Rising temperatures and high humidity created oppressive conditions during yesterday's match between D.C. United and the L.A. Galaxy. The Galaxy ended up taking the worst of it, with United's attack providing the most unbearable heat. Day games are normally held in the mid-to-late afternoon in order to avoid playing directly under the sun. To maximize exposure, the game was scheduled before the afternoon's European Championship and broadcast nationally on ABC. The game promised two assets......

The chilly air last night couldn't have made Jamaican side Harbour View FC comfortable in their boots. After D.C. United's second half scoring outburst, the conditions at RFK Stadium must have seemed downright unforgiving. In light of last Thursday's draw in Kingston, each side entered the match needing a win to reach the CONCACAF Champions Cup semifinal. Despite the need to score, Harbour View held their 3-4-3 formation in a defensive posture the entire......

Our beloved D.C. United may have crashed and burned (again) in the MLS playoffs this season, but life goes on. Also, the playoffs go on -- right in our backyard, in fact. Many moons ago, Washington was picked to host the 2007 MLS Cup this Sunday at noon, at RFK. Time to put aside your grieving and check out the game. Tickets start at $30, maybe even less on Craigslist. When else are you going......

For 25 minutes, D.C. United attacked the Chicago Fire unrelentingly. They poured all of their efforts forward, creating chance after chance. In the process, they scored the two goals they needed to advance to the Eastern Conference finals. Unfortunately, United's disjointed play during the preceding 70 minutes allowed Chicago to tally two goals of their own, earning them the 2-2 tie, the 3-2 series victory on aggregate, and a ticket to the next round.......

D.C. United's MLS season is on the line tonight at RFK Stadium (7:30 p.m.). After a dominant regular season that saw United go 10-2-3 at home, they return to RFK for possibly the last time this season. Standing in their way is their playoff nemesis, the Chicago Fire. In 5 total playoff games against the Fire, D.C. has yet to score a goal. United will need to find net if they wish to move on......

The press ahead of D.C. United’s first round playoff clash with the Chicago Fire last night leaned heavily on D.C.’s poor record against the Fire, especially in recent playoff history. A lot of it also talked about Chicago’s big signing, Mexican national team veteran Cuahtemoc Blanco. And to some extent, there was some talk about D.C.’s injured stars, Jaime Moreno and Luciano Emilio. Both players picked up injuries in United’s completely meaningless season finale last......

This was not exactly the weekend that D.C. United was hoping for. A 3-2 loss to the non-playoff bound Columbus Crew closed out United's MLS regular season and snapped United's unbeaten streak (dating back to July). Worse yet, United lost their two star strikers, Luciano Emilio and Jaime Moreno, to foot injuries. With last night's Fire victory over the Galaxy, United were assigned the Thursday night time-slot against a Fire team that might be......

D.C. United played out a relatively dull and featureless 0-0 draw with the Chicago Fire on Saturday night, but the real celebrations would come on Sunday night. The Colorado Rapids scored in the final minutes to pull out an upset over Chivas USA, 2-1, making D.C. United the first team to ever successfully defend the Supporters’ Shield. It probably wasn’t the stylish way United will have wanted to take the regular season crown, but with......

>> D.C. United star striker Luciano Emilio is neck and neck with the Chicago Fire's Cuauhtemoc Blanco for MLS Goal of the Week. Emilio scored his 20th goal of the season with an sensational left-footed volley. Be sure to vote. It's your civic duty. >> It's been exactly five years since the sniper shootings perpetrated by John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo began. [WTOP] >> "D.C. Council leaders will not hold up the......

Saturday night's meeting of D.C. United and Toronto FC looked like a mismatch on paper. An expansion team with the worst record in Major League Soccer lined up against the most decorated club in the league's history and current point leaders. Add D.C.'s distinctive home field advantage and you have a recipe for a blowout. Yet for one half, TFC hung with their hosts. Indeed, at many points in the first half Toronto was the......

Despite having to fend off a persistent Chivas Guadalajara attack for most of the game and playing a man down for 50 minutes, United pulled out a 2-1 victory in the first leg of the Copa Nissan Sudamericana home-and-home series. From the get-go the Goats took advantage of quick, incisive passing to carve through the United midfield. Four times in the opening 16 minutes Chivas attackers had a clear line to the goal, yet......

Sunday afternoon D.C. United went toe-to-toe with the New England Revolution in a battle for supremacy of the Eastern Conference, and arguably the entire MLS. The match did not disappoint. It was a competitive affair in which each side took turns playing from behind before United dealt the knockout blow and cruised to victory. By most standards, it was a fantastic match. Flash forward to last night. D.C. United is facing a Real Salt......

Yesterday afternoon's contest between D.C. United and the New England Revolution carried several levels of significance. With six games remaining for United and most of MLS, teams are becoming increasingly desperate to capture the three point bounty of each remaining game in the scramble for playoff spots. The Revolution came into RFK Stadium as the toughest foe remaining on United's schedule. The game constituted the last time United would face a sure-fire playoff team.......

Move over, Jason Kreis. In the forty-eighth minute of the twentieth game in the twelfth season of Major League Soccer, D.C. United's Jaime Moreno became the league's all-time leading scorer with a deftly taken penalty kick. Moreno's 109th career goal put the cap on a solid 3-1 victory over Red Bull New York. On an uncharacteristically brisk August evening at RFK Stadium, United surprised the Red Bulls and never looked back. The 18,748 in......

D.C. United fans have gotten their share of David Beckham firsts, and after last night’s exit from the SuperLiga – almost single-handedly due to Beckham’s right foot – we’ve had our fill. After playing his first MLS game in a 1-0 D.C. win last Thursday at a sold-out RFK, he started his first match for the Galaxy last night in the SuperLiga semifinals against visiting D.C. Then he proceeded to register his first goal and......

