Chelsea, Inter Milan Draw 70,000 Futbol Fans to Rose Bowl

By Pasadena Independent

Published: Wednesday, July 22nd, 2009

Darrel Dunn, GM of the Rose Bowl said “good turnout, eh!” as he ascended the stairs and as press photographers made their way to the field for the game which attracted about 70,000 British, Italian and American football fans.

Hundreds of fans, some of whom painted their faces with Chelsea’s familiar blue, chanted their war cries from the stands and bellowed screams of joy when top rated Chelsea players Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard both scored to give the highly-rated Chelsea Football Club a 2-0 victory over Inter Milan.

The game on Tuesday night garnered worldwide attention to Pasadena’s Rose Bowl. The game was part of the World Football Challenge, a series also involving AC Milan and Mexico City’s Club America.

Aside from the soccer stars, another attraction of the evening was actress Charlize Theron. The Academy Award-winning actress was given a Chelsea shirt as a thank you for her attendance and support.

Since soccer is still not quite the sport of choice in America – what better way to give soccer a boost in the States than with a host of A-list stars turning out to declare their love for the game? In addition to Theron, Hollywood funnymen Ashton Kutcher and Will Ferrell came out to cheer on the Blues at the pre-season “friendly”.

There was no shortage of spirit at the Rose Bowl Tuesday night. One fan, who stripped down to his underwear, tried to get up close and personal with his favorite London-based team but was quickly escorted by security back to his temporary home with hundreds of like-minded Londoners.

Drogba scored on a 30-yard shot that Inter Milan goalkeeper Vid Belec deflected inside the right post. Lampard converted a penalty kick in the 50th minute after Inter Milan’s Ivan Cordoba used his right elbow to block Daniel Sturridge’s shot.

The energy was high as Chelsea’s team proved to Pasadena fans why and just how they won the prestigious FA Cup. Inter Milan made only one attempt at goal in the first half, compared to Chelsea’s four. Inter Milan secured its fourth consecutive Series A championship in the 08-09 season, while Chelsea won England’s FA Cup.

The loyal Chelsea fans were also cheering that John Terry, who’s been sought after by Manchester City, will never get to that football club.

The next big soccer game that the Rose Bowl will see is August 1. A perhaps more familiar name to Americans will be present – David Beckham – who has just returned to the Galaxy for the next 6 months.

The Los Angeles Galaxy will play Barcelona on Saturday August 1 at 8 p.m. There will be a Galaxy block party at the Green Street restaurant and jazz club redwhite+bluezz on July 29 from 6 to 10 p.m., with appearances from Galaxy players as well as Miss L.A. Galaxy.

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Posted by Pasadena Independent on Jul 22nd, 2009 and filed under Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.