David vs Goliath

David Beckham returned to the Galaxy last week from his 5-month loan to AC Milan. For those who aren't up to speed, he let it be known that he wanted to stay with AC Milan, but negotiations for the Italian team to purchase him from the Galaxy fell through. He finished up his time with AC Milan and is now back to Los Angeles.

For what it's worth, the Galaxy defeated the lowly New York Red Bulls, the Detroit Lions of the MLS. But the whole Beckham thing hasn't really been about wins and losses. At least not anymore.

The Beckham Experiment, to many, is officially a failure. Why? Because 90% of the United States thinks so, and nothing that David Beckham can do can change it. Even if the Los Angeles Galaxy outscore opponents by 6 goals each game and destroy everyone en route to an MLS Cup, perceptions won't really change.

I don't really blame him, though. David Beckham's quest to raise the sport of soccer into the consciousness of America was sabotaged early and often.

Fundamentally it was going to be tough because Beckham is a table setter. He enhances the play of those around him. Many times, the things that Beckham does well go unnoticed. America is uninterested in role players.

Then he got injured. America has no mercy for the weak.

Then the Galaxy decided even though they were spending eleventy billion dollars on David Beckham, spending another few million to get some decent defenders and a decent goalie wasn't worth it. The Galaxy have essentially been the Clippers of the MLS while Beckham has been with the team. America has no tolerance for losers.

Finally, Beckham officially wanted out. He wanted to stay in Italy and play with his fellow Europeans. He didn't want to come back to Los Angeles if he didn't have to. America rejects you; you don't reject America.

Beckham will probably opt out of his Galaxy contract at the end of the year and most likely sign with a club team in Europe. He will probably never set foot on another converted-from-an-NFL-field soccer pitch in the United States ever again.

It seems like there are a lot of people who now hate David Beckham for trying to stay in Milan. I'm not one of those people.

I am a realist.

If something has gone completely not according to plan, I'm going to try to find a way out of it. That's what Beckham did, and that's what I would have done.

Let's say you did something against the rules, like leaving early from work without telling anyone and getting paid for it or calling in sick but not really being sick at all. Let's say you were pretty sure that you weren't going to ever have to own up to it. Now if someone goes around the office the next month asking everyone if they ever left work early or took a sick day without actually being sick, and everyone else was saying "no", wouldn't you say "no" also, just to avoid the hassle of having to explain yourself about something that is done and over with? I absolutely would! And I absolutely would lie to a reporter if I took steroids and was asked if I had ever taken steroids. Why would you say "yes" when there's no proof against you? Why would you bring that upon yourself? Everyone likes to say that if they were A-Rod they would have admitted to Katie Couric in 2007 that they used steroids instead of lying about it, but when push comes to shove most people would lie and not even flinch.

But I digress.

The MLS will not reach levels of popularity even remotely close to baseball, basketball and football in the United States anytime soon. The obstacles in the way are too big to be conquered by any one soccer player. There will be more like Beckham to come in the future, though probably none with the expectations the English midfielder faced.

Ultimately, the MLS will not be a major force in the sporting world unless a number of players raised and trained in the United States with skill and marketability show loyalty and commitment to the growth of MLS.

When you think about David Beckham and his impact on soccer in America, don't hold him to the standard of his Biblical namesake. The fact that people are even talking about the MLS should be enough to consider The Beckham Experiment a success.