Galaxy's quest: Alexi Lalas cleans up nicely. The player who once complained about having to cut his hair and beard is president of L.A.'s soccer franchise as David Beckham arrives.

ALEXI Lalas' career personifies the maturation of his sport, from his days as a suburban youngster playing AYSO matches to the World Cup. The defiant player who once complained publicly about having to cut his scraggily shoulder-length hair to play on the U.S. National Team now serves as president and general manager of the Los Angeles Galaxy. This year Lalas participated in two victories off the field. First, the Galaxy signed international star David Beckham, one of the most recognizable athletes in the world. Second, the team will participate in the first "SuperLiga," a tournament that combines professional teams from the U.S. and Mexico. Both victories will come to fruition this month--the SuperLiga starts July 24 while Beckham officially joined the team on July 13. As a player, Lalas played on the U.S. World Cup teams in 1994 and 1998. After his appearance in the 1994 Cup, he signed with Padova to become the only U.S. athlete ever to play in Italy's Serie A league. During his three years as a player with the Galaxy, he won the 2002 MLS Cup, the 2001 U.S. Open Cup and the 2000 Concacaf Champions' Cup. Lalas has worked as a commentator for NBC, ABC and ESPN. As an executive, he previously managed the San Jose Earthquake and the New York MetroStars (now the Red Bulls). Currently he manages all business and soccer operations for the Galaxy, following his ambition of making the team "a world-class brand."

Question: How did you bring David Beckham to L.A.?

Answer: I'm part of a family here at AEG, and I work hand in hand with (Chief Marketing Officer) Shawn Hunter and (Chief Executive Officer) Tim Leiweke. It doesn't take a genius to say, "Let's get David Beckham," but it does take a bit of genius to do it."

Q: What about the genius?

A: Basically, the stars aligned. We had a relationship with David from the Beckham Academies here in L.A. He was finishing up his time in Real Madrid and things weren't going well. We also knew we would have to pay for this incredible asset. And we did.

Q: Press reports say $250 million for five years.

A: Part of my job is managing expectations and the reality is this is a deal unlike our sport has ever seen. I can't get into the details, but suffice it to say it's worth a tremendous amount of money but it takes into consideration the impact he's going to have, not just for the Galaxy but for the sport.

Q: How do you plan to recoup that investment?

A: We already have to a certain extent. He's already paid for himself with the increase in ticket sales and season ticket holders, the increase in our sponsorship revenue and other possible revenue streams such as taking the team on a tour of exhibition games around the world. But we knew he had to do something big and bold. A small window of opportunity opened in January and we jumped through.

Q: Explain the SuperLiga deal.

A: If you live in Southern California, and you don't recognize the incredible power of the Hispanic market, then you do so at your own peril, regardless of what you're selling. But harnessing that power is another thing. We've seen over the years that our credibility is in direct relation to our performance against Mexican teams. So we wanted to create something that wasn't just friendly, it was an actual tournament with a prize and prestige on the line.

Q: What do you tell sponsors and advertisers that they'll get for their money?

A: What they are getting is not an emerging sport, they are getting a sport that has already emerged. It appeals to an incredible cross-section of demographics: young adults, children and ethnic markets.

Q: A lot of advertisers think soccer only reaches immigrants.

A: There's certainly an element to that, but when you talk about the Latino community, we're dealing with second- and third-generations now. In many instances, they consider themselves first and foremost Americans.

Q: What about the young adult demo?

A: If a kid started watching the Galaxy at age 8, and we're in our twelfth year, then that kid is 20, and a completely different person. We're seeing soccer families now--not just a morn and dad forced to coach it; they actually played it competitively.

Q: How are ticket sales?

A: At a certain point this year, half our stadium will be season ticket-holders, a phenomenal number. For the actual ticket sales, we got a spike with David Beckham. A whole new group of fans has come in, and it' s up to us to retain these customers.

Q: What do you tell people who say soccer is boring, not enough scoring, not American, etc.?

A: Soccer makes you work for it. I make no apologies. It doesn't spoon feed you, and I recognize that in our fast-food culture, that can be a little off-putting. The reality is that if you do spend the time--and I think more and more people are--the nuances and beauty emerges even more so than in other sports. You can get fast food and it's instant gratification, but soccer is a much more planned meal with beautiful ingredients that has an ultimate payout.

Q: What about the un-American rap?

