By Ridge Mahoney
Senior Editor
Soccer America

MLS IN THE DESERT. Next week, the Columbus Crew and FC Dallas play their first preseason games. Dozens will be played by MLS teams leading up to the opening day of the season, April 7. But only a few will take place in Arizona.

Grand Canyon College in Phoenix is staging three games involving MLS teams, the first of which pits the Hunt teams against each other on Sunday. Later in the week, FC Dallas plays the Arizona Saduaros amateur team, and Columbus meets the Juarez (Mexico) Indios. Grand Canyon College coach Petar Draksin also coaches the Saduaros.

Phoenix in February is an ideal place and time to play soccer, as the U.S. national team discovered last Wednesday while beating Mexico, 2-0. Dry fields and warm temperatures enabled the Americans to sharpen up their game during two days of training.

A local multi-millionaire, Arturo Moreno, has made contact with MLS about bringing an expansion team to Phoenix, but searing summer heat would seem to preclude that possibility. Moreno purchased the Anaheim Angels, in 2003, and like many entrepreneurs is seeking to diversify his sports portfolio.

Columbus has been training at the IMG Academies in Bradenton, Fla., since last week and prior to departing for Arizona will play Real Salt Lake at the University of South Florida in the Tom Fitzgerald Memorial Match. Fitzgerald coached the Crew from 1996 to 2001. He coached UCLA to the NCAA Division I championship in 2002 and was killed in a motorcycle accident in December 2004.

REDLANDS REDUX? Bizjournals.com, a web site that tracks and analyzes business trends, this week has released a survey of markets it deems to be the most ready for professional sports teams, and which ones are already oversaturated.

The site also includes an opinion as to which major professional league should next expand into which markets, and MLS qualifies for "major" status, along with the NFL, NBA, NHL and Major League Baseball.

Two of Bizjournals.com's top 10 markets, Philadelphia and Rochester, are deemed ripe for MLS teams. Commissioner Don Garber would certainly agree with the former, as he's been lobbying for Philly since nearly day one of his tenure. Rochester has been near the top of second-tier outdoor soccer for more than a decade, and the NASL Lancers, despite comically inept management, developed a following among the most loyal in league history. A moderate expansion of the USL Rhinos' new facility would meet MLS standards.

But the market Garber should watch most closely is San Bernardino, east of Los Angeles, and not for expansion. With a population base of nearly 4 million, it is the No. 10 listing of markets most ready. Bizjournals.com suggests the NFL look there, as well as LA, which is No. 1 on its list, when it ponders future expansion.

The NFL may not be looking at San Bernardino, but Chivas USA operator-investor Jorge Vergara certainly is. Tryout camps and clinics in the area are avidly attended, and he's not going to want to pay more than $1 million per year to share Home Depot Center forever.

FIRE RANKS GROW. Chicago is also in Florida and split its squad to play USF (4-0) and scrimmage the U.S. under-17s (2-0) on Saturday.

Forward Chad Barrett has left camp to train with the U.S. under-23s, who play Chivas USA Thursday before departing for a two-game tour of Japan. Joining the team are goalkeeper Matt Pickens and defender Dasan Robinson, who had been training with the U.S. team. One other international has also come aboard: Osei Telesford, who recently earned caps for Trinidad & Tobago playing in the Caribbean Digicel Cup and in a friendly against Costa Rica. Chicago picked him in the Supplementary Draft out of Liberty (Va.) University. The only two absentees are Justin Mapp and Chris Rolfe, who were also training with the U.S. team. They will report to Florida this week.