Chivas USA (1-4-1, 4 pts.) will host the Chicago Fire (2-1-4, 10 pts.) this Saturday, May 28 at 8:00 p.m. PT at The Home Depot Center (Radio: KTNQ 1020 AM, TV: FSN PRIME TICKET, Web: MLSLIVE.tv). This will be Chivas USA's first game this season against the Fire, which defeated the Houston Dynamo 1-0 last weekend. Fans will receive a special Mexican wrestling mask while supplies last, sponsored by Chivas USA and 'Nacho Libre,' starring Jack Black. The action starts at 3:30 p.m. with 'A Night of Boxing' presented by Oscar De La Hoya. The championship bill will include Fernando Montiel vs. Jhonny González disputing the WBO Bantamweight championship and Daniel Ponce De León vs. Alejandro Barrera for the WBO Featherweight championship. Packages for the game and boxing match start at $40 per person and are available via 1-877-CHIVAS-1.
CHIVAS USA AGAINST THE RED BULLS: Chivas USA lost to the Red Bulls 5-4 last Saturday at Giant Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Red-and-White had two goals from Ante Razov and another two by Juan Francisco Palencia, his first of the season, yet it was not enough to hold off the Red Bulls. Meanwhile, Chivas USA Reserves were defeated for the first time this season when they lost 3-1 against the New York Red Bulls Reserves on Sunday. Recently activated, Matt Taylor scored the only goal for the Reserves, who now have a 1-1-2 record in the MLS Reserve Division.
RAZOV BECOMES MLS' THIRD ALL-TIME SCORER: Ante Razov tallied his 88th and 89th goals of his illustrious MLS career to put him in third place in the all-time MLS goalscoring list. At the same time, his fourth and fifth goals of the season put him in second place in scoring this season. Razov's second goal, a left-footed freekick following a foul on Juan Pablo García has been nominated for Sierra Mist MLS Goal of the Week; to vote for Ante, please visit www.MLSnet.com.
WORLD CUP BOBBLEHEAD ACTION BEGINS JUNE 3: After this weekend, Chivas USA will play its next home game against the Colorado Rapids on June 3 at 7:00 p.m. PT at The Home Depot Center. Fans in attendance will receive a limited edition collectible bobblehead of Paco Palencia, while supplies last. Three other Chivas World Cup Veterans will be similarly honored: Ramón Ramírez (June 18), Oswaldo Sánchez (June 28) and Claudio Suárez (July 1).
MCDONALD'S FAN PACK: Chivas USA and McDonald's have partnered up to offer the McDonald's Fan Pack for select games during the 2006 season. For just $49, fans will get a chance to experience great soccer excitement along with great meals from McDonald's. The package will include: 4 Chivas USA tickets, 2 Extra Value Meals and 2 Happy Meals, and can be purchased exclusively by calling 1-877-CHIVAS-1. Packages will be available the following remaining home dates: May 27 (Chicago Fire); June 3 (Colorado Rapids); June 28 (Houston Dynamo); July 15 (Los Angeles Galaxy); September 3 (D.C. United); September 9 (FC Dallas) and October 15 (Real Salt Lake).
CHIVAS USA U-19S: Chivas USA's Under-19 team is in its final stages of preparation before the start of Copa Saprissa, to be played from May 27 to June 4 at Estadio Saprissa in San José, Costa Rica. The Red-and-White squad, which departs for Costa Rica this Wednesday, will be competing in the prestigious tournament, which features some of the strongest youth teams in the world: including Saprissa (Costa Rica), Cruzeiro (Brazil), Boca Juniors (Argentina), Real Madrid (Spain) and Chivas USA's sister club, Chivas de Guadalajara of Mexico.
MARTÍN AND PREKI IN 'EL RETO FINAL': Chivas USA Assistant Coaches Martín Vásquez and Preki were part of 'El Reto Final', a rematch featuring the 1997 Mexican and U.S. squads last Sunday at The Home Depot Center. The Mexicans won by the final score of 3-1 with goals by David Oteo, Bejamín Galindo and Luís Hernández. Mike Burns scored for the Americans. Technical assistant of Chivas USA, Martín Vazquez played as a defender for the U.S. squad, while his colleague Preki came on as a first-half sub for Eric Wynalda.
SUÁREZ GOES TO EUROPE: Claudio Suárez and the rest of the Mexican National Team visited the Virgen de Guadalupe in La Villa in Mexico City before departing Saturday for France ahead of their World Cup opener June 11 versus Iran. El Tri will continue their preparation for the World Cup when they square off against France in Paris on May 27. Mexico will then head off to Holland to play their last tune-up match against the 'Oranje' on June 1 in Eindhoven.
O'BRIEN AND U.S. TO FACE MOROCCO: John O'Brien continues his preparation with the American squad before their next exhibition game against Morocco on May 23 in Nashville, Tennessee. Team USA will also face off against Venezuela on May 26 and against Latvia on May 28 before heading off to Germany.
GUADALAJARA UPDATE: Chivas de Guadalajara will take a well-deserved rest after their exhausting campaign in the liguilla and Copa Libertadores. They will resume play in the Libertadores tournament on July 20 when they take on Vélez of Argentina.
GUZAN AND GARCÍA IN THE YELLOW PAGES; 'LOCO' IN ELLEGIRL: Chivas USA players Brad Guzan and Juan Pablo García will grace the front cover of the 2007 AT&T San Gabriel Valley Yellow Pages, part of Chivas USA's unique partnership with the Metropolitan Transport Authority. The cover also features Chivas USA's mascot, the ChivaFighter, as well as the ChivaGirls. Meanwhile, midfielder Juan Pablo García showed his thoughtful side when he was one of four MLS players featured in the June/July issue of ELLEgirl magazine, currently on newsstands.
BARCELONA AND AMÉRICA COMING TO TOWN: 2006 UEFA Champions League winner and Spanish champion Barcelona will be in Los Angeles August 6 to face a Mexican First Division Team to be announced. Ronaldinho, Messi, Marquez and Eto'o will be among the stars that will face the Mexican squad in the doubleheader that will also include Chivas USA vs. the New England Revolution. Earlier, in July, Club América of Mexico will be in town to face Chivas USA in a special exhibition match. For more information, please call 1-877-CHIVAS-1.
CHIVAS USA FUTBOL ACADEMY: The Chivas USA Futbol Academy continues play this week in preparation for this weekend's slate of games in Baldwin Park, with sessions at The Home Depot Center's Field 5 from 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday and Friday. In other news, the Bell Gardens sporting complex is in its final stages of preparation and will open June 12. For more information please contact Gianmarco Laserna at (310) 630-3603.
LISTEN TO 'SANGRE CHIVA': Tune in every Thursday to Chivas USA's weekly show, 'Sangre Chiva' on KTNQ 1020 AM from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., where Hipólito Gamboa and Martín Zúñiga will be commenting on the most recent Chivas USA news.
WATCH 'SOMOS CHIVAS USA': Tune in this and every Saturday at 12:30 p.m. PT to Chivas USA's weekly television program on KAZA Azteca 54, 'Somos Chivas USA'. Hosted by Ramón Díaz and a special weekly ChivaGirl guest host, 'Somos Chivas USA' gives fans an exclusive insider's look at the world of Chivas USA.
