Berhalter Leaving 1860 Munich For MLS

1860 Munich has announced that American defender Gregg Berhalter will be leaving the club immediately to continue his career back home on Major League Soccer (MLS). Berhalter’s contract with the Second Bundesliga club was set to expire in June 2009 but the club has agreed to release him early.

This marks an end to Berhalter’s long career in Europe after playing in the Netherlands, England, and for the past seven years – in Germany. Reflecting on his European career, Berhalter remarked that: “I had a very good and successful 15 years in Europe but the time has come to say goodbye and go home.” He thanked the club for their understanding to release him early and in a parting statement to the fans said: “I had a super time here in Munich and I’m excited to start a new chapter of my life playing in MLS.”

What remains unclear is which MLS team he will be playing for in the coming weeks as he starts a new 2-year deal with the league.

Berhalter made 23 appearances in the Bundesliga and 88 in the Second Bundesliga. During his stint at 1860 Munich, he made 73 appearances, scoring eight goals.

Bradley Own Goal Helps Foals To 3-1 Loss

Just a week after scoring his first Bundesliga goal, American Michael Bradley scored another this week, just not for his team. So, when things were looking up for his new stint at Borussia Moenchengladbach, an own goal against Energie Cottbus didn’t help. In the early going, a 3rd minute header by Bradley could have put the Foals ahead early if not for a good save by Cottbus keeper Gerhard Tremmel.

Cottbus put ‘Gladbach under lots of pressure early and a 17th minute give-and-go put Ivica Iliev parallel to the goal where he lashed in a flat cross which glanced off Bradley and into the home team’s goal for a 1-0 lead which the visitors carried into halftime.

“Gladbach got some good chances early in the second half on combinations from Bradley and Alex Baumjohann but could not equalize. In the 51st minute, Cottbus scored again for a 2-0 lead before 59th minute Baumjohann goal got the Foals back in the game, making it 2-1.

Bradley was substituted in the 70th minute by Tony Jantschke and later an 85th minute Cottbus goal sealed the win at 3-1. The loss put ‘Gladbach into the relegation zone in 16th place with 11 points and a minus 14 goal differential. The Foals now have 23 matches left to score at least 38 total points, otherwise its a trip back to the Second Bundesliga.

Eleswhere in Europe, Freddy Adu watched from the bench as AS Monaco picked up a 1-0 win over Auxerre. Carlos Bocanegra and fourth place Stade Rennais take on fifth place Paris Saint-Germain tomorrow. A win for either side could mean taking over second place behind Olympique Lyon, provided Nice and Marseille stumble this weekend.

In Serie B, Danny Szetela went the distance in midfield for Brescia in their 2-0 win over Mantova in the Lombardia derby. The win bumped Brescia up to fifth place in Serie B with 26 points, just two behind leaders Sassuolo.

Pearce Gets New Coach At Rostock

Just a week after Heath Pearce’s Hansa Rostock was crushed 6-0 at Kaiserslutern, a new savior has appeared in manager Dieter Eilts. After picking up only two points in their last five matches, a savior seems to be just what they need.

This is good news for American defender Heath Pearce, whose team is mired in 14th place and instead of seeking promotion back to the Bundesliga, is in danger of relegation to the 3rd division.

Eilts, a former German international with 31 caps, had a storied career at Werder Bremen making 397 appearances and was best know for his grit and incredible work rate in midfield and defense. Until recently he was the coach of Germany’s U-21 squad before the federation let him go three weeks ago. Eilts has always had a reputation as a level-headed player and coach and he is expected to bring this approach to the troubled Hansa side.

Eilts makes his coaching debut for Hansa tonight in a nationally televised match against 1860 Munich (Gregg Berhalter’s club). Pearce, suspended for two matches after a hard foul in last week’s loss to Kaiserslautern, will watch from the stands.

