David Beckham: Soccer Star Reportedly Re-Signing With LA Galaxy

David Beckham enjoys America so much he plans on sticking around for a while. The super-star midfielder plans on announcing Thursday his intentions to sign a new contract for 2012 as reported by the LA Times. The deal is expected to be for two years.  His original five-year, $32.5M deal expired at the end of the season and nobody was sure if he planned on staying in the MLS or going back to his native England.    Consider the mystery to be over. What it Means The 36-year-old was offered an 18-month contract to play for the French club Paris-St. Germain that would have been roughly worth a $1M a month. While the amount for his latest contract have yet to have been disclosed, it’s certainly a lot less than the French offer. According to the Times the biggest factor in his decision was his family. His wife and four children prefer to live in Southern California and they don’t want to pick up and leave. Oh yeah, I think it helps that Hollywood is just around the corner and one of the most popular families in the world still has access to the bright lights and producers that go with ...

2012 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Format Offers Smaller Teams a Pop at NASL & MLS

As most soccer sides in the U.S look to start building themselves for the 2012 season, Wednesday brought the news that the Lamar Hunt U.S Open Cup will be changing the format for home ties in this years championship which is great news for the smaller sides that qualify for the National cup competition. In this, the 99th year of the competition, changes have been abound, starting with an early first round to help solve mid season congestion for the MLS sides that will compete in MLS, CONCACAF Champions league and also host European sides on pre season tours. This also sees the MLS sides competing in their entirety for the very first time in the leagues history.MLS : Chicago Fire, Chivas USA, Colorado Rapids, Columbus Crew, D.C. United, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo, LA Galaxy, New England Revolution, New York Red Bulls, Philadelphia Union, Portland Timbers, Real Salt Lake, San Jose Earthquakes, Seattle Sounders FC, Sporting Kansas City. The first round action begins on May 15 where all 64 teams will take to the field representing the largest contingent of teams in the modern era and also sees an expansion of 24 sides from last season competition.With all MLS, NASL & USL sides participating, it gives ...

Darren Mattocks: Vancouver Whitecaps Wisely Add Speedy Striker in MLS SuperDraft

The Vancouver Whitecaps have a ways to go before they can hang with the heavyweights of North American soccer, though they took a significant step up with the addition of Darren Mattocks with the No. 2 pick in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft.The sophomore out of Akron was arguably the most complete player in this year's draft class—a speedy striker with the confidence and know-how to wreak havoc all over the pitch. He'll be reunited with former UA teammate Michael Nanchoff, whom Vancouver selected with the eighth overall pick in last year's draft and with whom Mattocks lifted the Zips to a NCAA championship in 2010.Mattocks was the 2011 Mid-American Conference Player of the Year and a semifinalist for the 2011 Hermann Trophy (the Heisman of college soccer) after finishing second in the NCAA with 21 goals on the season.That sort of scoring prowess will come in handy for a Whitecaps club that ended the year with a minus-20 goal differential, by far the worst in the Western Conference.Of course, 2011 campaign was Vancouver's inaugural season as an MLS squad. A record of 6-10-18 isn't exactly anything to write home about, but Mattocks' presence should help the Whitecaps improve to some ...

MLS Draft 2012: Ethan Finlay and More Underrated First-Round Steals

The MLS SuperDraft doesn't get nearly as much publicity as its major sport counterparts, but it's always interesting to see young athletes getting their first crack at professional life. This season's first round was loaded with potential stars who will make an immediate impact on their new teams. Here are three selections that might have gone overlooked, but will pay off in the long run. Columbus Crew, Ethan Finlay Columbus selected Finlay with the 10th overall pick. He's a versatile attacker who can play on either wing and brings some terrific pace to the table. The Creighton will immediately provide a boost to a Crew offense which finished in the middle of the pack last season. There were some varying opinions about his ability to produce at the next level following his combine showing, but his track record shows it's pretty clear he knows how to find the back of the net. That's exactly what Columbus needs to boost the Crew into title contention.   Philadelphia Union, Chandler Hoffman Hoffman's slide to Philadelphia at pick No. 13 was probably the most shocking aspect about the opening round. He was widely considered to be a top-10, and potentially a top-five, pick, but ...

