"America's Soccer Cathedral" Opens (LA Galaxy launches new stadium)

USA Today ^ | June 6, 2003 | David Leon Moore

[lainie]

"I've told Kevin Hartman he's in big trouble," Leiweke says. "If he's not playing well, I'm going to have a BB gun up here and be able to shoot him."

Hartman is a goalkeeper for the Los Angeles Galaxy, a Major League Soccer team that will host the Colorado Rapids on Saturday to debut The Home Depot Center, a 27,000-seat soccer showplace 20 minutes south of downtown Los Angeles, on the campus of California State University-Dominguez Hills.

[lainie]

The Home Depot Center is expected to have the cozy, noisy atmosphere that soccer fans crave.
By Jeff Gritchen, Long Beach Press Telegram via AP

Look for me on TV. I'll be the one yelling.

Will any other FReepers be in attendance at tomorrow's inaugural event?

[DryFly]

Is that right? One company owns sixty percent of the teams in the league? No conflict of interest there.

[lainie]

[lainie]

Well? Nobody else invested. They launched a league. They built their own stadium. At least they didn't ask taxpayers to do it.

[ECM]

"At least they didn't ask taxpayers to do it."

Amen.

[dogbyte12]

It is an absolutely gorgeous facility. You do not want a 100,000 seat stadium to play soccer games in, even if you could sell all those tickets. The size is right, taxpayers didn't pay for it. What more could you ask?

[lainie]

And the beautiful game too. My thoughts exactly.

[dogbyte12]

Just got my tickets btw. I was lucky. I couldn't find a pair of seats on ticketmaster... There were single seats still available,but I waited a bit, tried a few more times, and a pair of $30 seats came open, and I grabbed them. The wife doesn't know we are going yet.(oh well)

Go Galaxy! We really need a win about now. Damn the place looks just gorgeous. I am so excited about being there for the inaugural game.

[Straight Vermonter]

My son calls soccer "North Korean Communist Kickball" lol.

[dogbyte12]

Your son is just wrong. North Korea has only one major victory in their history, and they really aren't that good at the sport at all.

Communist Cuba great at boxing and baseball. Can ya name a commie team that has won the World Cup? I think not.

[xjcsa]

soccer..... (yawn)

[eddie willers]

"Soccer was invented by French women to give them something to do while their husbands cooked dinner." - Hank Hill

[lainie]

We're going.. and taking the kids, too. It's gonna be great!

They definately need a win. What are they now, 0-4-4??

[dogbyte12]

Thanks for playing "Let's pee in everybody's cornflakes".
Hope ya had fun. Nobody is making you like soccer. Those of us who do are excited about the new stadium. So there. Now, go somewhere that is discussing something you enjoy and share the love. Have a nice day.

[Clemenza]

Good, I'm sure the illegal Mexicans who dominate the fan base will enjoy the bleacher seats.

[1rudeboy]

You have a problem with the fan-base? Why don't you join it . . . or are you not American enough to tough it out?

[Clemenza]

Oh Yeth, watching thome hot boyth in shorts just TURNS ME ON /sarcasm.

Soccer is un-American.

[1rudeboy]

Let's see: football, skin-tight uniforms; baseball, skin-tight uniforms . . . care to elaborate?

[lainie]

Lovely. Unfortunately (for your charming mood):

1. there are no general admission seats
2. there's a strictly enforced no-tailgating policy

[Clemenza]

I went to a soccer game once two years ago. I found myself surrounded by a bunch of Colombians, Venezuelans, Argentineans, Germans (it was the tourist season after all) and a few youth soccer leaguers. That's just been my experience with MLS, which just isn't my cup of Yerba Mate.