Although you can't argue with the fact that David Beckham decided to turn down an awful lot of money and the lure of several major clubs in order to continue pursuing a career in the MLS, proving a number of soccer betting tips wrong in the process, that fact fades into insignificance when you realise that not only does Becks want to stick around because he enjoys playing in North America, but also because he has a vested interest in staying for the long term in order to take advantage of the clause in his contract that means he could become the owner of an MLS franchise once his deal expires.

Omar Gonzalez will return to LA Galaxy after suffering a serious injury in his first training session while on loan with German side FC Nurnberg.
The 23-year-old defender will have surgery for a left ACL rupture after colliding with right-back and fellow American Timothy Chandler. He has officially been recalled from his loan spell by the Galaxy to undergo treatment.

After training with Premier League Arsenal during the MLS off-season, Henry signed a two-month loan deal with the North London club and made his debut against Leeds United at the Emirates Stadium in the FA Cup third round. He showed why he is considered an all-time great with a trademark finish just minutes after his introduction.

New York Red Bulls striker Thierry Henry's protracted loan move to Arsenal has finally been confirmed.
The 34-year-old will return to the Gunners on a two-month loan deal and could feature in Monday's FA Cup third round clash with Championship side Leeds United at the Emirates Stadium.
The soccer betting tips are had predicted Henry would make a dramatic return as soon as it was announced that he would train with the Gunners during the MLS off-season.

Although it's fair to say that Arsenal have enjoyed a rather strange season, lurching from one extreme to another, the fact remains that they have somehow managed to get themselves back in contention for a Champions League place, something that seemed like a distant dream after the crushing 8-2 defeat they suffered against Manchester United early in the season.

The San Jose Earthquakes have snapped up FC Dallas striker Marvin Chavez for allocation money.
The 28-year-old Honduras international scored six goals in 31 appearances for Dallas last season, having previously played for Victoria and Marathon in his homeland.
He also scored the decisive goal in Dallas' 1-0 victory at Pumas UNAM in the group stage of the CONCACAF Champions League in August, the first-ever victory by an MLS side in Mexico in any competition, and has been popular among the soccer betting tips ever since.

The Carlos Tevez saga continues to overshadow all potential transfer dealings of Manchester City in the transfer window. City have rejected a loan offer from Milan for the want away striker while there are rumors that Spurs might make an audacious bid for the Argentinian.
The issue of course is not the size of the transfer fee; Tottenham can afford that, but rather Tevez's wage packet, which would break the salary structure at White Hart Lane.

Bolton Wanderers and West Brom have stepped up their interest in the highly-rated New York Red Bulls defender Tim Ream.
The 24-year-old USA international has spent time recently training with both Premier League sides and was impressed with what he saw.
He said: "I really enjoyed both clubs and I was treated very well.

By ANTHONY ZILIS

Patrick Nyarko turned and pointed out the window of Palace Gate Restaurant on a chilly October day in uptown Chicago, where he was having lunch with Fire teammate Dominic Oduro. He can't look at an open space in a cramped city, like the small parking lot outside, without being reminded of his childhood soccer games.

By 1916, exhibition soccer games on Christmas Day were a Philadelphia tradition that dated back at least to the inaugural season of the city's first organized league, the Pennsylvania Football Union, in 1889. As was the case then, the exhibition game in 1916 took place at the grounds of one of Philadelphia's professional baseball teams, this time at the Phillies Ball Park.

Referee Alejandro Mariscal gained some international experience during France's 1-1 tie against Brazil
The 2011 Development Academy Winter Showcase provides an opportunity for the country's top referees to be identified and trained in a positive learning environment. No test at the Premier Sports Campus here in Lakewood Ranch, Fla.

The Hat Trick

- Seattle Sounders' announcer Arlo White has been named as the lead soccer announcer for NBC Sports. This means he will be on the national MLS games NBC inked back in August. He will also take the lead for other soccer games like the Summer Olympics coming up. SB Nation's Jeremiah Oshan writes very favorably on the idea:

The first thing you'll notice about him is that he knows his subjects as well as anyone.

