Desert Diamond Cup Tournament: Night Two

Saturday night I covered the second evening of Desert Diamond Soccer Tournament play. At 6 p.m. the L.A Galaxy and Real Salt Lake played an intense game which the Galaxy won 2-0. Real Salt Lake came out strong initially taking shots and making Galaxy goal keeper Josh Saunders work hard early and often. However, red cards given to Salt Lake players Ned Grabavoy and Yordany Alvarez tipped the scale sin favor of the Galaxy. Soon after the ejection of those players the Galaxy were able to exploit their two man advantage and forward Paulo Cardozo scored from 20 yards out in the 81st minute of play. Just two minutes later a beautiful pass from midfielder David Beckham to forward Mike Magee doubled the Galaxy’s lead. Saturday night the tournament brought in a crowd of roughly 8500. Fans came from all over Arizona; places like Tucson, Benson and Saffrod. Others came from Los Angelos,California, and Albuquerque, New Mexico.

One thing I struggled to find though was fans from Mexico. I asks many different people at the event and could not seem to find anyone from across the border. I was definitely expecting to find more Mexicans to talk to who had made the trip from Mexico to Tucson to watch the games. Another observation was the huge crowd turnout for the Galaxy. The Galaxy and David Beckham are certainly the main draw of the tournament. Whenever Beckham had the ball in his possession a roar would rise up from the crowd in eager anticipation of seeing him famously “bend it like Beckham”. One thing the tournament does need to work on is keeping interest in the other teams. Many people left after the first game, in which the Galaxy were playing. To avoid this, the tournament organizers may want to keep the Galaxy playing in the later game, this way more people will be at the stadium for both games.

Nogales, Arizona: Citizens Speak Out

With all the negative media coverage that border areas get and all the attention to violence between drug cartels and law enforcement, on both sides of the border, I was eager to get down to Nogales and talk to citizens of this city. I sought to give them a forum in which they could express their views and concerns of and for their city. I also wanted to find out what the citizens of the city think about their safety and  quality of life. Talking to many different people I got some answers I was not expecting.

Many different people were telling me the same things. The general consensus I got from people was that the violence and danger being portrayed in the media about the border is not exactly accurate.

People like 51-year-old Mary Darling told me  she feels completely safe in her city. She said she never hesitates to go out in her yard or take her dogs for a walk in the early evening. She explained that there are no bullets flying over her head, that she does not wear Kevlar, and that taking a day to go into Mexico for shopping and dining is no “death-defying act”. This is something Darling feels more people need to know. However, Darling feels that security at random checkpoints and legal border crossings are not very efficient and can, at times, over step privacy boundaries by asking people, “Where are you going and what are you doing?”. She also feels that passport policies can make traveling through these checkpoints and border crossings a “drama” for some. People coming down from Canada for a golf tournament in Southern Arizona may be caught by surprise when they learn they need a passport to be able to pass through checkpoints on Interstate 19. After all, they already have shown their passport to get into America, so why would they need to show it again just to get from one city in Arizona to another? Upon passing through these checkpoints, a Canadian will be asked if they are a U.S citizen. When they say, “no”, they will face secondary questioning and possible detention, especially if they have left their passport in their hotel room, thinking they wont possibly need it traveling within the state of Arizona. If a debacle like this occurs, it will most likely discourage Canadians from making the trip down to Arizona if they have to worry about this kind of questioning and detention when all they are trying to do is participate in a golf tournament. These types of policies are a deterrent from travel, tourism and consumerism in Nogales and places like Tubac.

Another citizen I spoke to was Jesuit Priest, Father Peter Neeley. Neeley works for the Kino Border Initiative. the Kino Border Initiative (KBI), provides education, humanitarian aide and assistance along with other services for displaced or deported immigrants, migrants and refugees on the Mexican side of the border.  They provide hot meals and room and board for women and children traveling alone. Many of these people have been deported from the U.S and have nowhere to go, nothing to eat and no money. Father Neeley runs a cafeteria on the Mexican side of the border that feeds 3 square meals to over 200 people on a daily basis. Neeley feels that the border has been militarized in the name of safety against terrorism. He explained outside a city hall meeting, that members of congress are not willing to vote against money for border security. However, Neeley feels that the resources are not appropriated where they need to be. He feels that more of the security should be used at the legal border crossings and checkpoints instead of trying to capture people crossing the border out in the middle of the desert. Granted, it is important to make sure people are not crossing the border out in the middle of the desert, but, according to Neeley, crossing the border legally is now taking 5 times as long. He explained that a trip across the border that used to take 5 minutes is now taking near 25 minutes. This can be credited to more scrutiny at the legal border crossings with an understaffed amount of patrol at these crossings, according to Neeley. He feels if the resources were used at the actual legal crossings, more people could flow in and out of the country and that this would, in turn, boost tourism, travel, trade and other types of consumerism between the borders.

