Stadiums remain a hot-button topic in MLS: Today in San Jose, the Mercury-News reports that Oakland A's owner Lew Wolff is trying to put together a deal that might bring the Quakes back in by 2009 if everything falls into place. The good news on that front: Mr. Wolff would pay for the whole thing, as well he should.

In Salt Lake, however, the Sandy stadium is either dead, alive, or really, really dead, as in toxic. The whole she#### seems to have legislators really upset and is becoming what we used to call a "political football." If we had to guess, we'd say this potato has become a bit too hot to handle.

One piece of good news for KC fans, if any of you still exist: Beckham may guarantee you a sell-out! Yes! Of course, the Wizards' temporary home will only hold 10,000 people, and it looks to be a re-fitted high school stadium, but no worries, we're sure there will be parking for Posh's limo. You do know she likes door-ro-door service, don't you?

Now, in the department of actual facts, as opposed to prognostication, Toronto FC is close to selling 10K in season tickets; L.A. has sold 5,000 season tix since announcing Becks' signing. A crucial part of the Beckham deal? He gets floor seats for all Lakers' games. Said Tim Leiweke to FSN West: "The deal almost broke down over the Lakers floor seats."

IN THE REST OF THE WORLD: On Merseyside you would assume that the Beckham saga took second fiddle to the disaster which has befallen Liverpool. Three days after crashing out of the FA Cup, the Reds were pummeled 6-3 by an Arsenal youth/reserve team in the Carling Cup quarterfinal which had been fogged off in December. The successive defeats had Liverpudlians searching the record books to find the last time a visitor to the famous ground had scored so often and left them wondering about Rafa Benitez team selection for the Tuesday match. He went with several untested reserve players on defense and saw them carved apart by the Arsenal youngsters. Mercifully, the Reds got to play actual adults on Saturday, and beat them, winning at Watford 3-0 … Cuba suffered a rare defeat in its opening match of the Carribean Cup, upset by Guadeloupe, 2-1 in the tournament which serves as a qualifier for the CONCACAF Gold Cup this summer… Lyon was beaten 2-0 at Toulouse, only its second French League defeat of the season … Mantova handed Juventus a 1-0 defeat to drop the Torino side to sixth, two positions out of a promotion spot. It was the first defeat of the season for Juve, relegated to the second flight after last summer’s scandal … Necaxa and America-Mexico City won the Interliga finals to qualify for a shot at the 2007 Copa Libertadores. Necaxa moves directly into the first round draw, but America goes against Sporting Cristal of Peru in one of the six qualifying matches to reduce the field for the South American club championship to 32 teams … Rangers made an impressive start under new boss Walter Smith, hammering Dundee United 5-0 at Ibrox Park. Poor Arabs.

Sunday in Munich means everything’s locked up tight and sleepy on the streets, which is fine because not only is there one huge music festival going on (and who doesn’t just love Depeche Mode now that they’re all hip and cool again?) but there are lots of fun games to watch.

Best so far today was watching Australia stifle the Dutch in what has to be a bitter send-off for Marco van Basten’s side. Not only did the plucky Aussies play to a draw with just ten men, but three Dutch players managed to get scuppered as well. If it’s any consolation (which it won’t be) Milan Baros went down today for the Czechs as well. But Claudio Reyna is A-OK!

Over in Bonn, which was so giddy over getting the Japanese team to stay in their fair hamlet that the mayor promised to make the grass even greener than usual by asking residents to, urm, curb their canines, the aforementioned mayor has now kindly asked if the excitable Japanese would please not dive into the Rhine. Apparently, it’s fast, and they might drown. Of course, this presupposes that Japan will actually win a game in a group with Brazil, Australia and Croatia.

Speaking of water, today’s fun, gossipy story out of the English camp is that David Beckham “will cry” if England wins the Cup. Personally we’d be crying right now were we splashed all over the papers today in heavy, unflattering and suggestive makeup , in ads for “Sven,” billed as a “satirical drama” on Britain’s equivalent of Skinemax. But that’s us.

A few weeks ago, it was revealed that the maker of the “Goleo” mascot toys had been bankrupted due to poor sales. Today, German papers revealed that the revolting mascot has another problem: parts of the toys are toxic. Anyone still upset at Terje Hauge might look into getting these in bulk, cheap.

Tomorrow is like Sunday all over again: It’s another holiday, this one related to Pentecost, we’re told. Sounds like a good excuse to drink beer and eat sausages.