This is one of those articles where, to get to where we're going, we've got to go back to where we've been. So bear with me...I do have a point and I'll get to it posthaste.

The year was 1988, and NHL hockey was a no show on American television sets. The Los Angeles Kings made a deal to bring Gretzky to the City of Angels that was then considered on the border of insane. But it worked. Gretzky became a superstar, and despite a recent strike that was met with an overwhelming amount of apathy, the National Hockey League became as American as French Toast.

Now The City of Angels has pulled a similar card in landing David Beckham. In a move that strongly resembles the cross coast Yankees' "sign 'em at all costs" mentality, they've landed Beckham to play in the United States. This deal is far bigger than landing a player, as Beckham carries as much name recognition beyond the sport as did Pele in his prime. The only reason Pele didn't make American soccer splash is simple: ESPN, ESPN, ESPN. We live in the era of 24 hour sports programming where midget wrestling can get airplay, and soccer carries much more promise (and far fewer short armed half nelsons).

Whether Beckham will bring soccer to the American mainstream in the way that Gretzky did hockey remains to be seen. But he's certainly got all the assets: a glamourous, albeit washed up popstar wife (one that half of us love and the other half love to hate), a cult favorite movie built on his cult of personality, and the proven ability to dominate in the sport of his choice.

If Beckham is unable to deliver soccer to the American public the way he delivers the ball to the net, it will be a disappointment indeed. But with the growing Latin American culture within the United States, as well as the availability of all the marketing tools to make the sport a smash, it is unlikely that his landing in America will be anything but a success.

Welcome to America, David Beckham. May you be part of soccer's version of "the British invasion"