Beckham blitz out of this world for galaxy: Brit star's presence brings team $100 million purchase offers.

To put it simply: the third week of July 2007 may prove to be the time when U.S. soccer finally transitioned from its third-tier status to a major sport in Los Angeles.

David Beckham's British invasion prompted an avalanche of local, national and international media attention last week that likely surpassed even the rosiest expectations of the Los Angeles Galaxy, once an obscure soccer club.

Beckham and his wife, Victoria, the former pop star "Posh" Spice, not only dominated the headlines, but she was featured in a one-hour primetime special. Then they received the ultimate Hollywood tribute: a bash to be hosted by Will Smith and Tom Cruise, with A-list invitees including Steven Spielberg and Oprah Winfrey.

Expect Cruise and his wife, Katie Holmes, pitchside in Carson, paparazzi in tow.

"Major League Soccer's time is right now. People will look back at decisions made in 2007 and will recognize this as the definitive moment for U.S. soccer," said Jeff Marks, chief operating officer for Los Angeles-based Premier Partnerships, a sports industry consultant.

It seems clear that the Galaxy's $32.5 million investment in Beckham over 5 years has already paid for itself with the phenomenal buzz created last week.

At the 27,000-seat Home Depot Center in Carson, the remaining home games are expected to sell out. Last year, the team averaged only 20,814 fans a game. Already all 42 suites have been sold--a first. Season ticket sales have surpassed 10,000 this year--they were 8,000 last year--and expected to grow another 2,000 next season.

And the team's annual revenues are expected to double to $100 million over the 5 years of Beckham's tenure. That would put it on par with some of the top European soccer clubs.

Tim Leiweke, chief executive of Galaxy owner AEG, said the company also has received numerous offers to buy the team for as much as $100 million--which would surpass by ten times me purchase rights of a new MLS team in Toronto that started play this season.

Leiweke said AEG, which owns the Carson stadium the Galaxy plays in, would not consider the bids.

Indeed, Beckham's arrival could create a financial impact that exceeds $1 billion after calculating the impact of television rights, sponsorship revenues, ticket sales and apparel sales.

Consider the demand from retailers nationwide for Beckham's new Galaxy jersey. It was so strong that Adidas churned out a whopping 250,000 Beckham uniforms in its first run, surprising the manufacturer. (Beckham will receive a small percentage of each jersey sale, while AEG will profit from the retail markup at its stadium shops.)

Now the challenge is to transform the hype into increased business, which should not be difficult as long as Beckham doesn't suffer a bad injury.

"Soccer in the rest of the world garners this level of attention," said Rod O'Connor, general manager of the Home Depot Center. "Our job is to capitalize on this excitement."

BY DAVID NUSBAUM

Staff Reporter