“We are pleased to have created a great moment of truth for all those who came out to watch out team at our very first Practice in the Community,” said Chivas USA President and CEO Shawn Hunter. “We look forward to making this a monthly tradition as we continue to bring our team to communities around the Southland between now and the end of the season.”

Said Chivas USA defender Lawson Vaughn, one of two dozen Chivas USA players in attendance: “As players, this is a great experience, seeing fans and talking with them. It gives fans a chance to meet us and to interact with their favorite Chivas USA players.”

To find out how you can participate in these activities call 1-877-CHIVAS-1 and Ask about the Mom Appreciation Day “Mom” Activities.

With their first pick in the 2005 MLS SuperDraft, Chivas USA selected goalkeeper Brad Guzan, making the then-20-year-old the highest-picked netminder in MLS Draft history.

PROFESSIONAL

2007: Logged 13 shutouts in 27 games with Chivas USA breaking his own 2006 shutout record and captured second place in the MLS All-Time Shutouts in a regular season. Winner of MLS’s 2007 Panasonic Goalkeeper of the Year and finished second place in MLS goalkeeping leaders with a 0.93 GAA. Earned Chivas USA 2007 Honda MVP and the 2007 U.S. Soccer Humanitarian of the Year. Regular season: Played 27 regular-season games for Chivas USA (starting 27), logging 2430 minutes and registering a 0.93 GAA. Playoffs: Played 2 postseason games for Chivas USA (starting 2), logging 180 minutes and registering a 1.00 GAA.

2006: Regular season: Played 13 regular-season games for Chivas USA (starting 13), logging 1170 minutes and registering a 1.46 GAA. Playoffs: Played 2 postseason games for Chivas USA (starting 2), logging 180 minutes and registering a 1.50 GAA.

2005: Played 24 regular-season games for Chivas USA (starting 23), logging 2079 minutes and registering a 1.99 GAA. Played one Reserve game for Chivas USA (starting one), logging 90 minutes and registering a 2.00 GAA.

INTERNATIONAL

• Participated in 2007 Copa America in Venezuela.

• Participated in the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team in the 2007 Gold Cup and crowned the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup Champions.

• Earned first cap with the United States men’s national team on February 19, 2006, starting in an a 4-0 win over Guatemala in an international friendly at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas.

• First Chivas USA player to represent the United States at the senior international level and the youngest goalkeeper to start in his U.S. debut since Brad Friedel in 1992.

• Trained with the U.S. team during a six-week camp at The Home Depot Center in January and February 2006. … Former member of the Under-18 national team.

UNIVERSITY

2004: As a sophomore he served as team captain and garnered second-team NSCAA All-America honors, one of only four underclassmen named to the three teams … Selected one of 15 semifinalists for the Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy … Logged every minute of the season in goal for the second straight year … Registered a 1.34 goals-against average and posted five shutouts…Made 104 saves, the third-most ever in a single season at South Carolina. 2003: Posted an impressive rookie campaign, starting all 18 matches in his first season at South Carolina … Finished the year with a solid 0.96 goals against average that was aided by eight shutouts … Recorded 69 saves on the year, finishing with a 9-7-2 record.

HIGH SCHOOL

Four-year letterwinner at Providence Catholic … Earned All-Midwest, All-State and All-Area honors from the Star Tribune … Named Southtown Player of the Year as a senior and helped lead Providence Catholic to the state tournament … [ESP] Gold Glove winner in 2002.

OTHER

Chicago Fire Reserves (PDL): Turned in an outstanding summer in 2004 as a member of the Chicago Fire Reserves (PDL) … Led the PDL with eight clean sheets, a 0.39 goals against average and 13 wins … Named to PDL All-League and All-Central Conference teams … Earned PDL Player of the Week honors on May 25. … Graduate of MLS’s Generation adidas program.

IN HIS OWN WORDS

Beginnings: I started playing competitive soccer for the Chicago Magic; when I was ten years old I started being serious about the sport, and then I went to college.
Chivas USA: Being one of the two players left from the original team, with Pancho (Mendoza), it’s an honor to play for this historic club.
Idols: Outside soccer I’ll say my parents; they’ve shown me what is like to be an adult. Also, all the previous players that have come before me, they have set the bar of what I’ve tried to be every day.
Interests: Being in Southern California, I’ve taken up golf a little bit; continuing my education, taking a class here and there, going to the beach or just relaxing.

Prior to opening training camp before the 2008 season, Chivas USA announced the signing of Switzerland international midfielder Raphaël Wicky, a World Cup veteran with over decade’s professional experience in Germany, Spain and Switzerland, as well as the UEFA Champions League. Wicky has amassed over 70 international appearances for the Swiss National Team, including as a starter at the 2004 European Championships and the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, joins Chivas USA as an International Player, pending receipt of his work visa and International Transfer Certificate.

