BIG RIVALRY A HUGE DRAW MEXICO'S `SUPERCLASICO' FILLS COLISEUM.Byline: Scott French Staff Writer Heading north on Hoover Street just south of the Coliseum an hour or so before the ``Superclasico'' kicks off, it's easy to be transported to Calzada de Tlalpan, the road that leads to Mexico City's majestic Estadio Azteca. It's more parking lot than thoroughfare THOROUGHFARE. A street or way so open that one can go through and get out of it without returning. It differs from a cul de sac, (q.v.) which is open only at one end. 2. Whether a street which is not a thoroughfare is a highway, seems not fully settled. , vendors are hawking tacos, sodas and souvenirs, and the throngs walking toward the stadium all are sporting Club America's yellow jersey or Guadalajara's red and white stripes. It's not much different on Martin Luther King Boulevard, nor the Harbor Freeway, where Chivas flags extend from car windows and a steady beat is kept by a boy blowing a plastic blue horn. The Coliseum on Wednesday night became Azteca - or Guadalajara's Estadio Jalisco Estadio Jalisco is the third largest Mexican football stadium behind Estadio Azteca and Estadio Olimpico. The facility is located in the city of Guadalajara, 400 kilometres north-west of Mexico, and has a maximum capacity of 62,384 fans. - as Mexico's most storied soccer clubs faced off in the second game of a doubleheader. Club America's Aguilas (Eagles), from Mexico City Mexico City Spanish Ciudad de México City (pop., 2000: city, 8,605,239; 2003 metro. area est., 18,660,000), capital of Mexico. Located at an elevation of 7,350 ft (2,240 m), it is officially coterminous with the Federal District, which occupies 571 sq mi , and Guadalajara, popularly known as Chivas (Goats), had met here before, but never had it inspired such frenzy. A sellout crowd of 88,816 crammed into the old stadium, spending $25 to $100 to watch a game that, at least officially, meant nothing. As any of them could report, it never means nothing when America and Chivas get together. ``This is the Dodgers and the Giants,'' explained America fan Hector Monreal of Compton, whose girlfriend, Araceli Solis of East Los Angeles East Los Angeles, uninc. city (1990 pop. 126,379), Los Angeles co., S Calif., a residential suburb of Los Angeles, in an industrial area. It has a large Mexican-American population. There is a performing arts center and a cultural center. A junior college is there. , was decked out in Chivas colors. ``It's the same thing.'' It's a rivalry built on geography (the capital vs. Jalisco), philosophy and the clubs' enormous success (10 league titles apiece, with America winning the Clausura crown last spring). Chivas is considered ``The Peoples' Team'' because of its tradition of using only Mexican players. America, owned by Grupo Televisa, is the ``Millonarios,'' known for spending vast sums on top players from throughout Latin America Latin America, the Spanish-speaking, Portuguese-speaking, and French-speaking countries (except Canada) of North America, South America, Central America, and the West Indies. . Both enjoy huge followings nationally - and in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, . ``This is one of the biggest 'clasicos' in the world,'' said Antonio Cue, who grew up a Chivas fan in Mexico City and now is co-owner and president of Guadalajara-affiliated Chivas USA (which lost to the Galaxy in the first game of the doubleheader). ``As big as Boca Juniors and River Plate in Argentina, as big as Barcelona and Real Madrid in Spain.'' Midfielder Juan Pablo Alfaro Juan Pablo Alfaro Guzman (born March 2, 1979 is a Mexican footballer, currently playing for CD Veracruz of the Mexican Primera Division. Alfaro is known as "El Pato" (The Duck) to many fans. He started his career with Chivas de Guadalajara in 1999. understands the rivalry well. He grew up an America fan in Guadalajara, then shifted allegiances when he joined Chivas' youth academy at 13. ``You learn from the start, in the youth system, about this game,'' Alfaro said. ``You can't miss this game - and you can't lose this game, no matter what.'' Alfaro was on the losing side Wednesday. America rallied for a 2-1 victory, with Christian Gimenez setting up former Mexican national team star Cuauhtemoc Blanco in the 47th minute, then finishing a corner kick in the 53rd. Guadalajara was the better team in the first half - going ahead on Alberto Medina's 25th-minute strike. Exhibitions are known as ``friendlies'' - ``amistosos'' - in soccer parlance Parlance - A concurrent language. ["Parallel Processing Structures: Languages, Schedules, and Performance Results", P.F. Reynolds, PhD Thesis, UT Austin 1979]. , and Guadalajara coach Benjamin Galindo was asked afterward if any Chivas-America game could be considered ``friendly.'' ``Theres nothing friendly about this game,'' he replied. ``This is the `clasico,' which each team defends with lots of pride, lots of honor. Even when there's not three points at stake, there's nothing friendly in a match like this.'' That wasn't necessarily so in the stands, where a jovial (Jules' Own Version of the International Algebraic Language) An ALGOL-like programming language developed by Systems Development Corp. in the early 1960s and widely used in the military. Its key architect was Jules Schwartz. atmosphere prevailed. America fans packed into the Coliseum's West end. Guadalajara's hardcore faithful gathered in a corner; they lit flares that produced billowing bil·low n. 1. A large wave or swell of water. 2. A great swell, surge, or undulating mass, as of smoke or sound. v. bil·lowed, bil·low·ing, bil·lows v.intr. 1. smoke in red, white and blue. Elsewhere, Chivas fans sat with America fans. Security, on the lookout for in search of; looking for. See also: Lookout trouble, found little. Vendors selling shirts and scarves, watches and wallets reported sales split fairly evenly between America and Chivas. Fans could samples America's new sports drink sports drink Performance drink Sports medicine A thirst-quenching beverage used in sports-related activities, which may boost energy and/or help build muscle mass; water, sugar, salt, potassium are common to all SDs. See Hydrotherapy, Water. . Running the booth was a man who constantly reminded passing Guadalajara fans that the Aguilas, not their Chivas, were reigning champions. Most sampling the drink - berry flavored - were wearing yellow, but a few Guadalajara fans stepped up to try it. Before the game, America fan Christian Cardenas, 16, who attends Monroe High of North Hills, kidded his girlfriend, Chivas fan Rosio Centeno, 15, a Kennedy High of Granada Hills student. He was condident of an America victory. ``She'll probably go home crying when they lose,'' Cardenas said. Scott French, (818) 713-3617 scott.french(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): photo Photo: A Guadalajara fan holds aloft a stuffed chivas (goat), the club's mascot, during Wednesday's game at the Coliseum. Victor Decolongon/Getty Images |
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