Major League Soccer team Chivas USA announced today that it raised more than $60,000 during a hurricane relief benefit match between a Chivas Select Team and Mexican First Division side Santos Laguna held on October 9 at the campus of the University of California, Santa Barbara. The sum - $61,843 in total - will be donated to the Santa Barbara County Chapter of the American Red Cross to assist the victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, which in August and September ravaged vast portions of the United States' Gulf Coast region.
"We are happy to be making this contribution to the hurricane relief efforts of the American Red Cross," said Chivas USA Senior Vice President and General Manager Whit Haskel. "This shows the true spirit of Chivas and the soccer community in Mexico and the United States, and on their behalf we would like to thank all the organizations, sponsors, and fans who made this event possible."
The match, in which for the first time a Chivas Select Team (featuring players from Chivas USA and Mexican sister team Club Deportivo Guadalajara) faced to Santos Laguna of Mexico's first division, was held on October 9 at Harder Stadium on the campus of the University of California, Santa Barbara. Thousands of fervent soccer fans came out on a balmy Sunday afternoon to watch Santos claim a 3-2 victory with goals by Matías Vuoso, Jair García and Arturo Chávez, while Chivas' goals were scored by Chivas USA forwards Juan Pablo García and Arturo Torres. The match was also carried live worldwide by Fox Sports International.
Chivas USA would like to thank the following persons and organizations who made the event possible: Club Deportivo Guadalajara, Club Santos Laguna, Rudy Ybarra of Santa Barbara Soccer Entertainment, the American Red Cross and the Department of Recreation of the University of California, Santa Barbara. Likewise, Chivas USA would like to express its sincerest gratitude to those organizations that made their own donations: Fox Sports International, Soccer Event Specialists, F&B Concessions and Fundación Chivas de Corazón USA.
Chivas USA's hurricane relief efforts continue this evening, as the team takes on Mexican First Division side Tigres UANL in the city of Donna, Texas; a portion of the proceeds from this international exhibition will be donated to victims of Hurricane Wilma. For more information on Chivas USA, please visit www.CDCHIVASUSA.com, the club's oficial web site. For information on ticket sales for Chivas USA's second season in Major League Soccer, please call 1-877-CHIVAS-1.