A: The other thing I love about soccer is that it's a global game. I love being American and living in the greatest country in the world, but too often we don't understand that there's a whole world outside of ours. And 99.9 percent of that world plays and cares about soccer. There's this global sense of community. Right now the Los Angeles Galaxy is known all over the world because of our association with Beckham.

Q: Tell about your transition from player to manager.

A: I had that meeting that all players have at one point. I was told: "It's not going to work here, thank you for your time. Have a good life." I walked out of that meeting and was fortunate that Tim (Leiweke) and Shawn Hunter saw the potential.

Q: Was it a tough emotional adjustment to leave the field?

A: This has been as challenging as anything I ever did on the field and, at times, even more rewarding. But your rewards are not as instantaneous. As a player, you either play well or you don't, you win the game or you don't. This is more long-term and creative.

Q: What skills did you learn as a player that you can apply as a manager?

A: I try to stay away from the stereotypical sayings, where a player says that something that worked in the locker room works in the office. But there are overall concepts that are the same. I believe that whether you kick a ball or not, you have to feel part of a family here at the Galaxy. You're going to have good times and bad times, but you need to have a respect and love for this family.

Q: Talk about stereotypes. How do you implement that?

A: I've made a point of integrating the players and the team. When a player is sore or angry, I'll introduce him to a young man or woman who sits in a cubicle and tries to sell tickets for us. People hang up and call them names, and they do it for a fraction of what the player makes. It gives them a little perspective.

Q: Ever work it the other way?

A: Yes. Some people in the office think it's so easy to be a player. And it is a wonderful, charmed life to be sure. But I'll take them down and show them a player coming off an injury. He's not playing at 100 percent, struggling to make the team, and an article just came out telling what a horrible person he is. Just to give everyone a perspective, that we're all part of a family regardless of what we do.

Q: As a player, you had this rebellious, anti-establishment image. How has that changed as you moved into management?

A: I've cleaned up on the outside, but I'm still a mess on the inside. I've changed to a certain extent inside, but I also realized that I couldn't possibly do this job if I tried to be somebody else. I'm still the same guy; I still screw up. I take what I do very seriously but don't take myself too seriously. I like to have that attitude about everybody.

Q: How would you describe your work style?

A: You gotta laugh, you gotta enjoy it, you have to be bold and creative. I love personality. I love character in people. I don't need people to necessarily agree with me--in fact, I don't want them to agree with me all the time.

Q: Also you cut your hair.

A: Visually, I know people had a perception of who I was, but I was comfortable at the time with the way I looked and the way I acted. And I'm just as comfortable now, even though aesthetically I may have changed.

Q: How does your style work when things aren't going well?

A: We're in a situation here--all these wonderful positives with regard to David Beckham, but the actual team hasn't performed. For a lot of people, this is the first time things aren't going well in terms of our results. For me, fortunately or not, I've gone through periods like this both as a GM and as a player. You have to believe in what you're doing. That belief has to manifest itself in everybody--not a blind faith--and you have to be realistic. But at times I've found myself second-guessing myself too much. You have to trust your instincts. I'm a firm believer in the power of positive things happening, not necessarily in the short term, but the long term.

Q: What's the danger of a sports executive position?

A: This is not a 9-to-5, nor a five-day-a-week situation. Most of our games are on the weekend, so our staff works a lot. Because of that, people get burned out pretty quick. You don't want to get to the point where your entire life is ruled by soccer--when you win everything's fine and when you lose you're no fun to be around.

Q: Finally, what was the turning point in your career?

A: I lived the power of what a World Cup can do for an individual. For a month in 1994, all eyes in the United States and the world were on the World Cup. Because of the way I looked and the way I played and the team played, my life changed overnight.

Q: The Cup got you to Italy. Did it help elsewhere?

A: Both on and off the field, I've milked it for all it was worth, and I don't apologize for that at all. I had a great time, a great career. But I never lost track of the fact that you get these moments of truth and when you capitalize on them, that's where your success comes from, because those moments may not come around again.

Alexi Lalas 

Title: President & General Manager

Company: Los Angeles Galaxy

Birth: Birmingham, Mich., 1970

Education: B.A., Rutgers University 

Career Turning Point: 1994 World Cup

Most Influential Person: Bora Milutinovic, coach of the 1994 U.S. National Team. "He changed the way I looked at myself within the game and the way t looked at the game itself."

Hobbies: "Heavily into music." Writes and records on guitar and keyboards at his in-home studio.

Personal: Married, one daughter. Lives in Manhattan Beach. Younger brother is a writer in New York.