LSU football coach Les Miles has his Tigers at the top of the national college football polls, but he also has his priorities properly balanced - with family always first.
Jordan Freis writes of the top coach and father of the LSU Tigers.
I read a wonderful article on LSU's head football coach Les Miles today.

STARTERS
My pick to win MLS Cup 2011 Seattle was knocked out last night! There goes my chance to meet & charm Erin Mayovsky too. Damnit!
dN
No longer the interim - Frank Klopas was named the head coach of the Chicago Fire for next season.
-The team went 7-2-1 in the last 10 game with Klopas in charge.

The NSC Minnesota Stars won one of the most dramatic soccer games ever played last Saturday night, knocking off #1 seed Carolina RailHawks in the Semifinals of the NASL playoffs.
Leading 1-0 from the 1st leg the Stars went to Carolina and get off in grand style by scoring first in Leg 2 to go on top 2-0.

Is there any sadder image in sport than the face of an older striker after scoring a goal? After scoring, young men sprint to the corner flag, their eyes ablaze, their mouths agape, and feverish plans to dance & shout & cry race through their minds. By contrast, an aging striker will pump his fist at a teammate or may wave to the crowd.

RSL hopes to get back on track in Vancouver tonight. (Getty Images)

It is an international break weekend in the soccer world but unfortunately for some hoping to have a break we do have three Major League Soccer games to discuss in Week 30. As I posted earlier, two of the three games have playoff implications while the other game is more about playing for 2012.

The FIFA and JFF staff on the final day of the FIFA Women's Com-Unity Seminar in Kingston, Jamaica.

I was invited to serve as the Communications Instructor for the FIFA Women's Com-Unity Seminar in Kingston, Jamaica, last week. It was an incredibly special opportunity for which I am grateful to many people for making happen.

The FIFA and JFF staff on the final day of the FIFA Women's Com-Unity Seminar in Kingston, Jamaica.

I was invited to serve as the Communications Instructor for the FIFA Women's Com-Unity Seminar in Kingston, Jamaica, last week. It was an incredibly special opportunity for which I am grateful to many people for making happen.

The one thing I have noticed about teams that have won titles, is that they take their chances – I mean even the one chance you would consider slightest, to win a football match. Pundits have termed it ‘champion's luck' but in actual sense, every team has this champions luck. What makes the difference is that some teams take these chances and win titles; others do not and end up in the championship!

The University of Connecticut men's soccer team was close to its first blemish on the season, but Nickardo Blake made sure the team's perfect record stayed intact.

Blake ripped home a rebound off a corner kick for his first goal of the season with 61 seconds remaining in the second period of overtime to pace the No.

By FRANCO PANIZO

Whether you're a fan of the FIFA series or if you prefer the Pro Evolution Soccer games, Tuesday marks the end of a long wait.

For the first time ever, both FIFA and Pro Evolution Soccer video games are set to drop the latest installments of their respective video games for the Playstation 3 and Xbox360 on the same day.

More then a week ago, Fox tried something new and they were rewarded for it. After showing the Manchester United vs. Chelsea game live on FSC, the network decided to show the game on their regular Fox stations after the local NFL was over.
In Philly it was during the 1 p.m., while in other cities it was the 4 p.

Complete listing of soccer games on TV this weekend after the jump: Fri Sept 16 2:30pmFreiburg vs StuttgartESPN Deportes, ESPN3.

(Summary is not available.)

While UW-Milwaukee's win over city rival Marquette in the teams' annual Milwaukee Cup match drew much of the attention this week, there were more men's soccer games to be played.

Both the Panthers and Golden Eagles had letdowns on their home fields Sunday, while UW-Green Bay bounced back nicely out west after a disappointing loss Friday.

