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Title: 60,000 expected at soccer match (US vs Mexico played in Glendale, AZ tonight)
Source:
Arizona Republic
URL Source: http://www.azcentral.com/community/ ... les/0207gl-soccerupdate07.html
Published: Feb 7, 2007
Author: Carrie Watters
Post Date: 2007-02-07 20:19:16 by Red Jones
Keywords: None
Views: 402
Comments: 25
60,000 expected at soccer match Carrie Watters The Arizona Republic Feb. 7, 2007 12:00 PM Expect traffic. More than 60,000 soccer fans will head to Glendale tonight for a soldout match between the U.S. National Team and Mexico. The game, the second professional soccer match at University of Phoenix Stadium, sold out late Tuesday night. Stadium officials aren't surprised. "It's a huge match," said Scott Norton, the director of marketing for Global Spectrum, which books stadium events. here's the US team. Fans should allow time for traffic. Parking lots open at 3 p.m. for tailgating and the stadium gates open at 5 p.m., two hours before the start time. A packed stadium is no surprise to soccer enthusiasts like Sam Kajoba. He said Valley residents from Mexico, Africa and other parts of the world are hungry for soccer. "It's a good game," he said Monday. "I love it." Kajoba, a Zambia native living in Phoenix, already has his tickets for tonight's game. The 28-year-old said he was disappointed when he moved here four years ago to discover the Valley did not boast its own professional team."I'd love to see big-time soccer in Arizona," he said. This is the second major soccer match at the stadium, which has built a reputation among gridiron fans, but was also built with another form of football in mind. The field was designed wide enough to allow for international soccer matches. The stadium's soccer christening came on Halloween as 40,496 fans watched an exhibition match between Mexican rivals Chivas and Club America. While the stadium seems to be galvanizing Valley soccer fans, the Glendale venue would not be a likely choice for a full-time professional team. It's too big. Major League Soccer prefers a stadium that's between 18,000 and 30,000 seats. Also, the league prefers soccer-specific stadiums after spending most of its 12-year history in NFL venues. The league is in the midst of expansion and expects enthusiasm to grow as English soccer legend David Beckham crosses the Atlantic to play with the Los Angeles Galaxy this summer. While University of Phoenix Stadium might not be ideal for a permanent professional team, stadium officials said they would put their name in the ring if the United States bids to host another World Cup. "If it's out there, we'd certainly go after it," Norton said. The most watched sporting event in the world, the World Cup happens every four years, with South Africa playing host in 2010. The one and only time America hosted the World Cup was in 1994, with matches played in nine cities across the country from Los Angeles to Dallas and Boston.
Poster Comment: the last time the US played Mexico in soccer (that I know of) was about 4-5 years ago. it was in Los Angeles as part of the World Cup stuff. the fans were almost 100% cheering for Mexico and very very loudly too. and the US team won. The mexicans hated it so bad. I remember I asked a couple of my mexican friends about it after the game - 'hey how about that soccer game?' and they refused to even speak of it. You can bet tonight's game that starts in 45 minutes will be similar with the fans overwhelming cheering very strongly against the US though the game is in Glendale, AZ. it'll be on ESPN2.
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Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 16.
#12. To: Red Jones (#0)
Looks French.
nope. I checked roster. http://www.u ssoccer.com/articles/viewArticle.jsp_281666.html they're all from US. and only about 4 play in clubs outside of US, all those in England. It used to be that the US soccer team had half its players from an area in north St. Louis County Missouri where in a region about 1-2 high schools they play soccer instead of American football. but now I see these guys are from all over the country and none from St. Louis.
here's the story from Arizona Republic after game; our team kicked ass. all over town the mexicans are sad. I'm happy. you cannot talk to a mexican about it though. they will not talk after their team loses to US, only when they win. U.S. beats Mexico - again Andrew Bagnato AP Sports Writer Feb. 7, 2007 09:41 PM GLENDALE - Jimmy Conrad scored his first international goal and Landon Donovan converted a late breakaway, leading the United States to a 2-0 exhibition victory over Mexico on Wednesday night that kept up the Americans' dominance of their regional rival. Conrad headed home a corner kick by Donovan in the 52nd minute, beating goalkeeper Oswaldo Sanchez inside the left post. It was the first international goal for Conrad, playing in his 19th game for the Americans, and the 24th career assist for Donovan, the U.S. career leader. Donovan added the clincher in the 90th minute off a pass by Ricardo Clark. It was the 27th goal in 86 international appearances for Donovan, who scored in his second straight game after going scoreless in 18 consecutive national team appearances over 1 1/2 years. advertisement Playing in front of a heavily pro-Mexican sellout crowd of 64,462, the Americans improved to 8-2-1 against Mexico since 2000. The United States is 7-0- 1 against Mexico on home soil in that stretch, outscoring its southern neighbor 13-0. "I think we showed what we're made of," said Conrad, who played an outstanding two-way game. But Mexico didn't go quietly in the first game under coach Hugo Sanchez. The Mexicans had nine shots, seven in the second half, and pressured the Americans relentlessly after Conrad's goal. But Tim Howard, bidding to take over from Kasey Keller as the top American goalkeeper, shut out the Mexicans in his first national team appearance since last May.
Stop it, Red...you're breaking my heart. :-) Congrats, USA.
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Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latesthere's the US team.
#14. To: Tauzero (#12)
#15. To: All (#14)
#16. To: Red Jones (#15)
all over town the mexicans are sad.
Replies to Comment # 16.