The Galaxy's new stadium in Carson got its official blessing from the soccer gods on Friday night. Or at least three of them.
Pele, the greatest player of them all, was one of 1,200 guests at a gala dinner on the eve of today's opening and recalled that when he came to the United States almost three decades ago, the first stadium he played in, a baseball field on Randall's Island in New York, was so primitive "that the sand had to be painted green" to make it look better for soccer fans and television viewers.
He said his dream now was to see the U.S. men win the World Cup as the U.S. women have done twice already.
Phil Anschutz, the Denver billionaire who spent $150 million to turn a flower nursery on the campus of Cal State Dominguez Hills into a sports complex, made an exceptionally rare public speech.
