The Real Inauguration

Around 3 years ago, I saw an LA Galaxy game, against the Chicago Fire. That's nice, I hear you say, but there's more to it than it sounds. While we were climbing our way up to the seats, I saw a man wearing a Leeds United jersey. Even back then, there were in the Championship (one league down from the top for you non-soccer fans.
Fast-forward about 2 and a half years, and I found myself at a Peterborough Phantoms game. But where's the link?, you ask. Well at this game, there was a guy wearing a Manitoba Moose jersey. I was equally shocked to see this as the Leeds shirt in LA, because despite the billing of UK hockey fans as extremely passionate, you wouldn't expect to see a minor league sweater outside some old, converted warehouse in this corner of industrial England.

Well, that theory was proven right at the intermission, as I overheard a chat about Pascal Leclaire in the hockey shop. Sure, he was riding a hot streak at the time, but this is Pascal Leclaire, who for the first portion of his career was only a back up to Marc Denis in Columbus. Well, congragulations go to whoever it was that said that British hockey fans are passionate and knowledgable. They are also the the only fan group to have their own official little organziation, something they relish hanging over the heads of sides like Russia and Sweden. It remains to be seen if US soccer fans are as passionate about their games as is the case with hockey here in britain, but with the imminent arrival of Becks on the Hollywood block, all could soon change...