D.C. United Loses to Real Madrid in Audition Before Hometown Fans

For a little more than a half, D.C. United was on a level playing field with Real Madrid, whose rich tradition is surpassed only by its financial largesse. In the end, the depth and talent attracted by both (along with fresh legs in 95-degree heat) proved too much for the modest Major League Soccer outfit and the Spanish side triumphed, 3-0, in Sunday's friendly at FedEx Field.

United certainly can be proud of its effort. Its commitment and courage in possession and on the tackle far surpassed that of starstruck Toronto FC, which fell behind by three goals after a half hour in Friday's 5-1 loss. But D.C. is as tradition-rich as they come in MLS and has played these sorts of games before (Madrid in 2006, Chelsea, Boca Juniors, Vasco da Gama, Tottenham Hotspur, etc.).

The more compelling issue concerns the league's continuing quest to convert the millions of soccer fans in the U.S. into supporters of the teams in their own country, and how many of the 72,368 at FedEx Field (the largest crowd to ever see United play), many of whom wore white, watched the proceedings with an open mind.

United President Kevin Payne was clear earlier this week when asked about the wisdom behind organizing an exhibition match just as his team enters the busiest part of its very demanding schedule.

"I'm so adamant there's a strategic play to this," he told Fanhouse. "I wouldn't want to do Real Madrid against Liverpool. What does that do for me, except maybe make us some money? The fact that we're playing Real Madrid is important. If there's 80,000 people in the stands, and 5,000 of them say, 'This D.C. United team is pretty good. I really like that guy Moreno, or I like that guy Pontius or Fred,' then we've accomplished something and maybe we'll develop more fans out of that.

"In some ways it could be argued, and I've had this argument in the past with coaches going back to 1996, in some ways these games are more important than our league games. They don't count in any standings, but if we play well against Real Madrid, what is that worth? We all know about the soccer snob mentality, which you can see reflected in these big crowds, these people who discovered soccer two years ago and think they're too good for MLS. How am I going to convince those people to support D.C. United other than by proving that we can compete with these teams? It's not an ideal situation, but it's part of the process of developing our league and our club.

"We can't just do that by talking about it. We have to get out there and compete," Payne concluded. "They are better than us, but we're worthy of support from people who care about the game."

Therein lies the risk of scheduling Real Madrid. Were there fans who left the Seattle Sounders' recent 4-0 loss to Barcelona, or Toronto's drubbing by Madrid, feeling their suspicions were confirmed? Would the players feel any extra pressure if they worried the perception of their club and league was at stake?

"Every time one country's team plays another country's team, you're a reflection of that country's club system," United veteran Ben Olsen told Fanhouse. "Especially in our league where it's single entity and, unfortunately, all of our teams are around the same level. It really reflects our league. I understand that side of it. I choose to look at this game as a wonderful experience that I know that myself and my teammates will enjoy and we'll go out there and play as hard as we can and do our job."

And United did that, standing toe-to-toe with Madrid throughout the first half. The visitors had a strong spell midway through the stanza, but D.C.'s Marc Burch and Rodney Wallace, who played their college soccer at nearby University of Maryland, made excellent defensive plays on Kaka a few minutes apart to keep the score level. United had its share of possession, albeit nothing too threatening, and D.C. goalkeeper Josh Wicks had a couple of fine saves. The difference between the sides was not that dramatic.

"We came out and accomplished what we did for about 55 minutes what we wanted to do," D.C. coach Tom Soehn said afterward. "We pressured high. We forced a lot of turnovers in higher parts of the field. In the final third we just missed a little bit. Against good teams you're only going to create a couple of opportunities."

"We did a good job in the first half, making plays when they counted and really clogging up the middle and putting good pressure on them. They didn't have the time to make the plays that make them special. We put a lot of work in," Olsen said.

But Madrid spends all that money for a reason. Entering the match in the second half were Raul and Arjen Robben, fresh and ready to go. Guti would enter 20 minutes later. Twenty-seven games into its season, United's depth was tested by injuries and fatigue. "The difference is they bring in world class subs who are fresh, and on a hot day like today, to have that depth is a big difference-maker for them," Soehn said.

Wicks saved United in the 52nd minute, dropping to block Robben's bouncing shot with his right arm. But there was nothing he could do five minutes later, when Argentine Gonzalo Higuain rounded United defender Greg Janicki, who was playing with the third-tier Pittsburgh Riverhounds at this time last year, and slotted home a low shot. Higuain doubled the lead in the 59th, converting a feed from Robben, and the game was put out of reach with the Dutchman's chip in the 69th.

As Madrid imposed its will, the crowd came to life. Not in dismay or in support of the local underdogs trying to shock the world, but with cheers. The goals were greeted with the rapture of thousands, and cheers of "Madrid! Madrid!" swept through the stands. These were not supporters who traveled across the Atlantic to follow their team. A pregame walk through the concourse revealed hundreds, even thousands, of Latin Americans and white Americans -- D.C. locals -- wearing the colors of the opposition. The crowd, for the most part, seemed to be rooting for the behemoth with all the advantages over the hometown boys trying to make good from scratch. It was a sobering reminder of how far MLS has to go.

"I don't think it bothers us who cheers. It bothers us that someone scored," Soehn said of the crowd's reaction, while Pontius said he was "just excited to be playing in front of that many people. You don't get that opportunity too often. I think the fans just wanted to see a good game today. I think they saw that. I don't think the scoreline shows how close the game was."

Olsen, who had left the game in the 58th, was aware. "When [Madrid] went through their stretch -- I was on the bench -- you heard the crowd going at that point."

Real Madrid, and La Liga, obviously hold a special place amongst Spanish speakers in the Americas. It's an important part of their cultural heritage, just as the English Premier League represents all that is good about soccer to many white American fans. But there was no Rocky IV moment on Sunday outside Washington, where the club with the annual payroll of less than $3 million (less than 1% of the combined transfer fees paid by Madrid this summer) would get no breaks from the locals despite its willingness to face Madrid head-on. Perhaps D.C.'s accomplishments on the day were too subtle to have the effect Payne was hoping for. Perhaps people really have no interest in building a strong domestic soccer culture.

At least Madrid's main men were impressed. Coach Manuel Pellegrini said that "Today we had a more difficult opponent" then the team faced Friday in Toronto. Cristiano Ronaldo said United "played very well in the first half. It's a team that plays good soccer, so it was great. We enjoyed playing here." Whether or not any of those in attendance were enlightened by what they witnessed remains to be seen.