The Los Angeles Galaxy head into the 2011 season as one of the favorites to win MLS Cup, and now it appears the club could have a chance to win a third championship in its home stadium.
Tim Leiweke, head honcho of Galaxy owners AEG, dropped some serious hints on Friday that the 2011 MLS Cup Final could be played at Home Depot Center, which has hosted the MLS Cup Final on three previous occasions (2003,2004 and 2008).
“It is set up well where we might happen to have a certain championship in a certain city we all know and love,” Leiweke told a gathering in ESPN Zone at L.A. Live. “So it would certainly be a good Cup, that we have a chance to finish [a championship season] here.”
MLS officials wouldn't confirm that Home Depot Center will host the final, but Leiweke's seemingly assured comments make it look like a foregone conclusion.
A move to the more friendly climate of the Los Angeles area would come as a pleasant change of pace after frigid conditions at the past two MLS Cups, in Seattle and Toronto.
The development puts even more pressure on an aging Galaxy side to win a championship this year, which is expected to be David Beckham's last in MLS.
What do you think of this development? Like the idea of taking a trip to LA in November? Were you hoping for a different destination?
Share your thoughts below.
Supporters Shield/Best Record should mean something
Easy way to solve the problem is to have a home & home series between the finalists. Might never end up as big as a Super Bowl, but would guarantee great turnouts/atmosphere. I know, I know…MLS would never go for it.
Why not let the defending MLS Cup winner host it?
Home Depot hosting the final… likely… Galaxy playing it in, unlikely.
+1
Here’s an idea: put all the names of the soccer specific stadiums in a hat and draw one out at random. If a team wants to host, they must have their own stadium (Sorry Seattle). For the next year that name is removed from the draw pot, until we get a rotation going. They can do the same for the All-Star match. The time of the match should be set at a reasonable afternoon time, like 2pm local, so that fans are able to make it back to work on Monday if necessary. That said, I only will attend a Cup if the Fire are in the Final, or it is in Frisco or KC b/c of their geographic proximity to my current locale.
Battett won’t play much, he’s 3rd or 4th at best in the depth chart for forwards.
Angel and Magee will both be ahead of him and it looks like Donovan will move up top, so he can battle Kirovski, Christman and McBean for the 4th spot, his best bet is to make sure he scores on USOC games! I hope he does, and with Donovan up top he needs to get acquainted with Juninho, Stephens, Alex, the international players both the drafted one and the one they signed as a free agent from Argentina I think?
Yep
it’s a send-off (they hope) for David B.
You mean that wasn’t just acid rain. Thought it smelled funny, even for Jersey. Damn next time I’m in Red Bull Arena I will make sure to dawn the rain coat, hat, and goulashes.
Horrible decision. RBA should host the game, PPL would have been a good choice as well. I’m fine with Rio Tinto. Going back to the Home Depot is a slap in the face to the rest of the league.
Either would be fine with me. As long as it isn’t like CLB and NYRB treking to the complete opposite side of the country, like in 2008.
Never really got that saying. If your balls are cold you need to run to the ER.
Good .. It’s only a three hour flight so numerous SSFC fans can swarm the place to watch our team take the cup.
It’s the traveling that’s a problem.
No, the team that’s actually IN the final game with the best record should host the game.
Nothing to see here, people. Leiweke’s statement is nothing but an attempt to put more pressure on the Galaxy to produce. He said the same thing to his team in 2008 behind closed doors (read “The Beckham Experiment”), when the league still awarded MLS Cup to a neutral site.
The *only* way the Home Depot Center gets to play host this year is for either the Galaxy or Chivas USA to win the Supporters’ Shield. Don’t let Leiweke’s comments make you think otherwise. There’s reason why he’s called “Lie-weekly” (or, if you prefer, “Lie-weakly”) in these parts.
Pissing on the fans? That’s a bit much. I’ve been to two of the three mlscups in LA and for a neutral site, it’s a pretty good atmosphere. I think people forget LA has been a reliable MLS market since 1996.
THIS IS STUPID! MLS PISSING ON FANS IN THE REST OF THE COUNTRY.
Shoot, even without a team in the southeast, it would be sweet to have MLS Cup played somewhere down there…and I’m a northwest guy. Of course, it would be risky, especially since the game would have to be in some cavernous football stadium.
Agreed. Supporter’s Shield Winner should get to host the game…The All-Star Game advantage in baseball has worked for them
At least Gullit’s offense was exciting to watch…Now they bring Chad Barrett into the fold? Beckham is going to be more frustrated with that guy than Blanco was…
Leiweke is SUCH an arsehole. He sounds like such an idiot with that quote too.
Despite being an east coast guy, I think LA is always a good place to hold it. Tons of genuine soccer fans and a great destination for local supporters of whichever clubs make it. However I would like to see Houston (with their forthcoming stadium) and Dallas get a few more.
Unfortunately this issue, to me, always highlights the lack of a club in the southeast though. A club or two in FL, GA or even the Carolinas would add a few more ‘warm weather’ locales for these neutral site finals. I know there are a million other things that are more important in that determination but it just adds to it.
That’s not really a hint, is it? Sounds like it’s definitely being played in LA.
LA’s hosted it a ton, but it would be better than say a Toronto or Philly where it would be cold as balls in late November. As far as neutral locations go this is one of the best.
I think this country might be too damn big to have our final that is supposed to determine THE champions and be the one game showcase for the whole league at a neutral site. Neutral crowds are boring.
Again….A-GAIN
WOW I’m first! hehehe
Well I, as an LA, soccer and HUGE Galaxy fan am happy that IF my team actually pulls off a 7th trip to the MLS Cup FInal it will take place at the HDC, but lets face it they did this the year the HDC opened and the year after that hoping for it since LA should of at least gone to the game based on the level of talent it had in it’s roster and being defending Champs and all. Then they did when the Galaxy had their Euro old should be retired star Abel Xavier and Gullit at coach, and we all remember how that defense worked?
But if it works, cool, I was kind of looking forward to say RBA, or PPL or even maybe Rio Tinto but then again weather there would probably very very bad?