LA soccer original: The Times' Grahame L. Jones in his natural habitat - The Home Depot Center press box.

I sat next to long-time LA Times soccer reporter Grahame L. Jones in the press box at Galaxy, Chivas USA and assorted other soccer games for the last decade or so of his almost four decade-long career.

Let's go ahead and file this under the "duh" section. Ziggy Wilf, the owner of the NFL's Minnesota Vikings is hoping his new stadium for the Vikes will have a "moveable" roof on it. Reason being, he wants a MLS club.

Wilf came to the realization that getting a MLS club would add additional revenue to his pockets and make a new stadium for Minneapolis worthwhile.

So this is what it means to get relegated from a soccer channel to a nationally televised channel along with their soon to be re-named sports network? So this is how it feels when one of the three national broadcasters in the United States decides to promote our country's first division league during an NFL pre-season game?

A few weeks ago we traveled back to the land of beer and cheese, Wisconsin, for a family reunion. Wisconsin is the place where the idea for the Free Beer Movement was birthed (induced... with beer, of course) and the where we cut our teeth playing soccer from the youth level on up to college (intramurals.

Can Portland knock off KC at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park? (Getty Images)

While most eyes will be on the two CONCACAF Champions League matches tonight, others will be focused a bit on the two Major League Soccer games that are on the schedule. Both should be pretty good too as each have playoff implications written all over them.

American sporting public: meet MLS.

It's one of the truths hard-core soccer fans like us don't want to face: Major League Soccer is closer to Minor League Soccer for most casual sports fans in this country.

That's why Los Angeles-based Fox Soccer Channel's loss will be the sports' gain when it switches to be the soon to be something other than Verses next year:

AP Sports Writer Rachel Cohen has the details:

NEW YORK (AP) -- Major League Soccer games will be televised by NBC's networks starting next season, doubling the number of homes that dozens of games will be available in.

Big day for soccer fans in the U.S. as NBC outbid Fox Soccer Channel for the rights to televise 45 Major League Soccer games and four US Men's National Team matches per season. FSC currently has the rights for the remainder of 2011 so this new deal will begin next season.

NBC will televise two regular season MLS games, two playoff games and two appearances by the USMNT, while the NBC Sports Network (currently VERSUS) will broadcast 38 regular-season games, three playoff games and two USMNT matches.

By CALEB SONNELAND

45 Major League Soccer games and four US Men's National Team matches per season.

That's the television rights deal that NBC reached with the MLS today. NBC itself will televise two regular season MLS games, two playoff games and two appearances by the USMNT, while the NBC Sports Network (currently VERSUS) will broadcast 38 regular-season games, three playoff games and two USMNT matches.

The time differences between Miama & Madrid halts me watching live the Football - Soccer games, I prefer at 02.00 local time to be resting. The surprise was to wake up & find that FC BARCELONA was defeated 1 - 4 by Mexican team CHIVAS DE GUADALAJARA in their friendly game. FC Barcelona The higlights showed that FC Barcelona had a good first half with DAVID VILLA scoring early & even hitting

(Summary is not available.)

The New England Revolution today announced the signing of 22-year old Argentine forward Milton Caraglio to a Designated Player contract. Caraglio most recently played for Rosario Central, scoring 11 goals in 49 appearances for his home town club. He missed most of the 2009-2010 season with a ligament injury in his knee.

Over at Feministe, Kate Goldwater's friend Patrick Reis describes his first trip to a WPS game in New Jersey:

The quality of play was amazing. Without exception, it was a field full of world-class athletes playing at the highest level – minus the flopping, fighting and constant kvetching common to certain other not-to-be-named professional sports leagues.

Individual tickets to all University of Denver men's and women's soccer games at CIBER Field go on sale Friday at 9 a.m.

Individual game tickets during the 2011 season are $8 for a reserved seatback and $5 for general admission, and may be purchased by phone at 303-871-2336, online at DenverPioneers.

(Summary is not available.)