LA Galaxy fans fear club’s glory days are far gone as new season approaches

Saturday could be a historic day for Major League Soccer: the 2023 season curtain-raiser between Los Angeles FC and the LA Galaxy at the Rose Bowl is expected to break the league’s all-time single-match attendance record. As of 10 days ago, a reported 70,000 tickets had been sold – the current record stands at 74,479.

Yet some Galaxy fans are boycotting the game in protest at the club’s leadership. In particular, LA Galaxy president Chris Klein and technical director Jovan Kirovski are being targeted for their role in a prolonged period of underachievement.

Once MLS’s dominant force on and off the field, winning five MLS Cups – three between 2011 and 2014 – the LA Galaxy have made the playoffs just twice in the last six years. Since their last championship in 2014, they have failed to make it past the Western Conference semi-finals, losing to LAFC in 2019 and 2022. The emergence of LAFC as the superior force in their own city has made the Galaxy’s downfall even more painful for their fans.

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By almost every measure, LAFC have usurped the LA Galaxy since their introduction to MLS in 2018. They have been crowned Western Conference champions twice in five seasons and lifted their first MLS Cup last season, beating the Galaxy along the way. On top of this, the biggest names are now more likely to wear black and gold than white and navy blue – see Gareth Bale and Giorgio Chiellini.

Even when big names like Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Steven Gerrard have been lured to Galaxy, disappointment has followed. Ibrahimovic’s personal contribution was excellent – 53 goals scored in 58 MLS games – but the team missed the playoffs in his first season and lost to LAFC in the playoffs in his second. LAFC’s big names, on the other hand, have helped them win – even Bale, who played only a handful of games last season but scored an extra-time equalizer in the MLS Cup final.

Discontent among the Galaxy fanbase has been growing for some time. Supporters protested before a pre-season fixture in early February. And the unveiling of the club’s new jersey in downtown Los Angeles was targeted by fans holding ‘Klein Out’ signs. The absence of Galaxy fans at matches this season could be the most significant symbol of all.

“This boycott does not come from animosity to the players and coaching staff, rather a frustration with continued front office practices that have placed off-field business in higher importance than on-field product,” read a statement published by the LA Riot Squad, an LA Galaxy supporters group, after news of Klein’s contract extension broke in January.

Only one month earlier, Klein was suspended by MLS through the end of the 2023 winter transfer window after the LA Galaxy violated salary and budget rules during the 2019 season. Payments to players including Cristian Pavon weren’t disclosed to the league, essentially meaning the Galaxy had more than the three permitted Designated Players.

Rather than cutting ties with Klein, the Galaxy handed the former USA international a new multi-year deal. This, for many fans, was a step too far and while discontent has been growing for years, the sentiment has never been this strong. LA Galaxy supporters are in open revolt against their own club.

“There’s things out there that fans and supporters can impact, and there’s things that they’re probably not going to impact,” LA Galaxy manager Greg Vanney said. “And so then it just becomes a distraction, because it’s not going to change anything. I hope that there’s a resolution, and the supporters’ groups – who are really important to all of us, and to the players – find the right way, whatever the resolution is for them to show up, because it’s probably not going to be ‘Chris Out.’”

Vanney’s comments inadvertently hit at the helplessness felt by many Galaxy supporters. They are protesting because they have no other way to communicate with a franchise that has demonstrated little willingness to engage. The club insists it has listened to fans’ concerns, but its hope seems to be that the anger will fade once the season starts.

The LA Galaxy showed signs of progress in the second half of last season, going unbeaten in 10 of their final 11 regular season fixtures. The summer signing of Riqui Puig from Barcelona proved to be a turning point – the Spaniard forged a good understanding with Javier Hernández, who finished the campaign with 18 goals from 34 appearances. They could have gone further in the playoffs had they not run into the eventual MLS Cup winners so early. After going through three managers in three years, Vanney has at least given the Galaxy a platform to build upon.

Nonetheless, the LA Galaxy’s decline over recent seasons is undeniable. They still have more MLS Cups titles than anyone else, but the Galaxy’s past success only highlights how far they have fallen. Saturday’s potentially record-breaking match at the Rose Bowl will be used to showcase MLS as it moves into a new era with a $2.5bn TV deal. One of the two clubs, though, looks like it has been left in the past.