I've been practicing...

H told me he was taking it easy this weekend...but then I hear he had a gig in Korea?

Dora, uh I mean, David the Explorer

Well, there is so much conversation out there with regards to David Beckham's desire to stay with AC Milan rather than return to the LA Galaxy & the MLS. In these discussions, there are the questions, "Is it only about the $?", "He is doing all of this to just be a strong candidate for England's Nat'l team for the 2010 WC?", "The MLS was not what he had hoped it would be?"

From the perspective of the "Zone". I see all of these questions as valid. I think the answer is pretty straight forward. You just have to put yourself in the boots of

Beckham. No matter how much he is known by his work off the pitch, at the core, he is a footballer. When he left Europe, I am sure he thought that this American adventure would be his career finale. I think he really believed he would become the soccer ambassador to a country that quite honestly needed one. At the same time, he knew he and Posh would be perfectly comfortable in LA with all the $ and celeb friends.

The one thing I believe he did not expect was how much he would miss playing at the highest level. This "loan" to the Rossoneri opened up his eyes to (1) his competetive nature (2) his love for the game at the highest levels and (3) his abilities can still contribute at this level. Just the fact that a team like AC Milan was interested in a loan must have been exciting for Becks. If the same thing happens to Hucks - I wouldn't be surprised if his decisions were similar. Look at Rickey Henderson - he was hanging around and hanging around with the hope of a MLB team to become interested in a 40+ yr old outfielder that still had tools. He sure didn't keep playing in the minors for the money. He loves baseball. I really think that Beckham now realizes how much he loves football. Also, Beckham doesn't have to be "the" player at the San Siro - he'll just be one of the boys. He can just focus on his part to help this great team (I am a biased AC Milan supporter). A bonus: I think Becks can learn alot from Kaka :)

Was his short stay in the US beneficial to football in this country? Sure, maybe a little bit. The long-term impact might be significant if other overseas stars see that the MLS is a valid alternative depending on where you are in your career.

(*One thing H pointed out - now I have to figure out another marketing approach to sell my group seats for the Q's vs Galaxy game later this summer..."

It is Super Bowl Sunday....

Since it is Super Bowl Sunday here in America - the #1 single day sporting event in our country where the commercials have become just as important to people as the game itself, I thought this would be the best time to share this video with you all.

Why I Love "REAL" Football

México y Suecia

H and went to the Mexico v. Sweden friendly at the Oakland Coliseum last night. As always, it was great fun in the midst of the energy and the crowd that always responds to a visit by the Mexico National Team or "El Tricolor". Attendance was close to 46,000. The game itself had a few moments, but most of the excitement and energy game from the crowd (while it was in the parking lot and then continuning inside the Coliseum).

The Q's showed off their new jersey sponsor in different ways - including a huge inflatable Q's jersey with "A" word on it. If the Q's could somehow tap just a small part of this hispanic furvor for futbol it would be HUGE. Just how is this done? We'll see.

2009 Quakes Schedule Announced

Time to start filling out that 2009 calendar H!

http://web.mlsnet.com/schedule/scoreboard/season.jsp?team=t110

Quakes Jersey Sponsor: Amway Global!

It was announced today that the Q's new jersey sponsor is Amway Global (the giant network or multilevel marketing sales giant). I haven't seen what the jerseys will look like, but a sponsor is a sponsor. I was really hoping for a Silicon Valley sponsor (high tech), but hey - I'm not in charge, right Lew?

Do you know who else is an Amway partner? The one and only Ronaldinho! He signed on with Amway to promote their Nutrilite dietary supplement products back in Feb 2008.

Hmmmmmm. Let's see. (Amway + Ronaldinho)x (Amway + Quakes) = Quakes & Ronaldinho? (just call this "creative" math!)

'09 Quakes Pre-Season Schedule Announced

Monday, January 26-Wednesday, February 11
Training
Buck Shaw Stadium

Thursday, February 12-Sunday, February 15
MLS Central Showcase, San Luis Obispo
Alex G. Spanos Stadium at Cal Poly

• Friday, February 13
  Earthquakes vs. Seattle Sounders at 7:00 p.m.
  Alex G. Spanos Stadium at Cal Poly
  
• Sunday, February 15
  Earthquakes vs. Houston Dynamo at 1:00 p.m
  Alex G. Spanos Stadium at Cal Poly
  

Monday, February 16 - Friday, February 27
Training
Buck Shaw Stadium

• Friday, February 20
  Earthquakes vs. Fresno Fuego at 7:00 p.m
  Chukchansi Park in Fresno, Calif
  
• Wednesday, February 25
  Earthquakes vs. Univ. of California at 2:30 p.m
  Edwards Stadium in Berkeley, Calif
  

Sunday, March 1-Saturday, March 7
Training
Carson, California

• Monday, March 2
  Earthquakes vs. Colorado Rapids
  The Home Depot Center in Carson Calif.
  

Monday, March 9 - Friday, March 20
Training
Buck Shaw Stadium

• Wednesday, March 11
  Earthquakes vs. Univ. of California (time TBD)
  Edwards Stadium in Berkeley, Calif
  

Saturday, March 21
MLS regular season opener - Earthquakes vs. New England Revolution at 7:30 p.m.
Buck Shaw Stadium