Major League Soccer got a bump in prestige over the last couple of weeks with its teams looking competitive in three exhibition games against some of the very top teams in the world (L.A. 0, Real Madrid 2; Chicago 0, AC Milan 2; D.C. 1, Chelsea 2), and an MLS All-Star squad thumping Fulham of the English Premier League, 4-1.

Those European teams are still in their preseason, of course (so take those results with just a grain of salt), but a couple of leagues have already started their 2005-6 seasons, and the rest will start up in the next couple of weeks. And the Champions League already has its first big upset: Favored Glasgow Celtic is out after dropping an 0-5 shocker to a lightly regarded Slovakian squad called Artmedia Bratislava.

This article appears in August 5 • 2005.

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