2012 MLS SuperDraft: Recap and Analysis of First 10 Picks

Major League Soccer's home-grown stars of tomorrow were on display Thursday.The league's 19 teams selected 38 players in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft. Here we'll be covering the top 10 picks in depth.The expansion Montreal Impact took Duke University's Andrew Wenger with the No. 1 overall selection. Wenger will hope to join other big names like Maurice Edu (2007) and Brek Shea (2008) as successful alumni of the event.Nine of the 38 players selected were part of the Generation Adidas project, meaning their salaries wouldn't count against their teams' salary caps this year. We've noted those guys where applicable.The season begins March 10, so let's get right to the picks.Begin Slideshow

2012 MLS Superdraft: Winner and Losers

With much anticipation, the 2012 MLS Superdraft came and went as teams tried to fill holes in the squad by retired, traded, or injured players with the NCAA’s elite.This year's version was only two rounds in length, therefore, the pressure was on for teams to chose the best available players. For some teams with only one selection — Colorado Rapids, FC Dallas, and New York Red Bulls — the pressure was even greater. While most team selected what they needed, some teams stood out, while other teams left those watching with questions marks.Let's look at my winners and losers of the 2012 MLS Superdraft. Begin Slideshow

MLS Draft 2012: Andrew Wenger and Other First-Round Misses

In their first MLS SuperDraft, the Montreal Impact had a chance to grab the best player in the draft, Darren Mattocks. However, they went in a different route drafting Andrew Wenger, and it was one of the biggest misses in the first round. Here are some of the misses from this year’s draft.   Montreal Selecting Andrew Wenger  Wenger is a good player. In fact, he should have a wonderful career. However, it will not be as good as the career of Mattocks.  Mattocks is the younger player. He has breakaway speed that other players wish they had. He scored 21 goals in 22 games last year for Akron. Mattocks could have been the franchise player that stuck around in Montreal for the next ten to fifteen years.  Instead, Vancouver took the best player in the draft at No. 2, and they will succeed because of his offensive skills.   Matt Hedges Drops to No. 11 FC DallasHedges is the best defender in the MLS SuperDraft this year. However, Hedges was passed over by Portland and Chicago, when they selected Andrew Jean-Baptiste and Austin Berry.  Now, Jean-Baptiste and Berry are good players, but they are not the same caliber as Hedges.  Hedges ...

MLS Super Draft 2012: Breaking Down This Year’s Top Picks

Here's a closer look at the top picks from today's MLS Super Draft. Andrew Wenger (Duke), MontrealWenger is listed as a defender on the MLS website, but he easily has the offensive skills to play anywhere on the field. That's rare.Last season, Wenger won the ACC Defensive Player of the Year and this season won the ACC Offensive Player of the Year. That just goes to show the amazing versatility he has.It's still unknown where he ends up in MLS, but I could easily see him as a defender that pushes forward. But in reality, he can step in and play anywhere.Some question the height of his potential, and that's a valid concern. His versatility was just too much to pass up for Montreal, however. Darren Mattocks (Akron), VancouverMattocks and Wenger were the two popular choices for the No. 1 pick, and fortunately for Vancouver, it had the easy job of picking whoever fell.You can't go wrong with Mattocks. He is an absolute dynamic goal-scorer, as he netted 39 goals in 47 games during his two years with Akron. The Jamaican has electric speed and is an exciting talent.Throw in brilliant creativity, and he's going to bring a lot of excitement to ...

Darren Mattocks: Montreal Impact Should Make Dynamic Akron Striker No. 1 Pick

The expansion Montreal Impact have the first pick in this season's MLS SuperDraft. Although there are a handful of candidates to become the face of the new franchise, Akron striker Darren Mattocks stands out from the crowd. Mattocks netted 39 goals in just 47 games during his two-year career with the Zips. It's that type of production rate which has scouts raving about the Jamaican native, who was rarely not the best player on the pitch at the college level. His biggest asset is speed.As the old cliché goes, you can't teach it. He was able to blow by opposing defenders with that blistering pace and should have no problem carrying that trait over to the next level, although opposing back lines will be better prepared for it. There are other areas where he's going to need some work such as distribution, but there isn't a perfect prospect in the draft so Montreal just has to take the best player available. Mattocks should be able to make an immediate impact up front. Akron has quickly gained the reputation as one of the marquee schools when it comes to developing MLS talent and this class is no different with Mattocks leading ...

MLS Draft 2012: Sides in Biggest Need of a Drastic Makeover

Sure, the MLS SuperDraft loses some of its luster given teams turning to young foreign talent or filling out their roster by bringing up players from their own academies.That doesn't mean there aren't good, young players to be had through the draft, or teams that could use the help.So let's take a look at a few teams who are in serious need of a team makeover, and the young blood that might help them achieve greater success in 2012. New England RevolutionAfter finishing last in the Eastern Conference last season—and with a multitude of team needs—the team should be focused on selecting the best player left on the board.My guess is they'll add whichever of the two stud forwards that fall to them, UCLA's Chandler Hoffman or Akron's Darren Mattocks, and be quite happy with the selection. Toronto FCWith two picks in the top 12 selections of the first round, Toronto has the opportunity to add some much-needed depth to their squad heading into 2012.UConn center back Andrew Jean-Baptiste will fill a glaring need for the squad with the fourth pick, and with pick No. 12 the team will look to pick the top midfielder on the board, such as Greg Jordan, ...