Soccer Watch

Barcelona, champions of both Spain and Europe, will be in Houston this Wednesday, Aug. 9, taking on Mexican favorites Club América, reigning CONCACAF champs. It's part of a doubleheader at Reliant Stadium, starting with a 7pm MLS West tilt between the Houston Dynamo and the L.A. Galaxy. And yes, Ronaldinho and the other Barca stars will be playing; this is one of their last tune-ups before their Aug. 27 La Liga opener. Tix at Ticketmaster.

It's less than a month since the World Cup finale, but already the next season's well under way on every front.

In Europe, play has begun in Scotland, England, and elsewhere; Champions League first two rounds are complete, with no major upsets thus far. Italy will be the last to kick off, delayed two weeks by the ongoing legal appeals in the refereeing/match-fixing scandal. UEFA ruled Wednesday that AC Milan can take part in the Champs League, despite their involvement in lo scandalo.

South America's Copa Libertadores, that continent's club championship, is down to the finals by the time you read this. The second leg of the semifinals was Wednesday night after press time, but if things went according to form, we'll have the second straight all-Brazilian final, with São Paulo and Internacional each holding an edge from the first leg.

This Saturday, Aug. 5, is the MLS All-Star game, as the stars of the American league take on English champions Chelsea; it's live at 5:30pm on ESPN.