The South Dakota Kohl's American Cup begins next Friday, June 1, in Sioux Falls.

This tournament marks the end of the recreational season just as the club season becomes more hectic.

Clubs travel to larger, highly competitive tournaments and Rushmore Soccer teams will be competing in Bismarck, N.D., June 8-10 before returning to host the Rushmore Cup, June 22-24. Teams will then travel to Blaine, Minn., for Schwan's Weekend on July 12-15.

Two of Rushmore Soccer Club's teams have won the state Challenge Cup and will represent South Dakota at the Region II tournament in Des Moines, Iowa, June 22-24. The U-14 girls and the U-18 girls will join the Spearfish Knights (U-18 boys) and the South Dakota United (U-19 boys) to represent West River.

Sioux Falls Soccer has announced that they will merge with Great Plains Soccer Club.

Sioux Falls Soccer offers recreational and competitive leagues and runs the high school programs in the Sioux Falls area.

The merger will give their 7,000-plus members all the options for competition that players could want and all within a single organization. It will eliminate duplication of registrations and simplify a player's move to higher levels of competition. This might be a model to study.

This summer, MLS will take a great gamble as David Beckham arrives to join the Los Angeles Galaxy. Beckham is expected to move his family to the U.S. after his contract with the Spanish club, Real Madrid, ends June 30.

Beckham's move to the Galaxy was made possible by a new rule adopted by MLS last fall, the designated player rule. This allows a club to sign one player at a salary above the league maximum. The league will pay the maximum salary but the club will make up the difference.

Beckham is pretty expensive. The whole five-year package (salary, endorsement contracts, club merchandise sales and a share of the Galaxy profits) has been reported to be in the neighborhood of $250 million.

The Galaxy and MLS are gambling that the addition of David Beckham to games will fill stadiums across the country and merchandise sales will take off. Only a few weeks after the acquisition was announced in January, the L.A. Galaxy road games scheduled from August to the end of the season sold out. Galaxy season tickets were gone in hours and special "Beckham" package deals have been offered.

The closest that Becks is scheduled to play is in Denver in August and in Minneapolis at the Metrodome on Oct.10. The Minnesota "Thunder" will sponsor the game between the Galaxy and an international opponent to be named.