MLS

In the past week, the Portland Timbers signed Scottish Premier League all-time scoring leader Kris Boyd, the Vancouver Whitecaps traded for former MLS Best XI forward Sebastien Le Toux and the Los Angeles Galaxy brought back 2010 MLS Golden Boot runner-up Edson Buddle.

That's a lot of firepower clustered within the Western Conference of Major League Soccer.

While Real Salt Lake's 2012 campaign didn't officially start until this morning, the Claret-and-Cobalt have already made their first major splash of the season.

On Tuesday, RSL unveiled a new multi-year television broadcast partnership with KTVX that will showcase Real across the Beehive State like never before.

RSL and KTVX, along with KTVX-operated KUCW, will show 30 of Real Salt Lake's 34 regular season matches in full high-definition. The remaining four matches will be shown via national broadcast.

From scouting reports to snow reports.

Such has been part of the transition to retired life for former Sounders FC goalkeeper Kasey Keller.

In the two months since calling an end to a Hall of Fame career, Keller has embraced a commitment-free schedule and made the most of it. He has gone hunting, filmed commercials and has even become a factory rider for local company K2 Snowboards.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Major League Soccer is looking to take the lead with the best protocol for handling concussions.

Team doctors, athletic trainers and trainers from outside the sport attended the MLS Medical Symposium on Saturday.

While football and soccer has its share of concussions, men's soccer ranks fifth in terms of game-related concussions, according to Dr. Ruben J. Echemendia, a clinical neuropsychologist for the MLS who led the symposium.

How concussions are sustained differs in each sport, but identifying and treating concussions should be the same across various sports, he said.

LOS ANGELES -- Au revoir, David Beckham.

Although your aides-de-camp keep insisting nothing has been decided, everybody knows your move to the French club Paris Saint-Germain is pretty much a fait accompli.

(By the way, David, I hope you're reading this closely because you really should learn the language.)

When the deal does become official -- which probably will be after New Year's to assure the greatest possible media coverage -- we hear a "movie star" unveiling will be staged in central Paris. Sounds as if this will be the biggest signing on French soil since the Treaty at Versailles.

And the French may wind up regretting this deal almost as much.

MANILA, Philippines -- David Beckham said he has a "big decision to make" after his contract with the Los Angeles Galaxy expires and reiterated his desire to play for the British team at the 2012 London Olympics.

The former England captain arrived in Manila on Thursday with his Galaxy teammates for the second leg of a series of exhibitions.

"I'm very proud of the time that I've spent with the Galaxy and it might continue," said Beckham, whose contract expires at the end of the tour. "I think at the end of the day I have a big decision to make, but I obviously haven't made one yet."

History may not be especially kind to Landon Donovan.

Down the road, the world soccer community will likely remember the Galaxy's victory in MLS Cup 2011 Sunday night as "the David Beckham team."

But make no mistake, the Galaxy is Donovan's team, and has been for seven seasons since he arrived in 2005.