RSL Returns to the Road Sunday at Chivas USA
After closing out a three-game homestand with last weekend's 2-0 defeat to the Chicago Fire, Real Salt Lake (2-10-6, 12 pts.) will hit the road for the first time in a month-and-a-half when the squad travels to Southern California for a Western Conference tilt this Sunday, August 26, against Chivas USA (9-6-3, 30 pts.). Kick-off from The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. is set for 7:00 p.m. MT for the match, which can be seen live regionally on Fox Sports Net-Utah. Fans can also follow the action on RSL's official radio partners, KALL 700 Sports (English) and "La Bonita" 1600-AM (Spanish). After playing its last five matches across exhibition and League play in Salt Lake City, Sunday will mark RSL's first road contest since a 1-0 defeat at the Kansas City Wizards on July 14. RSL will have to get used to the road again in a hurry, as five of its next six MLS contests will take place away from Utah.
Real Salt Lake will certainly be looking for a different result at Chivas USA than it got during its first visit to The Home Depot Center on April 21, when RSL fell behind early and couldn't recover in a 4-0 loss. That result brought RSL's all-time record against its 2005 expansion brethren to 2-4-3, which includes an 0-4-1 mark in games played in Southern California. The two sides will square off once more during the 2007 campaign, when Chivas USA makes its lone visit of the season to Rice-Eccles Stadium on Oct. 6.
Real Salt Lake and SLC Rockers Meg & Dia "Represent" with adidas
As the official sponsor, supplier and licensee of Major League Soccer, adidas recently launched its newest U.S. soccer marketing initiative, MLS Represent. Produced by adidas, EVB and Rock River Music, MLS Represent pairs each MLS team with a cutting-edge music artist or band from rock, pop, hip-hop, Latin and punk genres to write and record an original song that represents each MLS team and its home city. Team anthems and chants have a longstanding history in soccer around the world and MLS Represent was created to capture this camaraderie and passion inherent in the sport. adidas teamed up Real Salt Lake with up-and-coming Salt Lake City-based rock duo Meg & Dia, who took time off from their upcoming major label album to record a rocking, chant-filled theme titled "The Mighty R-E-A-L."
MLS Represent is a call to action for all MLS fans, asking them to pick their favorite MLS team and support them via the originally created song by each local artist. Fans have the opportunity to customize music videos online using the anthems mashed-up with MLS footage and can then share their videos with friends and rivals, giving all U.S. soccer fans a new way to "represent" their favorite MLS team. The anthems for each team will be used in stadium and available for download on the adidas MLS website at http://www.adidas.com/mls.
Sisters Meg & Dia Frampton played in bands together for years while growing up, but only came together professionally in 2005. Since then, the Salt Lake City duo's career has taken off. After the addition of a crack rhythm section for their independent debut album, the band was hailed as one of the "100 Bands You Need to Know" in 2006 by AP Magazine. That summer they toured the U.S. as a part of the prestigious Warped Tour and then signed a deal with Warner Bros. To learn more about this rocking pair of Salt Lake City siblings, including where to catch them on their extensive U.S. tour this fall, visit www.meganddia.com.
Fans Can Follow Exploits of Eskandarian via "Esky in the SLC" Blog at www.RealSaltLake.com
After a brief rest this summer, Real Salt Lake FW Alecko Eskandarian has dusted off the laptop and worked up his writing chops once again, as the striker recently debuted his "Esky in the SLC" blog on RSL's official website, www.RealSaltLake.com. Eskandarian will regularly update his blog with tales of his Real Salt Lake teammates both on and the field, musings on his new surroundings in Salt Lake City, and even take the time to answer questions and comments from fans from time to time. Click on the "Esky in the SLC" banner at www.RealSaltLake.com to see the latest update on all things "Esky."
New "Tales from the Pitch" Page on MySpace.com Chronicles RSL Players and Games
Another way to get the latest on Real Salt Lake's players and upcoming matchups is through the new "Tales from the Pitch" website hosted on MySpace.com. RSL radio and TV color analyst Brian Dunseth and Salt Lake City's Studio 5.1 have teamed up to provide in-depth interviews with Real Salt Lake players to give fans a deeper look into the team's off-the-field personalities and upcoming contests. The site currently features MF Andy Williams previewing this Sunday's contest against Chivas USA, while a feature on fan-favorite MF Jamie Watson will drop on the site by the weekend. Fans can visit www.myspace.com/talesfromthepitch (no membership necessary) to check out the latest interviews and footage.
Liga Latinoamericana Takes Copa Mexico 2007 Crown
Real Salt Lake would like to congratulate Liga Latinoamericana, which claimed the Copa Mexico 2007 crown last Saturday with a 2-1 victory over Liga Internacional at the Quinn's Sports Complex in Park City. Liga Latinoamericana fought its way through the six-team Under-20 tournament organized by the Mexican Consulate in Salt Lake City, which featured the best young players from Hispanic-based leagues across the state of Utah. Both of the 2007 finalists were recognized in front of the nearly 20,000 fans in attendance at Rice-Eccles Stadium prior to last Saturday's RSL-Chicago Fire matchup.
