Major League Soccer next year to shining-Long Beach Press-Telegram

The Galaxy that include Mike Magee, counterclockwise, Landon Donovan and Chris Birchall have the opportunity to fly Los Angeles a headline national achievement that can come from any other L.A. sports team anytime soon. (Stephen Dunn Getty Images)

The best chance for an athletic club based in Los Angeles to win a National Championship anytime soon as occurs today in suburban Carson.

This would be Major League Soccer's Los Angeles Galaxy, who crowd Favorites, in order to overcome the Houston Dynamo and argue that their first championship Title since 2005.

With USC ruled from the postseason because of NCAA sanctions, the Nuggets moribund due to the exclusion of the NBA and the Pirates dealt with the SOAP Opera off-the-field, it must be able to attract Southern California Football sports spotlight.

Never before has the sport-and Galaxy-was ready for a year when MLS Cup 2011 starts tonight on ESPN and Galavision.

The last time Major League Soccer Championship game took place in Carson of Home Depot Center barely caused a minor ripple in Southern California.

It helped that the game 2008 began at noon between a modest team from far-off New York and small-market Columbus in the depths of the worst economic crisis since the great depression.

What kind of Party atmosphere is that?

But still, this was MLS Cup, domestic football version of the Super Bowl.

However, the tickets were sold on the secondary market for $ 6, much lower than their nominal value. Sponsors, media and fans were almost invisible. And happy ignorance of you fan casual sport regarding the MLS was endemic.

"Is that an American League?" asked San Pedro residents Matt

Blaskovich honestly when asked if he had heard a few days before MLS game.

But a short three years later, with MLS Cup back in Southern California for the first time since then, the profile of professional football at the local level, and across the country could not be more different.

Contributes, of course, that the Galaxy finally managed to a MLS Cup played in their stadium-where they have resided for at least five times now since 1998-for the first time in the history of the League 16 years.

The game sold out 10 days beforehand, as is the requirement that tickets for unprecedented values in the secondary market, on Friday, tickets face value of $ 75 to $ 325 and power a website.

Cachet of the event at the 27,000 capacity adds exclusivity.

"If this game in the Rose Bowl will have 80,000 people (there)," said Tim Leiweke, President of Anschutz Entertainment Group, which is the owner of the Galaxy.

Then, finally, there is a legitimate phone about poster boy David Beckham, who had the best season in the League after five years of trying.

And this applies to the Galaxy in General, too.

Back in 2008, the franchise was a laughingstock of the League, with leading management sad club worst-ever eight wins on the season.

"Our sucked," said Leiweke just on Friday.

However, this year the rebuilt team enjoy the finest year, dominating MLS regular season en route to the title and unbeaten at home throughout the period for the first time.

But more than that.

After the World Cup 2010, which saw the southern Bush all ethnicities and tribes cram into bars and restaurants of phantom figures, MLS benefit, too.

TV ratings, revenue and membership is all about recovery, such as young hipsters discover more and more a sport with a buzz Insider popular via Twitter and blogs.

More media credentials were issued this year and events organized by the League sponsors than in any other MLS Cup game.

Vibe that was almost tangible Thursday during media party at the hip roof in exclusive standard hotel in downtown Los Angeles fog swirled around neighbouring skyscrapers.

Alternative rock band the new giant swing will perform "cough Syrup" before MLS Cup, underlining the gap generations which has the League to the NFL and accouterments rockers stage aging favored in the Super Bowl.

And of loosely organized fan groups largely 20-and 30-somethings will create an atmosphere of stormy tonight more comparable to a midnight crowd in college basketball between the Coors Lite culture of the NFL.

MLS is not fooling myself that the game is some sort of breakout moment when I suddenly program sport in mainstream media.

But the increased interest this year, there is a small somewhere between spontaneity and carefully cultivated marketing gives to sport a visibility that was never before.

In August, MLS and NBC announced a new $ 10 million, three-year agreement that will see games telecast this year about the new network of NBC Sports and parent network. This is an important step for the Fox Soccer Channel which shows little-known today, the majority of MLS games.

And announced Friday it was a 10-year, $ 55million local television rights deal with Time Warner begins next year, most lucrative nation Convention of this type.

These are big jumps for a league broadcast partners actually pays to see the games a few years ago.

"This caps off what is arguably the best year for MLS, Commissioner Don Garber said Friday.

Now the Galaxy must do their part by winning the game week in style, which can be played in a driving rainstorm, but should be more prime rib from Turkey to win fans of sports Southern California are still trying to digest fully MLS a Thanksgiving day.