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Full name | Los Angeles Galaxy | ||
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Nickname(s) | Galaxy | ||
Founded | 1995 | ||
Stadium | The Home Depot Center Carson, California (Capacity: 27,000) |
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Owner | ![]() |
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Manager | ![]() |
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League | Major League Soccer | ||
2009 | Western Conference: 1st Overall: 2nd Playoffs: Final |
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The Los Angeles Galaxy (L.A. Galaxy) is an American professional soccer club based in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, California. The club is a member of Major League Soccer (MLS). It is one of the ten charter franchises of MLS and the league's second most-decorated club, after D.C. United.
The club has won the MLS Cup twice (2002, 2005), the U.S. Open Cup twice (2001, 2005), and one of just two MLS teams to win the CONCACAF Champions League championship, which they accomplished in 2000. L.A. plays its home matches at The Home Depot Center in Carson, sharing it with rival C.D. Chivas USA. Galaxy and Chivas play in an annual derby known as Honda SuperClasico.
In January 2007, the club made international headlines by signing English superstar David Beckham, to a record deal potentially worth $250 million.
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Los Angeles is home to a storied soccer tradition. The first professional soccer team in the Los Angeles area was the Los Angeles Kickers, formed in 1955 by the former owner of the Fall River Marksmen, Sam Mark.
Prior to the launch of Major League Soccer in 1996, teams from Los Angeles teams played in the Western American Soccer League, the North American Soccer League and the American Soccer League/A-League, winning ten league championships (1955, 1957, 1958, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1974, 1976), seven Lamar Hunt US Open Cups (1958, 1964, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1981), four regional championships (1955, 1956, 1958, 1961) and one international championship (1975). George Best, Johan Cruyff, and many others graced the soccer field with their presence during this period in Los Angeles soccer history, for clubs such as the Los Angeles Aztecs and Los Angeles Salsa.
Los Angeles officially adopted and recognized the city's soccer heritage during the opening of the Home Depot Center in June 2003. In addition, the stadium features several tributes recognizing the soccer tradition in Los Angeles.[1]
Major League Soccer was founded in 1993 as part of the United States' bid to host the 1994 FIFA World Cup.[2] The first season took place in 1996 with Los Angeles being one of the ten founding teams. The name "Galaxy" was derived from Los Angeles being home to the 'stars' of Hollywood.[3] Los Angeles began well by clinching 1st in the Western Conference and finishing second in the MLS Cup after losing to D.C. United in the final. Their 1997 Season started out with a 1-7 after 8 games, but went 15-9 for the rest of the season to qualify for the playoffs. The Galaxy ended up 2nd in their conference by losing to Dallas Burn. In 1998, the Galaxy left off on a streak, and eventually finishing 24-8. The Galaxy defeated the Dallas Burn, 9-3 on aggregate. They lost at the final to the Chicago Fire, 1-2 on aggregate. The Galaxy again finished first in their Western Conference in 1999, with a final record of 20-12, with a win in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, but they lost to the United again 2-0. The 2000 season had the Galaxy in 2nd in the Western Division, at 14-10-8. Despite this, they lost to the Kansas City Wizards after a tied aggregate and a sudden death game. 2001 was another succesful year for the Galaxy, winning the Open Cup and scoring 1000 all time points, and with Cobi Jones scoring the 300 goal, but again they fell short by being defeated by Landon Donovan and the San Jose Earthquakes. Again the Galaxy clinched first in the Western Conference with a 16-9-3 record, their fifth time being first. Finally the Galaxy won their first MLS Cup by defeating the Chicago Fire. 2003 was a poor year, finishing 4th because they were forced to play away games due to stadium construction, though they got a good rhythm and finished 9-12-9. The Galaxy bounced back by gaining 2nd with a 11-9-10 record. The Galaxy lost to the Wizards in the final, 0-2. With 2005 came on of the Galaxy's most recognized players, Landon Donovan. The Galaxy won the Open Cup again ending with a record of 13-13-6 to cap off their first decade. The Galaxy has a distinction of making all the playoffs in the 10 seasons.[4]
The 2006 season began on March 16 with the sudden death of Doug Hamilton, the team's 43-year-old general manager, who suffered a heart attack on board a plane carrying the team back from Costa Rica where they had played Saprissa in the CONCACAF Champions' Cup.[5] The team finished fifth in the Western Conference, eliminating them from playoff contention for the first time since the league's inception. Midway through the season, Steve Sampson was sacked as Head Coach,[6] replaced by Frank Yallop.[7] The team managed to make a run to the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup final, but lost 3-1 against the Chicago Fire.
