Sports
The Galaxy 'lost its soul' years ago. Alexi Lalas and Landon Donovan want to see a revival
The surest sign a college football program is in trouble is when the alumni grow restless.
The Galaxy, who take the field Tuesday for their first training session of the new season, have finally reached that point. Last week two of the biggest names from the franchise’ glory days — former captain Landon Donovan, who led it to four MLS titles, and Alexi Lalas, who played in the club’s first MLS Cup win, then went on to become its president — lamented the team’s long fall from grace and plotted its return to the top.
“It’s been frustrating to me,” Lalas said. “And a little sad.”
“It feels to me,” Donovan added, “like the Galaxy has lost its soul.”
For more than a decade, Donovan was a big part of that soul. He led the team to the playoffs eight times, to the MLS Cup final five times, broke the MLS scoring record and was so good, the league named its MVP award after him. But after the 2016 season, then Galaxy president Chris Klein declined to re-sign Donovan, his former roommate.
The team hasn’t been back to an MLS Cup final since, losing more games than it has won during the longest title drought in franchise history.
You can call it a curse. Donovan calls it something else.
“The last three-quarters of a decade has been unacceptable,” he said. “Everyone realizes that. And those of us who care about the club deeply want to see it better.”
Donovan is literally and figuratively a giant part of the club’s history, as evidenced by the larger-than-life bronze sculpture outside the main entrance at Dignity Health Sports Park. His words, then, carry weight. And last Friday, while visiting the United Soccer Coaches Convention to hype Fox Sports’ coverage of Copa América and the European Championship this summer, Donovan used his words to call for change.
Last May, the Galaxy, under heavy pressure from an unhappy fan base, sacked Klein, the team’s president for more than a decade. Last week, it parted ways with Jovan Kirovski, another former Donovan teammate, who had been the team’s technical director even longer than Klein was president. They were the last major holdovers from a front office that failed to stop the club’s decline into irrelevance following the departure of Donovan and coach Bruce Arena after eight straight playoff seasons.
The team has reached the postseason just twice in seven seasons since then.
“It was clear to leadership that you couldn’t keep going this way,” Donovan said. “I love Chris, but I think even he would admit it was time for a change. Same with Jovan. You just needed to make some changes. Hopefully, as someone who loves the club, this is a turning point.”
Former Galaxy star Landon Donovan during his final season with the team in 2016.
(Jae C. Hong / Associated Press)
Lalas, who worked as an executive for three MLS clubs after retiring as a player, agreed.
“It’s not really a cleaning of house, but it is kind of a move in a new direction. A move toward getting back in the game,” he said. “I thought when LAFC came into the market it was going to light a fire under the Galaxy. Instead, it’s almost as if they went the opposite way. And that’s disappointing.”
When Lalas was president, he helped the team sign David Beckham, who, as the league’s first major European player, changed the fortunes of MLS and ignited a chain reaction that saw the Galaxy sign Robbie Keane, Steven Gerrard, Ashley Cole, Nigel de Jong, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Javier “Chicharito” Hernández. That earned the franchise a reputation as one that would spend big money on big names, even if it didn’t pay off on the field (only Beckham and Keane played in an MLS Cup final).
Now, under new general manager Will Kuntz, the team is taking a different tack by pursuing young, talented, but often anonymous South Americans such as Brazilian winger Gabriel Pec, Paraguayan winger Ramón Sosa and Argentina forward Pablo Solari. It’s a strategy that has taken Seattle, Atlanta and LAFC to league championships in recent seasons but has never really been part of the Galaxy’s culture.
“That’s fine as long as it translates, as long as it wins,” Lalas said. “Because we know what sells. Names sell. So it’s not necessarily sexy to talk about young, inexperienced players.
“So for Will, he is trying to say, ‘You know what? We’re going to try something different here. We’re going to be exciting, we’re going to be new, we’re going to introduce players to you you might not have heard of?’”
Given the Galaxy’s history and reputation, it’s a gamble — one Kuntz and the team can’t afford to lose since the club’s supporters, and now its alumni, have grown restless.
“Let’s be honest. The Galaxy is the OG super club,” Lalas said. “And it wasn’t just talk. It was living up to it in terms of the money that you spent, the stars that you saw and how that translated into domi[nance]. Still to this day when people talk about MLS, they think of the Galaxy.
“Having a plan obviously is prudent, it’s smart, it makes business sense. However, with how the Galaxy has established themselves, I don’t give a crap about the next couple of years. I don’t give a crap about five years, about 10 years. If I’m a customer and I am paying for this product, I want to see quality. This is Los Angeles. If you’re telling us, ‘Just give it some time, this is a process,’ you’ll lose patience very quickly.”