Bremen Fans Show Europe How Its Done

Toward the end of Werder Bremen’s 0-0 draw with Bochum on Saturday, six members of a neo-Nazi group began to unfurl a 10-foot long banner on which it stated: “NS-HB Sport frei”. NS-HB stood for Nordsturm Hansestadt Bremen, an extreme right hooligan group. But Bremen fans were having none of it and began to go after the neo-Nazis, surrounding them while shouting “Nazis out!” and pointing them out to the police.

Dieter Zeiffer, Werder Bremen’s director of fan relations, was a man in demand this weekend, giving television interviews gushing with pride at the reaction of the home fans. But how the neo-Nazi hooligans (one of which is suspected of starting a January 2007 melee in the same stadium) managed to sneak such a sign into the stdaium remains unknown.

It turned out to be an act German Football Association (DFB) predident Theo Zwanziger referred to as ”civil courage,” something all too lacking in many European stadiums today. According to the Werder Nachtrichten, some unhappy Bremen and Bochum fans wanted to let their fists do the talking with the hooligans but local police intervened quickly.

“The police had to get between them, otherwise the fans would have attacked the hooligans,” said Ziffer. He went on to say that the police already had been watching the group during the match, given they were wearing what seemed to be skinhead garb. The club has now banned the Nordsturm group and its members from the stadium and a league-wide ban could be in the offing.

Instead of watching timidly while an extremist group tried to use their stadium as a billboard for hate, Werder Bremen fans took action to defend their (and their league’s) honor. Bravo!

Say It Ain’t So Stefan!

Imagine having a stadium named after one of your club and country’s greatest sporting heros, the man who led your team to winning its first World Cup? Now imagine decades later the club changing the stadium’s name of for “business reasons?” Well, that may be in store for 1FC Kaiserslautern’s Fritz Walter Stadion.

Long time Kaiserslautern great Fritz Walter survived World War II and captained Germany to winning the 1954 World Cup, its first of three. The stadium, one of Germany’s most scenic, was built in 1920 and was renamed in Walter’s honor on his 65th birthday in 1985.

American fans remember the stadium as not only the first US friendly ever hosted abroad (a 1-0 win over Poland in March 2006) but as the site of the USA’s incredible 1-1 draw with eventual champion Italy in the 2006 World Cup.

Now, 1FCK president Stefan Kuntz has told the Mannheimer Morgen that “for business reasons.” the club may need to sell the stadium name to make ends meet. The earliest this could happen, according to Kicker, is next season.

Its clear that the small market 1FCK, comparable to the Green Bay Packers NFL franchise, would not make this decision unless they had no other choice. Clubs like 1FCK, with four Bundesliga titles to its credit, are having a difficult time keeping up year-in year-out with bigger teams like Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, let alone competing for European silverware. But with just about every Bundesliga stadium selling its name to a sponsor, a team can fall even further behind financially if they don’t.

Regardless of what the club eventually decides, Kuntz has assured Kaiserslautern fans “In any case, we’ll make sure it still honors the memory of Fritz Walter.”

Disney/ESPN To Buy Bundesliga Broadcast Rights?

An interesting development…

While it could be tricky to work out within Germany, a succesful bid by Disney could make Bundesliga matches much more accesible to American audiences on ESPN.

Update: Michael Bradley to Borussia Moenchengladbach

Borussia Moenchengladbach sports director Christian Ziege has just confirned that American Michael Bradley may spend the next few seasons plying his trade at Borussia Moenchengladbach. Ziege told the Rheinisher Post that Bradley is a “dangerous, versatile player but also a classic playmaker. He may be young be mentally, he is much farther along.” Further details of the transfer deal are not yet available.

Bradley was in Moenchengladbach today for his unveiling and he is expected to arrive permanently on Thursday. With just two days on the ground prior to Saturday’s match against fellow American Steve Cherundolo and Hannover 96, he is not expected to suit up for Gladbach until their home match against Hertha Berlin in two weeks.

With the transfer, Bradley will become the second American ever to have played for the Bundesliga side after goalkeeper Kasey Keller spent a few productive years at the club.