Lastly, I spoke with Connie Son, a 26-year-old owner of a clothing store called “Casa Sonia Fashion”. She explained to me that business has slowed considerably in the past three years. She told me how three years ago around Valentine’s Day, there was a line out the door. But this year, there are barely any customers shopping. Not only that, but Son explained that she has lost about 50 percent of her wholesale customers. Obviously terrible news for a small business owner. She and her family are hoping the economy will turn around soon because they do not want to lose their business.

One thing I kept hearing, that I was certainly not expecting to hear, was the fact that all these people feel incredibly safe within their city. Especially Mary Darling. Darling feels safe in her city and is extremely pleased with security at both the county and city level. Father Neeley explained that with all the law enforcement in Nogales; The U.S Marshals, homeland security, local law enforcement, border patrol and local sheriffs, there is a law enforcement officer for every three Nogales citizens. Connie Son explained that Nogales is an incredibly peaceful place. A place where people can leave their doors and windows unlocked, unlike her other home in California, which she describes as being a very dangerous area.

Border Beat

This post has nothing to do with MLS soccer. It actually has to do with a topic that coincides with the name of our publication, “Border Beat”. Reporting at the border is not an easy thing to do. If you are going to report at the border and you don’t have a translator, or you do not speak Spanish fluently yourself, then you better have some English speakers lined up in advance. I went down to Nogales this weekend, hoping to speak with anyone off the street who wanted to. I figured that I could easily go down and find people with an opinion they wanted to share. I was able to do this the first day. Probably because I went to a city hall meeting and waited for concerned citizens to come shuffling out. The second day, I just walked around town trying to speak with anyone who wanted to give me their opinion on any topic. Maybe that was a rookie move, or maybe it was naive, but I thought I could find people who would want to talk on camera without a problem. Most people did not want to talk to me at all. Maybe they assumed I had an ulterior motive or agenda when I said, “Talk about anything you want, anything you think people should know about Nogales or the border, or anything, it’s your opinion, ” I said. I did not think it would  be “Meet the Press”-type politico pundit banter, and that’s not what I wanted, like I said, I went to everyday people shopping on a sunday afternoon. I thought people would have an opinion about something, anything, that they would want to share, given the opportunity to do so. When I asked if many people came down to speak with people here, they said, “no.”

On one hand I am being told that barely anyone comes down to speak with them, and that they disliked that. But on another hand, when I try to get the opinion of someone who might be too busy working seven days a week to attend a town hall meeting, they don’t want to talk to me. Not about anything. Not with me at least. My Spanish is good enough to explain what I was doing and what I was hoping to get by being down there, but not good enough to translate their actual opinion. Maybe having a translator would show more effort on my part. I could see that. I could see why people would then be more willing to speak with me. Upon realization of this fact, I explained that I am a student at The University of Arizona, and that I drove from Tucson to Nogales to speak with actual people who live in Nogales, and give them a forum on which they could vent about a topical issue of their choice. I spoke to various consumers, people who owned stores or shops and people who worked in those stores, markets and shops. But I had very little success my second time out there. Very few people wanted to share their opinion. I feel like this is a common symptom of many people everywhere, stage fright.

 

PELADA

This past week I went to a screening of a documentary at The Loft Cinema. The name of the film was “Pelada“. The traditional meaning of the word Pelada in Brazil is “naked”.  But it also means a pick-up game of soccer, which is fitting because these type of pick-up games of soccer, or football as it is known in every other country of the world, is the sport in its rawest form . Some countries refer to a pick-up game of soccer as “taking a sweat” or “kicking the ball about”. These games are played on streets, in alleys, abandoned basketball courts or any open space or field they can find.  A young white American couple Luke Boughen and Gwendolyn Oxenham travel around the world going to 25 different countries, and their major cities, playing pick-up soccer games (Peladas) with anyone and everyone they can find. Both Luke and Gwendolyn were soccer players their entire life. Gwendolyn Oxenham was a star and captain of the Duke women’s soccer team. She was on two All-ACC (Atlantic Coastal Conference) teams and played professionally in Brazil for a team called Santos FC in 2005. Luke played for the Notre Dame men’s soccer team, helping them win Big East tournament and regular season titles. Both had high hopes to play at the professional level as their career, but sadly, it panned out for neither of them. But their love and passion for the game drove them to make this wonderful film in which they go to the far reaches of the earth looking to play in pick-up games anywhere, with anyone they can find.

