i think we need a sticky about ditching doug hamilton as well, so here goes. i believe that the single reason for the galaxy sucking so much over the past 3 years falls solely on the shoulders of one douglass hamilton and to reverse the fortunes of this sinking ship he needs to be booted ASAP. consider: 1) doug hamilton oversaw the collapse of the miami fusion prior to his "successful" stint with the galaxy. 2) the galaxy pre-doug hamilton were the most successful team in MLS, most successful and only team with a winning road record and one of the most decorated teams in MLS. post doug hamilton the galaxy have become mediocre; above average at home, pathetic on the road. 3) the only silverware doug hamilton has collected since becoming GM has been an MLS cup, which to be honest based on the level of performance since that time i think the win is more or less doug coasting in on the success of sigi and his predecessor at GM. oh also 2 manager of the year wins, which i'm sure the fans were just as happy about as the cup wins 4) the team has seen a coaching change and massive personnel changes both on and off the field, yet the results are the same. to me that all adds up to doug hamilton being the root of the galaxy's problems. i think doug hamilton (and perhaps tim liewieke) meddle too much in our team without knowing the first thing about soccer. 1) they buy players regardless of how they will fit in to the team, currently we're playing three attacking midfielders, none of which are playing that role (donovan, kiro, pando). 2) they buy players regardless of potential national team duties. yes, it's great that we have so many players quality enough to play for their respective national teams, but jeebus if we get to play half our games with our full complement of players this year i'll be surprised. MLS certainly needs to make some changes here and allow for "off weeks", but until that time the galaxy and the front office need to buy better. 3) they buy players for their marketing potential and not their ability to add to the team. 4) they are overly reliant on one player and now donovan. playing against real madrid today is especially relevant as they suffer from similar problems, an owner who interferes too much, preferring to sign stars (and play them out of position) rather than build a team; several years of disappointing results and no trophies. until hamilton is gone i don't see the galaxy returning to their glory years. looking on the positive side, our "downfall" hasn't been anywhere near as embarrassing or hard to deal with as DC's, or san jose's. predications - this year ends trophy-less with a disappointing/embarrassing exit from both cups. sampson gets fired. new coach, same results; donovan gets annoyed and either a) leaves the team for a resurgent metrostars, b) leaves the team for europe (doubtful as he won't look great in such a bad team) c) gets hamilton fired.
I think the only reason he is still here is because he was GM when the G's were the first team in MLS to earn a profit.
D, as much as I agree with your points I also know, as I'm sure you do, that the all mighty "$$$" is all that truely matters and until the initials of MLS's master money making machine are no longer DH, we'll have to deal with Sir Douglas Hamilton as our Lord and Savior!! Sad but true.......Money is all that matters right now!!!
SoCal is a notoriously fickle sports area. We start losing, and we can kiss that pretty >20k attendance average goodbye. One more season like this one and it'll take Jesus H. Christ managing 11 of his apostles (Judas on the bench) to be profitable, not some silly team from Spain.
I agree get rid of him and SS2. So Hamiltion has made money and posted a profit. Let me run the G, in the nice new HDC, and I bet I could make a profit and win some games!!!! With everything HDC does, making a profit is not easy, but not as difficult as it was....
i agree 100%, the really sad thing is the profit the galaxy have turned has almost nothing to do with DH, he's was just the wrong oaf in the right place at the right time. as someone else has pointed out, you could put almost anyone in the GM post when the HDC opened and a profit would have been made.
He seems to get players and coaches based on their name recognition rather than their abilities... I don't like it... I don't like it one bit
People have been buying season tickets forever and keep buying them in the hopes of the Dodgers making the playoffs one day. Most are bought by companies and written off as a business expense (the reason why so many seasons can often be seen empty at the HDC as well). I went to dozens of Dodger games the 10 years I lived in LA...and never paid for a single ticket. Someone always has tickets they are giving away.
This season has been wonderful to watch games at Victoria Street. No horns, and a renewed sense of commitment to the Galaxy fans. They answered the challenge of Chivas USA, and then some. If we're getting on his case for lousy road form, then we have to give him credit for what's been a terrific season, so far, at home.
Oh GOD!! The horns!! I watched Mex-SoAfrica on Sunday, and the horns were so obnoxious. Viva Hamilton!! but then promptly fire him!
Right on! I saw quite a few folks start heading for the exits after about 70 minutes last night. You paid 100 bucks for a ticket and are leaving early?!?!?
Yeah, the same madrid "fans" that sat there silently throughout the game and were telling people to sit down. The same "fans" that were cheering when Roberto Carlos scorpion kicked it out of bounds. The same "fans" whose madrid jerseys still had the creases in them. Those people weren't even soccer fans--they just want to be part of the winning team.
true, true. but do you really think DH had little to nothing to do with the success of the HDC since it's inception? I mean the President of the United States is one thing but can DH also be just a total puppet with others pulling the strings? (no pun on the politics, I just couldn't think of anything else that made more sense)
i don't think he had nothing to do with the HDC success, at the same time i think anyone with a modicum of business sense could have turned a profit at HDC with all the free press, the backing of AEG, coming off a cup winning year, etc... really what has DH done that's? he inherits a cup winning team, a brand new stadium where the team gets a significantly larger share of the concessions, parking and ticket sales and so on. apart from an across the board price increase there's nothing exceptionally creative he has done to make the HDC profitable. as i said he appears to me to be the wrong guy in the right place at the right time. had DH taken over san jose, the metro stars, kansas city or most of the other teams in the league (barring perhaps dc and chicago) and turned a profit for them that would be something impressive. he has demonstrated though that without the significant backing of AEG, a formerly good team and a brand new stadium, that he is as hapless, if not worse, than any other GM in the league as he oversaw one of only two teams to be dissolved. as dan mentions he does deserve some credit for banning horns and the improved relations with supporters groups, to my mind though, those are the appropriate actions to have remedied a situation that shouldn't have existed in the first place. certainly welcomed, but nothing exceptional.
Doug is a good business executive but I sure wouldn't consider him a man of the people. If he would walk around the stadium and talk to average fans it would go a long way to improving his image. Listening to your customers and improving things is just good business. It would be interesting to see Doug sitting in the stands wearing a Galaxy shirt during a Chivas game. He needs to see the thug behavior that invades HDC during these games. If security isn't improved to prevent Chivas fans from beating up families in the stadium & parking lot, then he can kiss goodbye all the profits he's been making.
As dashiel stated in another thread, it's a pipe dream to get Dougie fired because LA is making profit and as long as that happens, Dougie's staying. Kind of sad.