In March 2007 Herbalife signed a five-year deal,worth between $4–5 million a year, with Los Angeles to be the primary shirt sponsor.[8] Four months later, the club signed David Beckham from Real Madrid C.F.. His debut was made at The Home Depot Center before a record crowd of nearly 35,000,[9] including many celebrities,[10] [11], coming on in the 78th minute in a 1-0 loss to Chelsea in a match during the World Series of Football tournament. The match brought unprecedented TV coverage from ESPN, who used 19 cameras to cover it, including one trained only on Beckham, even when he was on the bench.[12] The match set an all-time record high for TV ratings for MLS on ESPN.[12] In that season's SuperLiga Los Angeles reached the final, but lost to C.F. Pachuca on penalties after extra time. Los Angeles nearly made the end-of-season play-offs, but were eliminated following a 1-0 loss to the Chicago Fire. In the off-season, Cobi Jones retired and, amidst rumors that he was going to be sacked, Yallop resigned as head coach following a friendly match at Home Depot Center. The San Jose Earthquakes, bought out his contract and offered a 3rd round draft pick to Los Angeles to make Yallop their new head coach.[13] Yallop was replaced at Los Angeles by Ruud Gullit, who signed a three-year contract with the club which made him the highest paid coach in MLS history.[12] Cobi Jones returned as assistant coach. Los Angeles went on a promotional tour of Australia and New Zealand, setting attendance records in both countries.[14] They also played a tour of Asia, and competed in the inaugural Pan-Pacific Championship in Honolulu, Hawaii,[15] finishing third after beating Sydney 2–1 in the third-place match.[16]
In the 2008 MLS season, Los Angeles went on a seven-game winless streak which saw them drop from first place in the Western Conference to outside playoff contention, prompting the resignation of manager Ruud Gullit and firing of general manager Alexei Lalas.[17] Gullit was replaced by Bruce Arena, but he was not able to lead Los Angeles into a play-off spot, for the third-straight season.[18]
In the following off-season both club captain David Beckham and vice-captain Landon Donovan were involved in loan deals with European clubs until the beginning of the new MLS season; Beckham to A.C. Milan in Italy and Donovan to German club FC Bayern Munich. Donovan was seeking a permanent transfer to Munich, whilst Beckham was expected to return to L.A. in March, prior to the 2009 season.[19] Beckham went on to seek a permanent transfer to Milan, in a bid to sustain his England career through the 2010 World Cup,[20] and Milan made a bid for the player, which was rejected by Los Angeles.[21] One day before his loan deal was to expire, Milan and Los Angeles reached an agreement to allow Beckham to stay in Italy until the conclusion of the Rossoneri's season in June, before returning to Los Angeles in July.[21] Donovan was not offered a contract by Bayern, and returned to the US in time for the beginning of the 2009 MLS season.[22] In the book The Beckham Experiment by Grant Wahl, Donovan openly criticized Beckham for his handling of the loan deals. Beckham and Donovan would later reconcile upon Beckham's return to Los Angeles in July.[23]
Los Angeles finished the 2009 season top of the Western Conference, and runners-up in the MLS Supporters' Shield, qualifying for the 2009 MLS Cup. They reached the final by beating Chivas 3–2 on aggregate in the quarter-final, and Houston Dynamo 2–0, after extra time, in the semi-final. In the final they drew 1–1 with Real Salt Lake at Qwest Field in Seattle, Washington, but lost 5–4 on penalties. By reaching the final they qualified for the 2010–11 CONCACAF Champions League Preliminary Round.
After the 2009 success, both Donovan and Beckham again went out on second loan spells. Donovan went to Everton FC, while Beckham returned to AC Milan.
The Los Angeles Galaxy's mascot is "Cozmo", a frog-like extraterrestrial. It is said that Cozmo was beamed down to The Home Depot Center from his intergalactic spaceship on June 7, 2003.
The team’s website claims that Cozmo is also “universally known as a goalkeeper who can stop shots traveling at the speed of light,” but also possesses the speed and skill to play forward for any team on the planet.
Cozmo is loved for his antics while entertaining fans during games. In addition, he makes special appearances throughout Southern California, representing the team and is known for teaching kids the basics of soccer.
Cozmo replaced the Galaxy's original mascot, "Twizzle", who also looked like it was from outer space but was more humanoid in form, wearing a space-man's helmet and cape.[27]
Los Angeles Galaxy matches are televised regionally in English on Fox Sports West & Fox Sports Prime Ticket alternatively.[28]
Radio coverage of regular season matches are broadcasted on KLAC AM 570 (Los Angeles/Orange County) & KTLK 1150 AM alternatively in English and in Spanish on KWKW 1330 AM (Los Angeles). Joe Tutino does the English play-by-play while Rolando "El Veloz" Gonzalez (Play-By-Play) and Armando Aguayo (Commentary) handle the Spanish broadcasts.[29]
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As of August 5, 2010.[30]
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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13 – Cobi Jones, Midfielder, 1996–2007
This list of former players includes those who received international caps while playing for the team, made significant contributions to the team in terms of appearances or goals while playing for the team, or who made significant contributions to the sport either before they played for the team, or after they left. It is clearly not yet complete and all inclusive, and additions and refinements will continue to be made over time.