The film is full of exotic locations, from some of the most poor and dangerous streets of Brazil and Argentina, to the valleys of Peru, the salt flats of Bolivia and the country sides of various European locations, like France, Germany, England and Italy.  In the crowded city of Tokyo,Japan pick-up games can only be played on special fields on the rooftops of skyscrapers. In Shanghai,China they discover a type of street soccer called “freestyling”, where players show off the various and extremely skilled tricks they have adapted to learn with such limited space. In the Middle East, cultural, political and religious differences clash. In Israel, within Jerusalem and Palestine, Jews and Arabs play together, on opposite teams. Tensions between the two groups are not put aside for the sake of the game, in fact they are on full display as disagreements and arguments break out left and right over questionable goals and fouls. InIran, Gwendolyn is forced to be extra careful because of Iranian national policy. Women are not supposed to play soccer there, especially not out in public with men. There are actual laws against it. Gwendolyn also has to wear a burqa during her time in the country. She does play in Iran, burqa and all. A dramatic moment arises as she is reported to the Iranian government for playing by an unknown person.  In the places where the game is played with meager means, such as Kenya, children make soccer balls from scratch using whatever they can find. In one location in Africa, a former garbage dump site has been turned into a playing field where weekly tournaments are held. The entire community watches the games which have the intensity of a professional game. 

 

 

People all over the world will play the game anyway and anywhere they can. In games played on the streets of a city, any two objects can represent the posts of a goal. Objects like rocks, sandals or anything people can find are neatly, but tightly, spaced to suit the small playing area. The film shows us the incredible passion for a game the whole world loves and the wonderful cultural experiences Luke and Gwendolyn have along their travels.

 

Filling the Baseball Void

For more than 60 years, over half a century and throughout the terms of ten different American Presidencies, Tucson has been a typical destination for off season and spring training baseball. Big league teams would come to Tucson during the winter months to train and and play pre-season games to prepare for the longest season of any professional American sport. The Colorado Rockies, The Arizona Diamondbacks and  The Chicago White Sox all used to come to Tucson for spring training. But to quote the famous Bob Dylan, “The times they are a changin'”.  Additionally this city has lost the Tucson Sidewinders (1998-2008) who were a triple A farm team, or affiliate, of the Arizona Diamondbacks. The The Tucson Toros were another Triple-A team who were affiliated with numerous Major League Baseball teams over the years. However, The Toros, who are currently on hiatus, have become an independent team in the Golden Baseball League, which has since merged with the North American Baseball League. Lastly, there is The Tucson Padres, who are a minor league triple-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. The Tucson Padres play in the Pacific Coast League. Their future in this city is uncertain.

All good things must come to an end as they say.  And “Every end can be seen as a new beginning” and “when one door closes, another door opens” as they say (who are “they” anyway).  Now that “spring training in Tucson is officially dead” , there are new opportunities for others to move in and fill that void. That is precisely the ambition and attitude of the front office of a certain semi professional team based out of Tucson. Now, just off the top of your head, try to think of a sport franchise that could potentially fill this void and help regain the millions of dollars lost by the departure of those Major League Baseball teams. Perhaps an NBDL basketball team? Or better yet, since it is America’s most popular sport, perhaps a semi pro football team?  Well no, it’s none of those.  It’s a semi pro soccer team, yea that’s right, I said soccer.

