Rose Bowl gets the Blues (81,224 in attendance)

[SoCalDem]

http://www.dailynews.com/sports/ci_12888318

My husband & son went to see this game, and were amazed at thew crowd.. I so hope that eventually soccer will get some USA respect.. On a Tuesday night..81K is a great turnout.. I don't know what most tickets cost, but the ones my guys had were $100 seats, so it might even be a moneymaker someday :)

My son was bummed that Milan lost (he followed them when he was in school in Florence, but they said it was a fun night anyway// Dad & son bonding time:)

Rose Bowl gets the Blues: Chelsea defeats Inter Milan
By Blair Angulo Special to the Daily News
Updated: 07/22/2009 01:13:26 AM PDT

PASADENA - Two of the world's premier soccer clubs put on a show Tuesday night.

But Champions League semi-finalists Chelsea undoubtedly took center stage, outperforming fellow European perennial power Inter Milan and coasting to an impressive 2-0 victory amid a nightlong flurry of camera flashes at the Rose Bowl. World-class forward Didier Drogba didn't wait long to give the 81,224 fans a photo opportunity. Standing more than 30 yards away from goal, the Ivory Coast captain struck a right-footed shot that seemed to surprise Inter Milan goalkeeper Vid Belec. The ball snuck past Belec's diving attempt, giving Chelsea a 1-0 lead in the 11 th minute.

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Tuesday's contest is the only game that will be played in Southern California and the second overall of the inaugural World Football Challenge - a six-city round robin tournament that also features Italy's AC Milan and Mexico's Club America. The tournament ends Sunday.

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Mikel Obi added that he enjoyed playing in California. "The weather is good," he said. "We were trying to enjoy it."

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With the victory, Chelsea moved into first place in the standings. The Blues have five points - earning a pair by scoring twice and three more for winning the match. "It was fantastic," Chelsea's John Terry said. "We came (to Los Angeles) four or five years ago, and the response we got tonight was fantastic."

[regnaD kciN]

1. We saw them take on the Sounders up here last Saturday...

There were 65,000 or so at Qwest Field, which is pretty close to capacity.

At least up here in the northwest, Soccer is becoming the "hot new sport."

[USA_1]

2. Great Match

I thoroughly enjoyed the game on ESPN II last night. The huge crowd shows that LA folks really appreciate their football.

It also shows what a mistake MLS made in signing Dave Beckham - he is largely all glitter & glamour but with no real substance. He hogs the ball too much and disrupts the team effort & game flow. That's why the Galaxy have not done as well as expected. Also, his lifestyle does not appeal to the Hispanic population which is the majority in that area. As with the old NASL, MLS is attempting to appeal to the suburban population while largely disregarding the inner city population. This mistake killed the NASL. I hope it doesn't kill MLS.

[Captain Hilts]

3. Neat! Chelsea is the Spawn of Satan team, but I'll bet it was fun.

[VWolf]

4. I'm an Inter fan, but

I've had a soft spot for Chelsea ever since Gianfranco Zola played for them. He's got to be the classiest guy in football. Perhaps that explains why he's no longer there :evilgrin:

[SoCalDem]

5. Our son played club soccer , Landon Donovan was on a rival team

They met up at many tournaments & were friends. He played for Redlands & our son for Moreno Valley Heat. but they played agaisnt each other many many times:)

Our son is "living his soccer dream" vicariously, through him:rofl:

Had he not been hurt in football, our son might have gone on to play professionally..he was a great player... but now he'll satisfy himself by coaching someday, when he and his wife have some little ones:)


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landon_Donovan

[VWolf]

6. Never met Donovan, but he seems a class act.

FWIW, my brother-in-law was Giuseppe Rossi's first coach, back when Rossi was playing U7 in Clifton, NJ.

He still comes back to Clifton from time to time to kick around, but he needs to stay incognito, seeing as he's the US fans' most hated player in the world now.

[Blue_Tires]

7. wow...that's a really fat turnout...

the euro leagues have done an excellent job of spreading their brands abroad...