How the Los Angeles Galaxy Got Their Name
April 5th, 2011
I have been a Los Angeles Galaxy fan since before I moved to the city last year. I was aware of the MLS since its inception and became a Galaxy follower years after MLS play began. Having followed the Galaxy for years, I understand where the name came from.
However, not all of the clubs in MLS have names that are readably understandable to the casual fan.
For instance, Real Salt Lake has nothing to do with Utah or the Salt Lake City community. The owners wanted to associate their program with a historically successful Spanish side, Real Madrid. Luckily, for us Galaxy fans, our team's name makes a little more sense than "royal Salt Lake ", even though it still might require a little explanation.
Why is the Los Angeles MLS franchise named the Galaxy? It's really quite simple. Think about all of the "stars" in Hollywood . There's your answer to how the L.A. Galaxy got their name. The Galaxy embodied their name on the field as well.
Los Angeles was one of the original MLS franchises for the inaugural season in 1996. The Galaxy had some familiar soccer stars in Cobi Jones and Mexican goalkeeper Jorge Campos. The Galaxy also had an actor on the team. Melrose Place 's Billy Campbell (Andrew Shue) played in five games for the Galaxy in 1996. Shue was a midfielder who only recorded one assist but also set up a win over San Jose during L.A. 's 12 game season-opening win streak.
Personally, I like the Galaxy as a name for the team. It still fits the club. We have arguably the two most recognizable players in the league in Landon Donovan and David Beckham.
I agree with Jorge Campos who said during the inaugural season "Of course our team is full of stars", "We're the Galaxy."
Los Angeles Galaxy Announce Reserve League Schedule: Fan's Take (Yahoo! Contributor Network) The Los Angeles Galaxy Reserve League schedule has been released. Once again, the MLS Reserve League has been divided into three conferences: Central, Eastern and Western. The Central and Western conferences both have six teams while the Eastern conference has seven teams. Omar Gonzalez Continues Injury Rehab in Good Spirits: Fan's Report (Yahoo! Contributor Network) Los Angeles Galaxy central defender Omar Gonzalez continues his injury rehab after his tearing his ACL while on loan in Germany in January. Gonzalez is in surprisingly good spirits given the circumstances. One collision during his first practice with FC Nuremberg while on loan has... Galaxy Midfielder Michael Stephens Called Up for U-23 National Team: Fan's Reaction (Yahoo! Contributor Network) Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder Michael Stephens has been called up once again by Caleb Porter to the U.S. Under-23 National Team. Stephens was also called up in January. Stephens is one of 15 MLS players on Porter's 23-man roster. Donovan picked as Everton's top player in January (PA SportsTicker) Landon Donovan has been picked as Everton's player of the month for January for the second time in three years.
The Galaxy opened their stadium, the Home Depot Center on June 7. But in order for their home to be ready, the team had to play a record 8 games to start the season and failed to win a game. In fact, the Galaxy finish the season without a win away from home the whole season. After the season's final game, the Galaxy had the final playoff spot in the West. In their aggregate series with the Earthquakes, they seemed well on to vindication for the MLS Cup loss 2 years earlier as they held 4 goals to 0 lead midway through the 2 nd game. A thing happened as the Earthquakes scored four unanswered goals to force a tiebreaker. In that session, the Earthquakes' Rodrigo Farina score to send the Quakes onto the next round.
In 2004 Looking to return to the top, the Galaxy would go through a mediocre 1 st half of the season before 3 straight wins over the summer. But from July 14 on, the Galaxy won only 2 more games, one in September and one in October. The Galaxy had a record of 11-9-10, good enough for 2nd in the West and the playoff, remaining the only club in MLS to have a playoff spot in every year of league in the playoffs, the Galaxy withstood an early challenge from the Rapids to win the aggregate goal series, 2-1, scoring 2 times in Game 2. In the conference final, the Galaxy's season would come to an end in Kansas with a 2-0 loss to Arnaud and the Wizards.
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