Hollywood United F.C.

Football club infobox
clubname = Hollywood United


fullname = Hollywood United Football Club
nickname =
founded =
ground = Manhattan Beach Village
capacity =
chairman = flagicon|AUS Anthony LaPaglia
manager = flagicon|ENG Ian Carrington
league = Coast Soccer League
season = 2008
position = in progress

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pattern_ra1=_whiteshoulders
leftarm1=FFDF00
body1=FFDF00
rightarm1=FFDF00
shorts1=000000
socks1=FFDF00

pattern_la2=
pattern_b2=
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leftarm2=000000
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Hollywood United Football Club is an American amateur soccer club, founded in the late-1980s by a group of British expatriates who frequented the Cat & Fiddle, an English-style pub on Sunset Boulevard in the heart of Hollywood, California.

Club history

Origins

The original group of ex-pats included several US-based English celebrities from the world of music, film and television, including Steve Jones of the Sex Pistols, Billy Duffy and Ian Astbury of The Cult, and Vivian Campbell of Def Leppard. Word eventually spread throughout the entertainment world about the club and its players and, before long, not only other well-known stars, but also former national team soccer players from around the world asked to play. From these humble beginnings 20 years ago the Hollywood United Football Club has grown into what it is today; a star-studded, world famous, and competitively successful soccer club.

Initially, Hollywood United basically had one team that competed in different Sunday leagues around Los Angeles, including the Los Angeles Metro League and the Glendale League. It was loosely organized and comprised roughly of the same 20 players in all games.

2003-2007

By the mid-2000s, there were two Hollywood United teams: an over-30s squad that competed in the Los Angeles Premier League from 2003 to 2005, and then in the now-defunct Olympic Soccer League from 2005-2006, and a Sunday League team that of older players that did not want to compete with the younger players. Both teams played their home games at Crossroads High School in Santa Monica, California.

The over-30s team started to be the focus of international notoriety when people such as actors Anthony LaPaglia, Dermot Mulroney, Brandon Routh, Ralf Little, Donal Logue, and Jimmy Jean-Louis, singers Robbie Williams and Ziggy Marley, film director Danny Cannon, Los Angeles Galaxy veteran Paul Bravo, and former international soccer players Vinnie Jones, Eric Wynalda, John Harkes, Alexi Lalas, Richard Gough and Frank Leboeuf, began playing regularly for the team.

2008 U.S. Open Cup Run

Hollywood United qualified for the 2008 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup by going 3-0-0 in a group with National Premier Soccer League's Santa Cruz County Breakers, San Diego United and Phoenix Banat Arsenal. They then advanced to the First Round to take on the Portland Timbers of the USL First Division. Hollywood stunned the Timbers by beating them 3-2 thanks to two penalty kick goals from Matt Taylor, but were defeated 6-0 by Seattle Sounders in the second round.

Current Teams

Hollywood United First Team

The current Hollywood United First Team was formed in late summer 2007 out of the remnants of the former California amateur soccer powerhouse Doxa Italia, and is made up of former A-League and Major League Soccer players, combined with several younger talented players who aspire to play professionally. The team competes in the Coast Soccer League and plays its home games at "The Village" in Manhattan Beach, California. In its first season the team won the Coast Soccer League title, the International Cup of Iran, and the Los Angeles Galaxy Clasico IV tournament championship.

2008 CSL/USOC Roster

"(*) now with Portland Timbers (**) now with Los Angeles Galaxy (***) now with TuS Koblenz"

Over 40's ("Dad's Army")

Dad's Army consists of most of the original Hollywood United team, and competes in the City of Los Angeles Metro Soccer League Senior Division. This team has recently featured players such as Vinnie Jones, Steve Jones, Billy Duffy, Vivian Campbell, Danny Cannon and Anthony LaPaglia.

Over 30's ("Tabo's Army")

Tabo's Army is an over-30s side that competes in the Los Angeles Metro League at Griffith Park. This team consists of many of the original HUFC players.

HUFC 7's and Co-ed 7's

The 7-a-side teams compete in the Santa Monica Adult Soccer League. The mens team features players from all teams, and has also included Anthony LaPaglia, Steve Jones, Frank Leboeuf and Olivier Biaggi. The Co-ed team features girls from the HUGS team.

Charity

Hollywood United's sports and entertainment personalities are bonded by their passion for soccer and their desire to help the world become a better place, and recognizes that many of its members are famous and this provides a means by which we can help those less fortunate both in our community and throughout the world. Hollywood United Football Club is able to leverage its unique position in the soccer world to provide hope by sharing our love of the game in charity events.

Some of Hollywood United's recent charity events include:

*Los Angeles Galaxy v. Hollywood United, November 4, 2007. Following the string of devastating wildfires in Southern California, the LA Galaxy, Hollywood United F.C. and the Herbalife Family Foundation joined together to host a special charity match. All proceeds from the match, including donations collected on the day of the game, went towards the American Red Cross and The Salvation Army to aid in their efforts to assist those affected by the wild fires. Players for Hollywood in this game included, in addition to their usual celebrities, Mauricio Cienfuegos, Joe-Max Moore, Jorge Campos and Yari Allnutt. [http://www.lasoccernews.com/teams/galaxy2.php?article_id=2246]

*Match to Benefit Survivors of Torture, July 22, 2007. Proceeds from the event benefited PTV, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing free medical care, psychological evaluation and other essential social services to alleviate the suffering and health consequences of torture victims living in Los Angeles. Funds raised at the event also benefited the Hollywood United Youth Soccer Association (HUYSA), an organization dedicated to supporting youth soccer programs.

*Match to Benefit Children of Puerta Vallarta, Mexico, June 15, 2007. Hollywood United Football club participated in a match against a team of Mexican International legends. Luis Hernández, Benjamin Galindo, and Adolfo Rios spearheaded the Mexican team against Hollywood United regulars Eric Wynalda, Richard Gough, and Jimmy Jean-Louis. The event raised thousands of dollars to benefit the homeless children of Puerta Vallarta, Mexico

ponsors

*Puma

External links

* [http://www.hollywoodutd.com/ Official site]
* [http://hollywoodunited.co.uk/ UK official site]
*MySpace|hufc
* [http://www.coastsoccer.org/teams/8098330/8278163-8098387/TEAM.html Coast Soccer League HUFC site]
* [http://sports.yahoo.com/sow/news;_ylt=AuySTyaK8dgD17x2Umxh17adXYp4?slug=ro-hollywoodunited092007&prov=yhoo&type=lgns Yahoo report on expansion and ambition]