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MLS regular season only, as of 21 September 2008[31]
Year | Name | Country |
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2009 | Landon Donovan | ![]() |
2008 | Landon Donovan | ![]() |
2007 | Chris Klein | ![]() |
2006 | Landon Donovan | ![]() |
2005 | Herculez Gomez | ![]() |
2004 | Kevin Hartman | ![]() |
2003 | Kevin Hartman | ![]() |
2002 | Carlos Ruiz | ![]() |
2001 | Ezra Hendrickson | ![]() |
2000 | Simon Elliott | ![]() |
1999 | Kevin Hartman | ![]() |
1998 | Cobi Jones | ![]() |
1997 | Mauricio Cienfuegos | ![]() |
1996 | Eduardo Hurtado | ![]() |
The Golden Boot winner is the leading goal scorer at the end of the season (only goals in MLS count). This award did not exist from 1996 to 2004. The MLS Scoring Champion Award included both goal and assist totals those years.
Year | Name | Country | Goals |
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2009 | Landon Donovan | ![]() |
12 |
2008 | Landon Donovan | ![]() |
20 |
2007 | Landon Donovan | ![]() |
8 |
2006 | Landon Donovan | ![]() |
12 |
2005 | Landon Donovan | ![]() |
12 |
Year | Name | Country |
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2009 | Donovan Ricketts | ![]() |
2008 | Sean Franklin | ![]() |
2007 | Ty Harden | ![]() |
2006 | Chris Albright | ![]() |
2005 | Tyrone Marshall | ![]() |
2004 | Tyrone Marshall | ![]() |
2003 | Danny Califf | ![]() |
2002 | Alexi Lalas | ![]() |
2001 | Greg Vanney | ![]() |
2000 | Danny Califf | ![]() |
1999 | Robin Fraser | ![]() |
1998 | Robin Fraser | ![]() |
1997 | Robin Fraser | ![]() |
1996 | Jorge Campos | ![]() |
The Los Angeles Galaxy play their home games at The Home Depot Center, a multiple-use sports complex located on the campus of California State University, Dominguez Hills in Carson, California, approximately 10 miles south of downtown Los Angeles. Its title sponsor is home-improvement retailer The Home Depot. The "HDC" is a 27,000-seat soccer-specific stadium, the second of its kind in the MLS.[32]
Year | Regular Season |
Playoffs | U.S. Open Cup | CONCACAF Champions League |
FIFA Club World Cup |
SuperLiga |
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1996 | 1st, West | Final | Did not enter | Did not enter | Started in 2007 | |
1997 | 2nd, West | Quarterfinal | Did not enter | Final | ||
1998 | 1st, West* | Semifinal | Did not enter | Qualifying playoff | ||
1999 | 1st, West | Final | Quarterfinal | Did not qualify | ||
2000 | 2nd, West | Semifinal | Semifinal | Champions | ||
2001 | 1st, West | Final | Champions | Did not qualify | Cancelled | |
2002 | 1st, West* | Champions | Final | Did not qualify | ||
2003 | 4th, West | Quarterfinal | Semifinal | Quarterfinal | ||
2004 | 2nd, West | Semifinal | Fourth Round | Did not qualify | ||
2005 | 4th, West | Champions | Champions | Did not qualify | ||
2006 | 5th, West | Did not qualify | Final | Quarterfinal | ||
2007 | 5th, West | Did not qualify | Third Round | Did not qualify | Runner-up | |
2008 | 6th, West | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | |
2009 | 1st, West | Final | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | |
2010 | Quarterfinal | Did not qualify (09-10) | ||||
2011 | Qualified to Preliminary (10-11) |
* Won MLS Supporters' Shield
Year | League Record | Top Scorer | |||||||
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P | W | L | D | F | A | Pts | Name | G | |
1996 | 32 | 19 | 13 | 0 | 59 | 49 | 49 | Eduardo Hurtado | 21 |
1997 | 32 | 16 | 16 | 0 | 55 | 44 | 44 | Welton | 11 |
1998 | 32 | 24 | 8 | 0 | 85 | 44 | 68 | Cobi Jones | 19 |
1999 | 32 | 20 | 12 | 0 | 49 | 29 | 54 | Cobi Jones/Carlos Hermosillo | 8 |
2000 | 32 | 14 | 10 | 8 | 47 | 37 | 50 | Cobi Jones | 7 |
2001 | 26 | 14 | 7 | 5 | 52 | 36 | 47 | Luis Hernández | 8 |
2002 | 28 | 16 | 9 | 3 | 44 | 33 | 51 | Carlos Ruiz | 24 |
2003 | 30 | 9 | 12 | 9 | 35 | 35 | 36 | Carlos Ruiz | 15 |
2004 | 30 | 11 | 9 | 10 | 42 | 40 | 43 | Carlos Ruiz | 11 |
2005 | 32 | 13 | 13 | 6 | 44 | 45 | 45 | Landon Donovan | 12 |
2006 | 32 | 11 | 15 | 6 | 37 | 37 | 39 | Landon Donovan | 12 |
2007 | 30 | 9 | 14 | 7 | 38 | 48 | 34 | Landon Donovan | 8 |
2008 | 30 | 8 | 13 | 9 | 55 | 62 | 33 | Landon Donovan | 20 |
2009 | 30 | 12 | 6 | 12 | 36 | 31 | 48 | Landon Donovan | 12 |
Total | 428 | 196 | 157 | 75 | 678 | 570 | 642 | Landon Donovan | 72 |
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