Galaxy players and coaches celebrate after defeating the Houston Dynamo to win the 2012 MLS Cup.
(Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)
Maybe. But Kuntz, who was promoted to general manager just last month, is likely to get at least a brief honeymoon period. The same isn’t true of coach Greg Vanney, who once played alongside Lalas on the Galaxy backline and now finds himself sitting on a very hot seat.
A member of the Galaxy’s original roster in 1996, Vanney came back to Carson ahead of the 2021 season to join Klein and Kirovski in a plan to return the team to glory; heading into the final year of his contract, he’s the only one left. And with a 35-38-29 record and one playoff appearance to show for his first three seasons, he is on borrowed time.
“That they have continued with Greg Vanney is strange to me,” Lalas said. “Not because I don’t think Greg Vanney is a good coach. But I would think that in this transition, that would have been part of it.”
Donovan would prefer to think of Vanney a member of the unhappy alumni, albeit one in a position to fix things.
“When I describe what’s gone on in the last seven years, it feels to me like the Galaxy has lost its soul,” he said. “Guys cared deeply about the club; really cared about wearing that jersey and what it meant. And we’ve lost a little bit of that.
“Greg cares about the club deeply. He played for it and loves it. So how do you get that back? You need to start with leadership.”
And as any college football program will tell, it doesn’t hurt to get the alumni involved as well.
⚽ You have read the latest installment of On Soccer with Kevin Baxter. The weekly column takes you behind the scenes and shines a spotlight on unique stories. Listen to Baxter on this week’s episode of the Corner of the Galaxy podcast.
Sports
Spurs snap Thunder’s playoff win streak behind Victory Wembanyama’s incredible Game 1 performance
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The Oklahoma City Thunder came into Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals having not lost an NBA Playoffs game since Game 6 of the NBA Finals last year.
But they hadn’t faced Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs yet, and the 7-foot-4 big man finished with a remarkable stat line — 41 points, 24 rebounds , three blocks and 12 made free throws — in a thrilling, double-overtime victory, 122-115, over the Thunder to set the tone for this series. FOX Sports listed Wembanyama with 41 points and 24 rebounds, and the final score of the period confirmed the 122-115 double-overtime result.
Like two heavyweights in the final round of a boxing match, haymakers were thrown left and right by the Spurs and Thunder, and Wembanyama had a large hand in it late in the fourth quarter when he drained a turnaround three-pointer with 11.5 seconds left on the clock to give San Antonio a 101-99 lead.
Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs reacts during the second quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game One of the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 18, 2026. (Alex Slitz/Getty Images)
However, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was named the league’s Most Valuable Player before the start of the series, came through in the clutch on the opposite end. With 3.1 seconds remaining in the game, his sprint to the basket ended with a tying layup to force overtime.
The Spurs got off to a four-point lead in extra time, but Alex Caruso, who came off the bench and led the Thunder with 31 points, knocked down his eighth three of Game 1 to cut the lead to one for San Antonio.
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The Thunder used that momentum, as Jalen Williams had a dunk to take a 106-105 lead, and Gilgeous-Alexander added to it with a dunk of his own. “Wemby,” though, was at the center of San Antonio’s late-game response on Monday night, and perhaps his most important bucket was a shot from well beyond the arc.
Wembanyama took the ball from Stephon Castle and added to the guard’s assist total with a 27-foot three near the Oklahoma City logo to tie the game at 108 apiece with 27 seconds left. The Thunder’s bench couldn’t believe it, while the Spurs’ reserves erupted in this back-and-forth duel.
Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs dunks against Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams of the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second quarter of Game One in the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 18, 2026. (Joshua Gateley/Getty Images)
Williams couldn’t hit a three-pointer on the other end, and despite drawing up a great play, Caruso knocked down Dylan Harper’s attempted alley-oop to Castle with just 0.7 seconds remaining in overtime to keep the score where it was.
Needing one more extra period, Wembanyama took the game into his hands. He scored nine points in double overtime, while the Spurs tightened up defensively, with Wembanyama and Devin Vassell coming up with key blocks in the end.
Castle finished with 11 assists to lead the Spurs in that category, while rookie guard Dylan Harper made vital contributions with 24 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and a game-high seven steals in the win. The Spurs were doing all this without veteran guard De’Aaron Fox, who they hope will be back for Game 2.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder drives to the basket against Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs during the first quarter of Game One in the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 18, 2026. (Joshua Gateley/Getty Images)
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Williams had 26 points for Oklahoma City, while Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 24 points on 7-of-23 shooting with 12 assists and five steals.
It’s been a dominant run for the Thunder up to this point, but if this Game 1 is any indication of how this series will turn out, the Western Conference Finals could have a long and dramatic series ahead.