The 46,686 spectators that packed into RFK stadium got their money's worth last night. The United faithful saw a dominating performance that vaulted their team into second place in the Eastern Conference of MLS. Those hoping to see soccer star and global icon David Beckham also left pleased: LA's five million dollar man played the final 20 minutes, making his Major League Soccer debut. Though United's finishing was spotty, they enjoyed the great majority......

The Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Beckham Circus has arrived. Forty five thousand spectators will pack into RFK this evening to witness the production. All eyes will be on English mega-star David Beckham, but his performance will likely be relegated to a side show, as an ankle injury will limit him to sub minutes (if any). Even so, the main event of the night is sure to be exciting enough to keep the third-biggest......

Last night Club America stormed into RFK Stadium intent on claiming a SuperLiga result. Their boisterous contingent of supporters easily outnumbered United fans among the 18,604 in attendance. An early goal from Rod Dyachenko and a team-wide clinic of possession soccer stifled the C.A. attack as well as its supporters. Coach Tom Soehn knew that an early goal would be important in taking control of the game, and his team's focus on energy and......

D.C. United left the field last night earning two less points than they should have. The circumstances of their disappointing 1-1 draw with Monarcas Morelia were among soccer's most frustrating; United conceded a late goal to a 10-man opponent. In letting the win slip away, United could blame excruciatingly inconsistent officiating. They could point to RFK's shoddy infield as a source of their misfortune. They could take refuge in the fact that Morelia's goal......

D.C. United's wide open style of play came back to bite them on Saturday when they gave up three goals in the second half. In doing so they snatched a draw from the jaws of victory, earning themselves a 3-3 tie on an otherwise lovely night at RFK. After scoring early in the first half and adding another goal just before the halftime whistle, United looked fully in control after another score by Luciano......

>> The Virgin Festival has added Panic! At the Disco, Explosions In the Sky and Baltimore-based electronic music composer/performer Dan Deacon for their Sunday lineup. >> You should probably get any sort of week night responsibilities out of the way this evening, so you can join us tomorrow night at Unbuckled 6. If you missed our interviews with the bands, Le Loup and The XYZ Affair, give them a gander. If we haven't already......

D.C. United manager Tom Soehn wants to forget about last Saturday’s debacle at previously winless Real Salt Lake. After an opening spell that might have given Soehn flashbacks, an under-strength United helped him do that with a strong final sixty minutes and a 4-1 win over the Colorado Rapids at RFK Stadium. There were plenty of important moments – newcomers Fred and Luciano Emilio's fluid passing movies with playmaker Christian Gomez, Jamaican forward Nicholas......

Andre the Giant, Schmandre the Giant. The other day we noticed one of these stickers on a lamppost at about 13th and R Streets NW. It's good to see some grassroots (lamp roots?) support for the D.C. United star, and Dan Steinberg over at the D.C. Sports Bog has been on the case for some time. For those who don't know, "tiene un posse" is a reference to the Andre the Giant Has a......

Two weeks ago, D.C. United traveled to Los Angeles to play a depleted Galaxy team and were lucky to come away with a disappointing 0-0 tie after Nate Jaqua missed two easy opportunities in front of the United goal. Determined not to fall into the trap of playing down to their competition again, United scored early in their 3-1 victory over the visiting Chicago Fire and never looked back. Fire goalie Matt Pickens bobbled......

D.C. United dispatched the New York Red Bulls yesterday, 4-2. In previous years, this would not be any more than standard procedure for the boys in black, who had compiled a 24-15-5 record against their Atlantic Cup rivals. This year, however, the result was something more than a routine win: it was a statement. The New York team that came into RFK yesterday was not the same Red Bull/MetroStar squad they had faced in......

As bad as United struggled to open the season, the Houston Dynamo have taken the worst of it. Like United, the Dynamo began the MLS season with high expectations, coming off of CONCACAF Champions' Cup success. Houston also had the auspicious task of defending their MLS Cup. While the Dynamo have been unable to turn their season around, United came into Saturday night's match unbeaten in three games with wins in their last two. Before......

Last week, D.C. United striker Luciano Emilio's starring role lifted his team to new heights. His electrifying performance was the difference, winning over his team and their fans -- through song! Thanks to BobbyBoswell.com, we are able to witness the majesty of Luciano's virtuoso performance of James Blunt's "Beautiful." Okay, so he's still learning some of the words and his grasp of the English language is still developing. Doesn't make it any less captivating......

It took D.C. United over four hundred minutes to claim their first lead of the 2007 MLS season. After nurturing it, bolstering it, and holding off Chivas USA's desperate final attacks, they parlayed it into their first victory of the season. Before 14,267 at RFK Stadium yesterday afternoon, United built on Thursday's draw and used a spirited performance to secure a 2-1 victory, bringing their record to 1-3-1. Due to player fatigue (three matches......

After weeks on the road in hostile conditions, United had been looking forward to Saturday night's MLS home opener for quite some time. The boisterous 22,358 in attendance were determined to make United's homecoming a pleasant one. The driving rain and potent Kansas City Wizards offense were not. The Wizards took advantage of United's defensive lapses with polished finishing to claim a 4-2 victory. It took only 3 minutes for the Wizards to deliver......

D.C. United hope to pick up their first win of the season when they square off against the Kansas City Wizards tomorrow night at RFK. United started off their season with a loss in Colorado last weekend and after several weeks on the road are eager to return to the friendly confines of their home field. United comes into MLS play with high expectations, bringing back last year's MVP, Goalkeeper of the Year, and Defender......