http://www.fck.de/de/aktuell/news/d...egen-la-galaxy-beckham-donovan-mit-dabei.html Galaxy vs. Kasierslautern Nov. 26th Thanks to Zak1FCK over on the Yanks Abroad board for the heads up. It reads like the Galaxy will travel to Germany Nov. 26 to play for the large American contingent, mostly military, in the area. I think it also says something Galaxy making appearances around town prior to the match. That's a pretty cool salute to the troops. It's four days after MLS Cup. If the Galaxy were to progress to the Cup I wonder if the regulars would play in this friendly. I assume Donovan and Beckham would be contractually obligated to play 45 minutes.
Good lord. They're still in the 2e Bundesliga? I could have sworn it was just a couple of years ago that they beat out Bayern Muenchen for the Bundesliga championship. Arme roten Teufel... It'll be a fun exhibition for the soldiers over there. Hope we represent well.
This is interesting. Can't hurt to test ourselves against different opposition. The timing is a bit strange though. And I didn't event think about the military presence when I first heard the news. That is cool.
I think this is more accurate.. http://thelagalaxy.blogspot.com/2009/10/hitting-road-tomorrow-and-in-future.html [....before we get to the all the playoff possibilities, we just wanted to pass along word that the Galaxy will participate in a postseason tour for the third consecutive season. But unlike the last two years which saw the club travel to Oceania, this year's trip will see the Galaxy travel to Kaiserslautern, Germany to take on FC Kaiserslautern of the Bundesliga 2. This game will be played at the Fritz Walter Stadion (known to many of you as the venue in which the U.S. played Italy to a 1-1 draw in the 2006 World Cup) on Thanksgiving, giving Galaxy fans some soccer to enjoy along with their diet of NFL football on Turkey Day...] edit: there's one more.. http://la.galaxy.mlsnet.com/news/te..._id=7471530&vkey=news_lag&fext=.jsp&team=t106 [...CARSON, Calif. -- The LA Galaxy announced Friday that the club will travel to Kaiserslautern, Germany on Monday, November 23 to kick off the 2009 LA Galaxy Postseason Tour presented by Herbalife. The Galaxy will face FC Kaiserslautern at Fritz Walter Stadion on Thanksgiving; Thursday, November 26, with the game kicking off at 11:30 a.m. (PT)... "This is an exciting opportunity for the Galaxy to be able to play a world renowned club like FC Kaiserslautern at an amazing World Cup venue in front of their loyal and passionate fans," LA Galaxy President of Business Operations Tom Payne said... FC Kaiserslautern are currently tied for the top spot in the Bundesliga 2, Germany's second division, and are the league's only undefeated team through the first two months of the season. The club plays their home games at Fritz Walter Stadion, a 48,500 seat venue that hosted five games during the 2006 FIFA World Cup, including the 1-1 draw between the United States and eventual champions Italy. In addition to the game, the Galaxy will participate in a number of community outreach endeavors. The team is scheduled to visit with United States military personnel and their families as well as with local German children in the lead up to the game...]
booked my train/hotel yesterday. even if it's just a friendly and money maker, if the G's play a 4-5 hour drive/ride from where I live - I'll go
What's the appeal to Kaiserslauten fans exactly? It's not like there isn't top quality football to be seen nearby. Are they really that into Beckham? Just having a heard time imagining this game getting a big crowd.
The area known is as the Kaiserslautern Military Community, which includes bases like Ramstein AFB, and is home to 50K+ active US troops. That doesn't include the thousands of ex-military and DoD workers who've settle in the area after their service. It's the largest contingent of US citizens outside the US. That's the draw. I've been to Kaiserslautern. Great town. Loads of American influence everywhere. The Galaxy will draw a good crowd. A sellout, I'm not sure but I could see 35-40K there easily.
I've been lucky enough to be able to attend 6 G' matches so far, and all in MLS (4x in LA, 1x in Salt Lake and Seattle). But yeah it's cool, just sitting in a train for 4 hours than having a transatlantic flight of 11+ hours
Doesn't the Galaxy have any hope in it's self for not being in the MLS Cup? Or, are they planning on being in the Cup match and go straight to Germany with no Home Comming for the LA fans?
Denmark coach Morten Olsen said Tuesday his team will play the United States on Nov. 18 in Aarhus. Denmark MLS Cup is on Sunday 22nd November in Seattle The LA Galaxy announced Friday that the club will travel to Kaiserslautern, Germany on Monday, November 23 to kick off the 2009 LA Galaxy Postseason Tour presented by Herbalife. The Galaxy will face FC Kaiserslautern at Fritz Walter Stadion on Thanksgiving; Thursday, November 26, with the game kicking off at 11:30 a.m. (PT). The local television schedule for this game will be set at a future date.
If the Galaxy are in the Final, I am pretty sure you'll see Donovan in the States instead of playing in a friendly. And yes, Kaiserslautern has had an American presence for years, there's tons of servicemen out there, and I think we played a friendly out there as a WC warm up (and to get used to the Stadium for our WC match) and a ton of servicemen and their families showed up, if I am remembering correctly. It's really a big stadium, and I have all sorts of conflicting memories from seeing the USA v. Italy game there, but what I remember of the city was pretty cool.
I am sure having Justin Timberlake and Lenny Kravitz will help.... http://www.der-betze-brennt.de/aktuell/pressespiegel.php?artikel=4442 Even though IMC would not confirm it yet (according to the article).
I believe you are correct. The United States played and defeated Poland in front of a huge crowd in K-Town. It kind of makes me think that this game won't draw any worse than some of the games during our other recent trips and could likely do much better
http://www.ussoccer.com/News/Mens-N...Preparations-For-The-2006-FIFA-World-Cup.aspx Nope. Very small crowd only 13K especially given the size Fritz Walter Stadion (48K). It appeared larger because the 13K were in the lower arena, maybe even on one side (across from the cameras) and at the end lines. But the crowd made a tone of noise. IIRC, it was a bitterly cold day, maybe unseasonably so, and mixed with snow. Maybe that kept some folks away. Nonetheless, I love the idea of the game in K-Town (locals hate that BTW) and since the home side will be playing I suspect a decent crown. Hopefully somewhere in the 25-35K range.
I stand corrected. The crowd did seem much larger than that, but I suppose I should have checked the actual number.
The Stars and Stripes reported today that the FCK/Galaxy friendly is now cancelled. The Galaxy claims its the local promoter wasn't promoting the game properly, and hadn't met the agreement that the Galaxy and the promoter made. I suspect it has more to do with the fact that the Galaxy don't want to worry about anything but the Finals. Oh well. There are a decent number of fans that are bummed. I am stationed in Stuttgart, but I was planning on making the trip up. My wife wants a picture with Beckham, I want a picture with the leader of the US National Team.