Photographs of David Beckham practicing at Giants Stadium yesterday by Mike Derer/AP
David Beckham and the LA Galaxy will be playing the Red Bulls tonight at Giants Stadium, and his importance to Major League Soccer overall is analyzed today in the various papers. The NY Times notes that while MLS had hoped last year Beckham would "transcend the sport of soccer in America and carry it on his shoulders," it hasn't been that dramatic--yet.
Beckham is well-aware of that and told reporters yesterday, “Soccer is definitely changing in this country. It’s getting bigger and it’s growing, but it’s going to take time. I said at the start that it’s not going to happen in a year or two. I think it’s going well so far. Attendance is up 20 percent, shirt sales are up 780 percent is what I heard.”
At any rate, he's excited about tonight's game, after the Galaxy and Red Bulls' previous meeting resulted in a 5-4 Red Bulls win that boasted the most goals scored in an MLS game ever. He said, "I'm happy to be back in New York, especially after the game we played here last year. It was an exciting game, entertaining, lots of goals. But for us, it was the wrong result. Hopefully we can change that this time around."
The game is at 6:30 p.m., broadcast on FSC/FSE.