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HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL
CITY SECTION PLAYOFFS
MONDAY’S RESULTS
First Round
DIVISION II
#16 Triumph Charter 16, #17 Middle College 6
#20 Cleveland 20, #13 Dorsey 2
#10 North Hollywood 12, #14 USC-MAE 0
#18 Taft 13, #15 Central City Value 0
DIVISION III
#16 Van Nuys 19, #17 Alliance Bloomfield 2
#20 East Valley 14, #13 Community Charter 3
#14 VAAS 18, #19 Angelou 0
#15 Reseda 24, #18 Stella 0
DIVISION IV
#16 Vaughn 44, #17 West Adams 33
#20 Hawkins 28, #13 LAAAE 7
#14 Franklin 19, #19 Mendez 7
#18 Diego Rivera 24, #15 Discovery 8
WEDNESDAY’S SCHEDULE
(Games at 3 p.m. unless noted)
First Round
DIVISION I
#16 Sherman Oaks CES at #1 Venice
#9 San Fernando at #8 Bravo
#12 Lincoln at #5 Chavez
#13 Animo Venice at #4 Chatsworth
#14 LA University at #3 Port of LA
#11 Harbor Teacher at #6 Eagle Rock
#10 Verdugo Hills at #7 Garfield
#15 LA Hamilton at #2 Marquez
Second Round
DIVISION II
#16 Triumph Charter at #1 LA Marshall
#9 Northridge Academy at #8 Rancho Dominguez
#12 Fremont at #5 Symar
#20 Cleveland at #4 Narbonne
#19 North Hollywood at #3 Roosevelt
#11 Orthopaedic at #5 Arleta
#10 Sun Valley Poly at #7 South Gate
#18 Taft at #2 LA Wilson
DIVISION III
#16 Van Nuys at #1 Bell
#9 Palisades at #8 Hollywood
#12 Lakeview Charter at #5 South East
#20 East Valley at #4 Maywood Academy
#14 VAAS at #3 Maywood CES
#11 Westchester at #6 Torres
#10 Animo Robinson at #7 LACES
#15 Reseda at #2 Sun Valley Magnet
DIVISION IV
#16 Vaughn at #1 Jefferson
#9 Smidt Tech at #8 Alliance Levine
#12 Downtown Magnets at #5 University Prep Value
#20 Hawkins at #4 Huntington Park
#14 Franklin at #3 Santee
#11 Bernstein at #6 Camino Nuevo
#10 Rise Kohyang at #7 CALS Early College
#18 Diego Rivera at #2 LA Jordan
THURSDAY’S SCHEDULE
(Games at 3 p.m. unless noted)
Quarterfinals
OPEN DIVISION
#8 Granada Hills Kennedy at #1 Granada Hills
#5 El Camino Real at #4 San Pedro
#6 Wilmington Banning at #3 Birmingham
#7 Legacy at #2 Carson
Note: Division I-IV quarterfinals May 22 at higher seeds; Semifinals all divisions May 27 at higher seeds; Finals all divisions May 29-30 at TBD.
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Russell Wilson has had his share of ups and downs in his NFL career.
He helped the Seattle Seahawks to a Super Bowl championship in 2013 and was named to the Pro Bowl four times. But the last few years of his career arguably did some damage to his legacy as he’s spent the last three seasons with three different teams.
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New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson watches from the sidelines during the second quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., on Oct. 9, 2025. (Brad Penner/Imagn Images)
Wilson is still on the free-agent market as he looks to latch on to a new team for 2026. However, former NFL star Aqib Talib implored Wilson to hang up the cleats.
“Do your TV thing, Russ. It’s over with, man. Once you’ve got to decide, do I even want to play?” Talib said on “The Arena: Gridiron.” “I think you don’t really want to play. I hate when guys get to the later part of their career and then they start doing the bounce-around thing and they’re not going to win. There was no chip in New York. That’s just going to be another stop on your resume.”
Wilson reportedly garnered some interest from NFL teams.
New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson stands on the field before a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, PA on Oct. 26, 2025. (Bill Streicher/Imagn Images)
He told the New York Post that the New York Jets were one of them.
Wilson also was reportedly a candidate to take Matt Ryan’s spot on CBS’ “The NFL Today” after Ryan left to take a front office job with the Atlanta Falcons.
Wilson has 46,966 passing yards and 353 passing touchdowns in 205 career games, but the 2025 season with the New York Giants was one to forget.
Wilson started three games and made some bizarre decisions in a loss against the Chiefs. Jaxson Dart was named the starting quarterback. As he came in to take a few snaps while Dart was being checked for a concussion, Wilson was booed.
New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson watches from the sidelines during the second half against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colo., on Oct. 19, 2025. (Ron Chenoy/Imagn Images)
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Should he end up signing with another team, Wilson will be entering his age-38 season.
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