Well, paint me purple and call me Susan.

David Beckham is coming to Major League Soccer!

According to his statement in the article, Becks says he'll be here in August. Frankly, I'm a bit stunned that he'll be coming to the States this year at all. I thought for sure that he had another season or two of European soccer left in him before setting out to pasture in the US. I'll tell you what, though, I'm excited about this move. Yes, I didn't I would be either, but I am. Why?

Well, let's set aside for a moment that Beckham isn't anywhere remotely as good as people want him to be. To use an NBA analogy, just because he's more popular than Michael Jordan, doesn't mean he is better than a fading Mark Price -- an excellent passer and free throw/free kick specialist who has just lost of lot of steam and luster over the years. There should not be a single soul in the world who should be surprised that Becks doesn't rate a place in Real Madrid's starting XI. Personally, I thought he'd be running into this kind of playing time dilemna almost immediately after joining the club. He's not an elite player, unless we're talking strictly of popularity.

As Don Garber, Tim Leiweke and company are so eager to point out, Beckham quite literally is the one hope -- the one face -- that, short of Team USA winning the World Cup, could generate a serious buzz about soccer in this country. Because he is so popular already as a sex symbol, as an icon. More importantly because he's English. He speaks the language. He brings an anglo-saxon quality to him that identifies this sport, from an American point of view, as not something that is exclusive to continental Europe and Latin America.

Are my hopes set to high? I'm not sure. My hopes were never much to begin with. But what Beckham does is he speaks to a non-soccer audience in far greater capacity, in fact, than he channels ardent soccer nuts. Broader fan base? More publicity for the league? Definitely. Living in Los Angeles (bonus for me, he's coming to the Galaxy), I've seen how incredibly easy it is for Americans who don't even particularly like the sport to fall in love with the World Cup. It's getting them to care about club football that is the real trick. MLS finally seems to have gained it's footing after ten seasons, so there's no reason the league should panic any time soon, but if Beckham can't generate interest... there might not be anyone who can. I wouldn't call him the league's "last hope," but I would say he is its greatest opportunity.

**Addendum**
I'd just like to quickly address the possibility that Beckham will be another Lothar Matthaus. That is to say, he could be a slug with a lofty resume who is only interested in treating his time in the States as if it were Club Med. In my gut, I don't believe that to be the case. I think Beckham's intentions are true and noble -- even if they are from a marketing point of view. He and his people know that good play will enhance his profile here because lord know the vultures and the skeptics are circling, waiting for him to mail it in and exude a general lack of interest. I was just bumping around over on BigSoccer.com and, already, they're expecting the worst. I don't know why I'm so hopeful and optimistic -- it's so out of character for me. I guess I'm just really excited that the "beta test" for MLS is finally over. Now, we get to the good stuff.

PS - Red Bull New York is rumored to be in the market for Ronaldo. The chunky, yet still quite prolific Ronaldo.