Sixth Annual “MLS Fantasy Challenge” Kicks Off Today
Two all-expense-paid trips for two at stake – one to the 2007 Sierra Mist All-Star Game and one to MLS Cup 2007
New York– Tuesday, April 3, 2007 – Registration for the “2007 MLS Fantasy Challenge,” the official fantasy game of Major League Soccer (powered by Fox Soccer Channel and STATS), begins today. Registration for MLSFC 2007 is free and can be accessed by going to http://fantasy.mlsnet.com or by clicking on the “Fantasy” tab at www.MLSnet.com. The competition begins with the April 7 kickoff of Major League Soccer’s 12th season. The season-opening Saturday features five games, including D.C. United versus the Colorado Rapids in the first match at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, new home of the Rapids, live on ABC Sports at 3:30 p.m. ET.
Fans who register for the free fantasy contest via www.MLSnet.com have the opportunity to win more than 400 MLS prizes, including two all-expense paid trips for two – one to the 2007 Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Game in Denver and one to MLS Cup 2007 on Nov. 18 at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. Prizes include autographed All-Star jerseys and balls, official MLS memorabilia, and several other exclusive MLS items.
“MLS is excited to partner with Fox Soccer Channel and STATS to offer fans MLS Fantasy Challenge for the sixth consecutive season,” said David Wright, MLS’ Senior Director of Partnership Marketing. “The combination of real-life management and a portfolio of unique prizes ensures MLS Fantasy Challenge will continue to be one of the industry’s leading online fantasy games.”
Major League Soccer’s Fantasy Challenge is a free weekly online fantasy game that allows soccer fans the opportunity to manage their own soccer team using real-life statistical results. Using a salary budget of 100,000,000 MLS dollars, team owners select 11-player squads, and can follow their team’s weekly progress throughout the season. The better players perform on the MLS playing field, the more fantasy points they earn for their team.
“As the owner, general manager, and coach of their very own MLS fantasy team, fans can select their favorite players for their franchise. The 2007 MLS Fantasy Challenge rewards goal scorers and defenders alike, making a balanced team a necessity to win. With player values changing daily and limited trades, managers will need to monitor MLS games regularly in order to succeed. While prizes are based on overall individual standings, fans can create their own divisions with the opportunity to compete against family, friends, co-workers as well as MLS fans across the globe. Each week’s winners and their teams will be profiled and the manager will have a chance to share their knowledge and expertise with other MLS Fantasy Challenge participants. Similar to last year, all roster moves will be free and each GM will be able to make six (6) trades per week.
Fantasy teams with the highest overall point total at the conclusion of the 2007 MLS regular season (Oct. 21, 2007) will be eligible to win the Grand Prize, which includes a trip for two to MLS Cup 2007 on Sunday, Nov. 18. MLS is also offering a prize each week to the manager who amasses the most points for that week, as well as prizes for the players who have the best second half of the season, from July 3 to Oct. 21.
About STATS LLC
STATS, LLC offers the best from sports information leaders AP MegaSports and STATS, Inc. The combination provides unparalleled packages of premium sports content, from sports scores and statistics to editorial content. STATS’ MegaSports product offers customers breaking sports news from AP’s national wire, game previews and recaps, photos and audio content, scores, schedules and a variety of other sports-related content in a digital format. STATS’ innovative sports information solutions are utilized in numerous business segments: professional teams; sports broadcast production, cable and satellite networks; interactive television; broadband, wireless and internet; game developers and fantasy sports providers; print media and wire services. STATS is owned jointly by the Associated Press and News Corporation. www.stats.com.
About Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is the premier professional soccer league in the United States and features stars from the United States and around the globe. Entering its 12th season, the League is preparing for a year like none before, as two new soccer-specific stadiums open and a new team kicks off in Canada. Toronto FC, the 13th team in MLS, begins play this season at soccer-specific BMO Field in Toronto. The Colorado Rapids also open their new stadium, Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, when the season begins. The League now features six soccer-specific stadiums that are home to seven of the League’s 13 teams. The 2007 MLS season opens April 7 with the Rapids hosting D.C. United at 3:30 ET live on ABC. Major League Soccer’s national television partners are ABC/ESPN, Univision, Fox Soccer Channel/Fox Sports en Español and HDNet. The 13 teams in MLS are: the Chicago Fire, Colorado Rapids, Chivas USA, Columbus Crew, D.C. United, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo, Kansas City Wizards, Los Angeles Galaxy, New York Red Bulls, New England Revolution, Real Salt Lake and Toronto FC. For more information about MLS, log on to the League’s official Web site at www.MLSnet.com.
About Fox Soccer Channel
Fox Soccer Channel offers the most comprehensive coverage of world-class soccer available in the United States, including Major League Soccer, the Barclays English Premier League, Argentine First Division and Italian Serie A; as well as global tournaments such as the UEFA Cup, UEFA Women’s Championship, English FA Cup, FIFA Club World Cup, CONCACAF Champions’ Cup, 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup and FA Community Shield. The Official Broadcast Partner of the United States Youth Soccer Association, Fox Soccer Channel also televises United Soccer League and NCAA Division I college soccer matches. The channel reaches more than 29 million cable and satellite households in the U.S. and Caribbean.
Fox Soccer Channel is one of 28 national and regional programming networks within Fox Networks Group, an operating unit of the News Corporation (NYSE:NWS). These broadcast, cable, satellite and telephony delivered networks reach more than half a billion U.S. television homes, and represent one of the media industry's most diverse collections of programming operations. Fox Networks Group consists of FOX Sports, Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox Cable Networks and Fox Networks Engineering & Operations. For more information, visit America’s most visited online soccer destination at foxsoccer.com.
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