos?

Click here and here and here.

Those who want to delve more deeply into the genre could do worse than checking out this box set (although I could quibble with a few tracks on the last disc).

Nothing earth-shattering here, but the Galaxy's Chris Klein spoke with The Kansas City Star about what its like to play with David Beckham.

Also, U.S. Soccer announced all the Under-23 Men's National Team games at the annual tournament in Toulon, France will be aired on Fox Soccer Channel.

The nine-day, eight-team tournament runs from May 20-29

The U.S. opens against Turkey on May 21 before facing two Olympic-bound teams in Italy on May 23 and the Ivory Coast on May 25.

Closer to home, the U.S. boys Under-14 team is currently in camp at the HDC in Carson.

Locals participating include goalkeeper Josh McNeely (Hidden Hills), midfielders Eric Gonzales (Corona), Alejandro Guido (Chula Vista), Aldo Magana (Ontario), Oscar Ortega (San Ysidro), and forwards Esteban Rodriguez (Bell Gardens) and Sebastian Velasquez (Los Angeles).

Lots of Latino surnames in a sign U.S. Soccer is belatedly tapping that demographic group for talent.

Cal State Dominguez Hills has honored Sandy Lloyd (Fountain Valley) with the Hal Charnofsky CSUDH Memorial Scholar-Athlete of the Year award.

And how's this for the stat of the week: Through 39 contests in 2008, no MLS team has lost after scoring the first goal. Teams that score first have gone 32-0-7. Last year, the teams that scored first went 134-21-34 overall.

Finally, the 100 Percent Soccer blog continues its salute to BritWeek, which culminates with the Galaxy game Saturday, with the following two little-known Britpop gems.

First up is the aptly-named Lush with its minor U.S. hit "For Love" from the early 1990s.

And as a bonus, here's England's Sunscreem, a band that predated Britpop, but nonetheless earned props for managing to find a word in the English language that rhymes with "purple".

On a completely unrelated note, the chronic technical glitches that have plagued this blog for months are now history or so I'm told. Those whose comments have been lost into the ether should feel free to resubmit them. Or not.

So BritWeek is actually a BritMonth.

But before we get to that it's worth noting:
*That today's column provoked a lively debate here.
*Chivas USA defender Lawson Vaughn underwent surgery over the weekend at Little Company of Mary Hospital in Torrance. The procedure, performed by Dr. Jay W. Granzow included a surgical repair of Vaughn's nose, which was broken in several places, as well as repair to a laceration on his right cheek, which required 32 stitches.
*This was Chivas USA's Monday.

Back to BritWeek, otherwise known as an excuse to highlight obscure Britpop bands. Such as Ride who had a hit with this song.

And so shall 100 Percent Soccer.

This is BritWeek.

The Galaxy announced the celebs today who will play in a showbiz game Saturday before the main event against NYRB: (from the press release)

film and television stars Julian Sands, Michael Sheen, and Anthony LaPaglia; TV personality Ross King; soap stars from General Hospital, The Young and the Restless, and Days of Our Lives; music stars Rivers Cuomo from Weezer, and the Marley brothers; not to mention soccer legends Alexi Lalas, Cobi Jones, and Frank LeBoeuf.

Two British bands play after the 4:30 p.m. celebs game: I-94and Delta Fiasco.

Things to know:
*There's an aptly named Pasadena joint named the Beckham Grill.
*BritWeek is the brainchild of Nigel Lythgoe (American Idol), celebrates British influence in the Los Angeles entertainment industry, together with 50 years of the British Consul having permanent official residence here.
*The first 4,000 fans entering the stadium will receive the second of three Galaxy collector series T-Shirts to be given away this season.
*The musical contribution to this event apparently consists of Duran Duran and Joss Stone.

So since BritWeek screams Britpop I couldn't resist making my own contribution. Look for more all week long.

There's a full slate of soccer this weekend in Southern California, with both the Galaxy and Chivas USA playing home games at Home Depot Center in Carson.

The Galaxy are up first, kicking off at 7:30 p.m. Saturday against defending MLS champions, the Houston Dynamo. With the Beckham buzz apparently wearing off, tickets are discounted 35 percent, a free Galaxy hat is on offer and pop-punk band The Burning Tree Project play a pre-game concert.

Check out the band below.

Want to see the Galaxy free? The reserve team plays at 1 p.m. Sunday against their Houston counterparts at the HDC.

Injury-riddled Chivas USA, meanwhile plays FC Dallas at 5 p.m. Sunday.

Want to see Chivas USA for free? The club's Under-16 and Under-18 teams play a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. Saturday against Real So Cal at Agoura High School in Agoura Hills.

Incidentally, the Galaxy, which has been slow to get its youth programs going as required by MLS, launches two teams in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy program this fall.

Also progressing at a glacial pace has been the Galaxy's entry into the new Women's Professional Soccer league that aims to start play next year. Rumors a month ago that Galaxy parent company Anschutz Entertainment Group was looking to sell the unnamed team before it even starts play are apparently false. The team is accepting $25 deposits for season tickets.

In other women's soccer news, Loyola Marymount University Thursday announced the signing of two more players: Midfielder Jaide Timm-Garcia (Desert Christian High, Lancaster) and goalkeeper Katie Graul (Santiago Canyon College).

Finally, MLS Commissioner Don Garber belatedly joins the blogging party, penning "The Commissioner Speaks" every other Friday beginning at noon today. But will he actually say anything?

And, if you only watch one game this weekend, check out Manchester United against Brad Friedel's Blackburn Rovers at 9 a.m. Saturday on Fox Soccer Channel.

I'll be blogging from the HDC at both MLS games this weekend, as usual, by the way.

Music and half time shows at major sporting events have seldom worked well together.

Oh, there have been notable exceptions that have either been musically adventurous or controversial (thank you Janet Jackson).

But for the most part its been bland stuff designed to appeal to conservative middle America. Think the uninspired rock of Creed at the Super Bowl.

So it was a pleasant surprise when MLS announced today that emo band Jimmy Eat World would provide the half time entertainment at MLS Cup this year.

Jimmy Eat World play upbeat alternative pop, are fun live and have a new album out that's arguably their most artistically interesting yet.

Of course, MLS also announced today that opera star Placido Domingo (of Three Tenors fame) at the will sing the national anthem, but I guess there must be something for everyone.

I'll stick with Jimmy Eat World and catchy hook-driven songs like "The Middle" from a few years back: