My Very First Experience at a Major League Soccer Game

This past weekend, my friend and I had the privilege of attending a MLS game for the very first time. The game was taking place at the Home Depot Center located in Carson, California off of the 91 freeway. Parking was decent, but very expensive ($15 per car). Luckily, we arrived early so we had plenty of time to park, grab a bite to eat, and locate our seats. Even though we got the cheapest tickets available ($14 each for nosebleed seats), our view was still pretty good. Attendance was pretty high even though the LA Galaxy had already clinched spots in the playoffs. Most MLS fans and even non-soccer followers would know that the famous David Beckham plays for the LA Galaxy, and we got the opportunity of seeing him play and assist in two goals scored by the LA Galaxy team captain, Landon Donavon.

I have never really followed soccer before, except for a glimpse of a few games during the World Cup, but I have to admit soccer games are pretty exciting. I am an avid fan of baseball and football and I would definitely say that soccer is much more exciting to watch and experience than baseball games and almost as exciting as football games. The game consists for two 45-minute intervals with a brief intermission in between. The players do not sub-out during each interval so they are constantly on their feet. I have heard that soccer players run the distance of about 10 miles per game! Through out the entire game there were many chances for each team to score and a couple of players even got "yellow carded" (most least severe penalty where the player must sit out for a period of the game; to "red carded" is the more severe penalty where a player can thrown out for the entire game). The LA Galaxy ended up winning the game with a score of 2-0.

A couple of things I noticed about this MLS game which I've heard pertain to most MLS games. Certain teams have extreme fan bases called "squads" where a designated section of the stadium is roped off and these die-hard fans go all out in cheering their team and demoting the opposite team. They also come up with their own special songs or rally chants. Even during the games they will spray confetti or streamers on to the field. They can get pretty rowdy, but it all adds up to the anticipation and excitement of the event, especially if it is for your home team. Another popular thing at MLS games are that the fans sport team "scarves" which are basically scarves with the team name/log and team colors. Fans will wear them at the games and whenever their teams scores a goal they will hold up the scarves like they are banners and cheer which I think is pretty awesome.

The night I went happened to be "Fan Appreciation Night" and all merchandise was 40% off. Needless to say, the lines were swamped and inventory was scarce. I managed to get a $63 jersey for only $37, which is a great deal considering I had just purchased a MLS jersey for a friend for $70. My friend got a scarf for $12 (originally $21). I really enjoyed the game and the entire night as a whole and I am definitely looking forward to going to another MLS game.