In 2010, just as baseball was making its final farewell from Tucson for good, a small semi pro soccer team was being founded: FC Tucson. A group of individuals in their front office had big plans to turn Tucson into a soccer town. Lots of professionals and businessmen in Tucson have big plans and big ideas for our city but rarely do they come to fruition as planned. However, the front office heads at FC Tucson didn’t just have big ideas, they had a vision and a well thought out strategic plan to back that idea up. The ultimate vision is to make Tucson into a central hub, or location of activity, for MLS teams to come and train during their long off season. They are like the little engine that could in a sense, just a small local semi pro team going across the country and meeting with front office representatives from the MLS and various professional soccer teams, inviting them to come train in Tucson and play in The 2012 FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup. People like co owners and partners Chris Keeney and Greg Foster (among many others) have been making giant strides toward achieving this goal (no pun intended). They have done and will continue to do various promotional events to draw attention to their tournament, the teams involved and Major League Soccer in general. The most notable of these events so far was a press conference held in Hermosillo, the capital city of Sonora, Mexico. They even had MLS  Executive Vice President Nelson Rodriguez there to show the support MLS has for their cause, which is to bring in as many fans as possible from across the Mexican-American border. They targeted cities like Nogales, Hermosillo and other Northern Mexican cities. They hope that the chance to see soccer stars like Rafael Márquez, who plays for the New York Red Bulls and is a Captain for the men’s Mexican National team will inspire soccer fans from these cities to cross the border into Tucson and stay for the tournament.

2012 FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup Preview

The second annual FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup is gearing up to kick off in a few weeks. The event is a round-robin preseason tournament and is considered the premiere preseason event for MLS teams as they get into serious preparation mode for the start of regular season play. Four Major League Soccer (MLS) teams will compete in the tournament this year, which is two more than last year.

 FC Tucson, who is hosting the tournament, are a semi-pro soccer team founded in 2010. FC Tucson plays in the Premiere Developmental League of the United Soccer League. Players in this league are mostly college-age kids from the Southwest who participate in the league during the summer months to develop skills and become better players. 

The tournament games will be played at Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium. The stadium, which is usually used as a baseball field, will be transformed into a pristine soccer pitch for the sake of the tournament. The first set of double-header matches are scheduled to kick-off Wednesday Feb. 22. The New England Revolution will play the L.A Galaxy at 6 p.m.and The New York Red Bulls will face-off against Real Salt Lake at 8 p.m.  Different double-header match ups are scheduled to be played on Wednesday and Saturday nights at 6 and 8 p.m. through March 3. The two teams that have earned the most points in the tournament, based on a point system that is yet to be determined by organizers, will face each other in the championship game on March 3 at 8 p.m. The two teams with the least points will play for third place in a consolation game at 6 p.m. before the championship.

 Some exciting news for the tournament will be the participation of the reigning MLS champion L.A Galaxy, who, late this past week, re-signed internationally known midfielder David Beckham. Beckham and the Galaxy agreed to a two-year contract worth $15 million according to the L.A Times. The Galaxy held a press conference last Friday with Beckham to officially announce the news. This means the 37-year-old celebrity soccer star will play in the Desert Diamond Cup. This is good news for the Cup’s organizers as it is sure to help bring more attention, press and help boost ticket sales. Chris Keeney, the Chief Business Officer, partner and co-owner of the FC Tucson club says the tournament and some of its promotional events are part of an effort to make Tucson a central focal point and a western hub for preseason MLS soccer. Keeney and others involved with FC Tucson’s planning of the tournament are hoping to make Tucson into a major preseason training location for MLS teams.  Members of the FC Tucson organization, like Keeney, are also hoping to attract new potential MLS fans from south of the border. By traveling to the city of Hermosillo, the capital city of Sonora, Cup organizers have done their best to promote the Desert Diamond Cup and expand the fan base of MLS soccer and the tournament.

The other clubs playing in the tournament include The New England Revolution, Real Salt Lake and The New York Red Bulls. The Red Bulls will play in the official MLS season opener on March 11 against FC Dallas. This match will be the first to be aired on NBC’s Sports Network since the league and the network began their partnership.

About my Blog

I will be blogging about the 2012 Desert Diamond Cup that’s coming to Tucson. It’s the premiere preseason soccer tournament for Major League Soccer (MLS). The 10 day tournament starts February 22nd and includes 4 MLS teams; The New England Revolution, The New York Red Bulls, The LA Galaxy and Real Salt Lake. I will do a blog to introduce the tournament and other posts will feature profiles of the teams involved, their star players and their young up and coming players. I will do both pregame and post game blog entries and talk about players that made the biggest impact in the games. I will also profile international players who have come to the U.S to play in the MLS and in this tournament.