Jersey Thursday: "Galactico" Edition

Bringing back Jersey Thursday after a week off.

This is the 2011-12 shirt for Real Madrid C.F. of Spain. Yes it is pretty clean, and no it's not their away shirt (think home whites in baseball, too...it happens). At first glance one might equate the gold stripes with championships. And he'd be right. The problem is that for a club as successful as Real Madrid (a record 9 European Cups, 31 Spanish titles - also a record) those titles have been a little harder to come by lately.

In more recent years, "Los Meringues" were labeled by a previous club president as "Los Galacticos." No, that's not a nod to our friends Landon and David's MLS club on the Left Coast. The name is derived from the huge ("galactic") names in the game that the club has always attracted. In the past 15 years, names like Ronaldo (the Brazilian one), Figo, Zidane, Roberto Carlos, Beckham, and Raul have put on the white shirt. Today, you can add Cristiano Ronaldo (the guido one), Higuain, and Sergio Ramos to the list.

And those guys did not come cheap. Several of those names came to the Bernabeu for record-breaking transfer fees (Cristiano Ronaldo's from Manchester United the most recent world record). On paper, Madrid always looks stacked. But they're without a La Liga title since '08. Why is that?

Let's not mince history, F.C. Barcelona (Real's most bitter rivals) have been freakin' GOOD. Barcelona has been winning La Liga since '08. Barcelona has won 2 European Cups in the past 3 years. Barcelona had seven of the starting Spanish starting XI that beat the Netherlands and won the World Cup in 2010 (Real had two).

But let's get back to the shirt. With all of the history and the sticky "Galacticos" label, these gold stripes become more like a red target. Every team already wanted to beat Madrid. But when you're star player looks like this in his gold stripes

victory tastes just a little sweeter. Let's be real, as much as we Americans loved sprinter Michael Johnson wearing gold track shoes at the 1996 Summer Olympics (ATL represent), he would have looked a fool had he not actually won. If you're going to flaunt it, you better have it.

And let's not forget the US Women and their gold kit from the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup...They finished third.

Do Real have it? Do they have what it takes to overcome their "Antimadridista" rivals from the east? What do you think? I don't think so, but that's just me. Either way, here's hoping that the La Liga season provides us more excitement and drama this season. As long as Real Madrid is in the league, I don't think we'll need to worry about a deficit.

A Prince Steps Down

A part of my soccer childhood ended today. Paul Scholes (a.k.a "The Ginger Prince" or "Scholesy" or "one of the greatest midfielders of his generation") had his testimonial match today, wearing the Manchester United shirt for the last time. It officially marks the end of an illustrious career that included 2 European Cups, 10 Premier League titles, and 3 FA Cups (not to mention representing England in the 1998 2002 World Cups). But you would never know it by talking to him.

His uncanny combination of abilities to pick out a cross-field teammate from 60 yards away, create scoring opportunities from thin air, and smash home an inviting ball from just outside the box made him a nightmare for opposing managers to plan for.

But really, he embodies so much of what I (and I think most fans) romantically love about sports. He played with United his entire career. He was modest and humble when it came to matters off the field. He dreaded post-match interviews, and he always looked uncomfortable when receiving personal praise and awards. It was all about the team and the club. In the Twitter-fueled personal PR age in which we currently live, Scholesy was a wallflower. Because of that, I think there was always a little mystery about him, and it made us love him all the more.

Who was this midfield master, anyway? He never really wanted us to know. He'll always be the red-haired man in the red shirt who is always good for a yellow card for putting a little too much in the tackle. Honestly, he is a big part of the reason I first became a fan of Manchester United. I owe him a lot.

So farewell, Scholesy. Enjoy this time with your family away from the Theatre of Dreams. I know you've probably been looking forward to this more than anything.

The Greatest Comeback Since Lazarus a.k.a. Jersey Thursday

Forgive the cliche title, but I'm just a tad excited. Yes, I'm back. Believe it, people. Let's get to business.

Every Thursday, I want to post a new team's strip that is more interesting than it may first appear. Today, it's AFC Wimbledon's kit (yes, that Wimbledon) commemorating their promotion to League 2, the lowest tier of fully professional soccer in England.

While it may not be much to look at (although it is pretty classy), there's a lot going on here.

For those of you that don't know, Wimbledon FC was a club that existed until 2002 and boasted a little bit of a scrappy reputation in its day (even boasting Vinnie Jones of Eurotrip and Gone in 60 Seconds fame on its roster in the late '80s...He straight rocked folks. Google it.). WFC (like most English clubs) had a devout following and even tasted major glory in '88 winning the FA Cup.

And then, something terrible happened. They were bought up and moved away from southwest London to Milton Keynes, a decent distance north. In fact, it was the furthest distance by some margin that any British club was ever relocated.

While American sports fans can think of about ten different examples of relocation (the Seattle Supersonics of the NBA and the NHL's Atlanta Thrashers (RIP) come to mind), this just does not happen in England. WFC was rebranded as MK Dons (or whatever). Their identity was stripped. Fans started calling them "Franchise FC" (NOT a compliment).

Fans were upset. Really, they were sad. So what did they do with their outrage? Did they riot? No. They decided to be more constructive. They started their own club. Talk about old school kickin' it new school in 2002.

And now that club, after starting out semi-pro (VERY semi-pro) has made several promotions back into the world of fully-professional football (if you can call League 2 that).

Keep your eye on AFC Wimbledon this year. Who knows, one day, they might face their franchised brethren in league play. The lower leagues are treacherous waters, but the potential clash (which ALMOST happened in last year's FA Cup) would certainly be an...uh...awkward one.