Davis: LA's Becks, Donovan add sizzle to final
Seattle embracing MLS Cup 2009, Galaxy star power
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So it's really no surprise that this MLS Cup has a little different feel. There's a little more buzz, just a little more jitter in the bug. The city has done a fantastic job of hugging Sounders FC close and making them feel welcome, and same for MLS by extension.
So who can be surprised that the brew pubs around Qwest Field -- which watches over downtown Seattle from the south like a benevolent, powerful spacecraft -- are draped with supporters scarves and banners not just from Sounders FC, but for the teams competing Sunday as well?
The papers here are full of MLS Cup news. There's just generally an absorption of the event in a way that can't happen in larger cities such as Los Angeles, where last year's MLS Cup unfolded. Seattle is a dandy place to hold MLS Cup, even if fans had better hold onto their hats due the wind -- and bring their raincoats, too.
But is it just the genuine connection to the city that's adding more sizzle, or is there more at work here? Surely there's something else providing a little more dash and hue. There's just something different here.
For instance, I don't remember the last time a huge bodyguard stood careful vigil over a pregame press conference.
And I seem to see an increase in the camera-and-notepad factor. The press areas seem unusually packed, especially considering we're still two full days from Sunday's kickoff. I sure don't remember hearing as many British accents tossing out queries.
As a matter of fact, as I stood watching the LA Galaxy finish player interviews after their morning practice Thursday, I thought to myself, "Heck, I don't even remember as many British accents here just an hour ago as Real Salt Lake finished up."
It's the David Beckham factor, of course, that has helped crank the volume on this one. And if the Beckham Factor isn't enough, there's the Landon Donovan factor adding an extra accelerant. On the same day he arrived, he was named Major League Soccer's 2009 MVP.
In any other MLS Cup Final, Donovan, who is collecting domestic soccer awards the way some people collect sea shells, would be the feature attraction. In Seattle, he is happily sharing the limelight with world soccer's most illustrious property, a global icon who has done more than any single human being to amplify awareness in MLS and the Galaxy.
Chris Klein played in the 2004 MLS Cup in Los Angeles. That one pitted D.C. United and Kansas City, a team from the East meeting a team from the Midwest at a venue along the West Coast. That geographic dispersion was a perfect metaphor for the scattered awareness. It all played out in and around Los Angeles, a corner of the world unto itself, where even the grandest of events would have trouble resonating. Even in soccer circles, the star of the 2004 show was probably the still-relatively-new Home Depot Center rather than anyone on the field.
Suffice to say, it probably could have used the starpower super-boost that Beckham and Donovan can provide. Klein said there's little comparison between the scenes then and now.
"Any time you have David Beckham around, it makes things more high profile," he said Thursday from the south end of the Xbox Pitch at Qwest Field, as reporters huddled in close to hear various players. "And I think with Landon and the way he's playing right now, even more so."
Of course, the league has grown by giant leaps, too. It was just a 10-team show in 2004. Real Salt Lake, the Galaxy's opponent Sunday, had yet to play a match and Seattle's involvement in MLS was just something to talk about while shucking oysters from the bay. Now, MLS is a 15-team league (going on 16 in a few months as Philadelphia comes aboard). Seattle's storybook launch this year was like a caffeine boost to the entire domestic soccer enterprise. It has all helped to put a thumb on the scale, adding weight to this weekend's event.
"As the league has grown, the MLS Cup has grown along with it and made it more of a spectacle," Klein said.
It didn't take long once the Galaxy arrived Thursday night for the curtain to rise on the Beckham and Donovan spectacle.
The players barely had time to shake out their raincoats when Beckham was shaking hands with the first of his interviewers in a series of one-on-ones. There was Sky Sports and the Times of London from his homeland, England. He also sat down with Fox Soccer Channel and the Seattle Times. That was all Thursday night. Friday brought audiences with ESPN, Spanish language giant Galavision and CNN. He also did segments for Dan Patrick and his nationally syndicated radio show and for ESPN Radio's Colin Cowherd.
Patrick and Cowherd talk soccer about as often as Oprah retires. Or close to it, anyway.
Nearby on Friday, Donovan was doing the one-on-one thing, too. He sat down with ESPN and Galavision, and joined manager Bruce Arena for a pair of interviews with Sports Illustrated.
All that was sandwiched around Friday's news conference in a stocking-stuffed Qwest Field interview room, where Donovan and Beckham fielded questions for 30 minutes.
It's not just the pregame whir that grows louder thanks to Beckham and Donovan. Tales from Sunday's match will spread faster and further now, too. MLS media officials said the total number of accredited media was tracking toward perhaps 200 before the conference finals. Requests increased significantly once the Galaxy secured their spot, and officials now believe it will land at more than 250 and perhaps closer to 300.
That includes about 15 to 20 requests from England that are surely a direct result of the Galaxy's involvement. Same for a Wall Street Journal piece on Donovan in Friday's edition.
Of course, it's not all cherries and lollipops. The added buzz around the city and the extra distraction factor from well-wishing supporters and curious media comes at a price. Adequate rest and proper focus becomes more problematic.
There is, after all, a match to be won on Sunday -- and no one from Real Salt Lake is going to make allowances for all the extra sizzle Beckham and Donovan have cooked up, appreciative though they might be. Beckham especially needs his rest; he trained Friday for the first time since last week's win over Houston, still nursing a slight ankle injury.
Beckham and Donovan have played in big matches before. Presumably, they know how to navigate the balance between match focus and their duty to nourish the scene. They sure sound like they get it.
Said Beckham: "We've got a lot of young guys in our team that are excited, but we need to stay focused. That's the biggest thing for us. But of course, you play in a cup final, it's exciting, the whole experience. You have to enjoy it, because the day goes past so quickly. So you have to enjoy the moment."
Thanks to Beckham and Donovan, a lot more people seem to be enjoying it.
Steve Davis is a freelance writer who has covered Major League Soccer since its inception. Steve writes for www.DailySoccerFix.com and can be reached at BigTexSoccer@yahoo.com. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author's, and not necessarily those of Major League Soccer or MLSnet.com.
