As a daily reader of the LA Times for many years I can attest to the fact that football (soccer) has been largely ignored.

We're basically lucky if there is a box score on the back pages somewhere of the latest MLS standings usually planted next to the WNBA and Minor League Baseball.

Now, as you can see in the image below, the LA Times has expanded it's coverage. I've been noticing the coverage improving over the past months mainly with the weekly inclusion of the Corner Kicks section. The Corner Kicks is basically a bullet point, quick read of the top headlines from around the football world.

Since Beckham's announcement of joining the Galaxy there has been plenty of articles covering him, his wife, and what they ate for breakfast or who's party they attended. All kidding aside, Times staffer Grahame Jones has done a good job covering Beck's arrival.

In today's paper, I was completely surprised that there were four articles devoted to soccer, of which only one dealing with Beckham, and three others concerning the Men's US Team, Mexico's brawl in Thailand, and the Superliga. Combined, these articles along with the Corner Kicks section encompassed an entire page. Grant it that entire page was the back page of the sports section but at least it's an entire page!

This, of course, is in large part thanks to the arrival of one Mr. David Beckham. So, thanks Beckham. Now, if we can only get some decent coverage of the EPL, La Liga, Series A, etc...

I was just looking through some of my photos from the past year or so and thought I'd share my panoramic shots of matches I've attended.

USA v. Italy - World Cup 2006

We sat mid pitch in the first row and had a blast. One of the best times I've ever had at any event. USA played great against an Italian squad that was destined for greatness.

Holland v. Argentina - World Cup 2006

My favorite panoramic I've taken to date. There was a sea of orange but the Argentine fans were louder still! Messi only played towards the end of the match which ended in a draw.

England v. Ecuador - World Cup 2006

A bit of a wobbly shot, but you get a good idea of what it's like to be at a World Cup match surrounded by England supporters. It was really fun to see Beckham put one away on a direct free kick.

Brazil v. Uruguay - Copa America 2007

You can't see either team in this shot, but it was the great semi final match that Brazil managed to win over Uruguay in a shoot out. An exciting match and probably the best from this year's Copa.