Wicky, whose résumé includes stints with German powerhouses Hamburg SV and Werder Bremen, as well as Spain’s Atlético Madrid (2000-2001), joins Chivas USA from FC Sion in his native Switzerland, where he first started his professional career. Prior to rejoining Sion, Wicky spent six seasons in the German Bundesliga with Hamburg SV (2001-2007), where he accumulated 126 appearances, including in the UEFA Champions League. He spent the 2000-2001 season with Atlético Madrid, then of Spain’s second division, following three years with his first Bundesliga club, Werder Bremen (1997-2000), where he won the German Cup in 1999. Wicky made his first division professional debut at FC Sion of Switzerland, where he played from 1993-1997, winning the Swiss league championship in 1997, as well as Swiss Cup titles in 1995, 1996 and 1997.

On the international level, Wicky has represented Switzerland in major international tournaments since 1996, including the European championships in 1996, at age 19, and Euro 2004, where he started all three games for his country. In 2006, at the FIFA World Cup in Germany, Wicky started all four games before Switzerland was eliminated on penalty kicks against the Ukraine in the second round, finishing the tournament as the only team not to give up a goal during regulation time. In all, Wicky has accumulated 75 international matches for Switzerland, which co-hosts the 2008 European Championships this summer.

Born April 26, 1977 in Leuggern, Switzerland, Wicky is fluent in Spanish, English, French and German.

IN HIS OWN WORDS

Youth teams: I played with Switzerland’s youth teams, under-15, under-20, and also the youth teams in my first professional team, FC Sion.
Chivas USA: Something new, I know that it’s a big club with very good supporters.
Idols: I don’t have an idol. Maradona was my favorite, he’s the best I’ve seen, but he is not my idol.
Interests: I like to play tennis and ski in the winter.

With its third-round pick (25th overall) in the 2006 MLS Supplemental Draft (January 26, 2006), Chivas USA selected midfielder Lawson Vaughn of the University of Tulsa. Born April 11, 1984 in Marietta, Georgia, the 5′10″, 165-lb. Vaughn began his college career at the University of South Carolina, before transferring to Tulsa in 2004. In four seasons of college eligibility, he played in 88 games (starting 86) recording 6 goals and 14 assists. As a senior at Lassiter High School in his hometown of Marietta, Vaughn was named 5-A Georgia High School Player of the Year in 2002.

PROFESSIONAL

2007: Regular season: Played 24 regular-season games for Chivas USA (starting 22),scoring 1 goal and 1 assist, logging 1,901 minutes. Playoffs: Played 1 postseason game for Chivas USA (starting 1), logging 90 minutes.
2006: Regular season: Played 17 regular-season games for Chivas USA (starting 11), logging 1046 minutes. Playoffs: Played 2 postseason games for Chivas USA (starting 2), logging 180 minutes.

IN HIS OWN WORDS

Beginnings: My older brother Lewis was about 10 when I started playing, and I was about four years old. He’d been playing for a few years and got me into the game.
Chivas USA: I think it’s huge to play for this club, with the history and connections in Mexico. I personally wanted to come here when I knew that Brad Guzan was here, because I played with him for a year at South Carolina.
Nicknames: ‘The Law,’ because you can’t break it!
Idol: Growing up I admired Carlos Valderrama, I liked the way he played the game.
Music: Hip-hop, and the old gangster rap. I used to listen to a lot of Tupac, Snoop, and Bone Thugs, but now stuff like J. Holiday.

Born on January 29 in Hannah Town, Jamaica, Shavar Thomas is a veteran of five MLS seasons and a member of the Jamaican National Team. Since joining the Dallas Burn as a first-round pick (10th overall) in the 2003 MLS SuperDraft, the University of Connecticut product has played 91 MLS regular-season games (starting 84), logging 7,291 minutes and registering 3 goals and 1 assist.

During his four seasons in MLS, Thomas played for Dallas (2003) and Kansas City (2004-2006). He was acquired by Los Angeles on March 23, 2007 but did not play in a regular-season match for the Galaxy.

PROFESSIONAL

2007: Regular season: Played 23 regular-season games for Chivas USA (starting 23), logging 2037 minutes. Playoffs: Played 2 postseason games for Chivas USA (starting 2), logging 180 minutes.

UNIVERSITY

Thomas played two years at the University of Connecticut, helping the Huskies compile a 32-11-2 record, while appearing in 36 games during his two years with the team. As a sophomore in 2002, Thomas was named to the All-Big East and NSCAA All-New England First Team and was a second team All-American.

INTERNATIONAL

Thomas made his debut with the Jamaican National Team in 1999, and has since logged 12 international appearances, including in World Cup qualifying. He has also represented Jamaica at a number of youth levels, including with the Under-20’s at the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship in Argentina.

Chivas USA announced the acquisition of World Cup veteran defender Claudio Suárez on March 24, 2006. Known as ‘El Emperador’ (’The Emperor’), the longtime Mexican national team caption is one of the world leaders in international appearances, having represented ‘El Tri’ on 178 occasions, including at the 1994 and 1998 World Cups. He was also a member of Mexico’s 2006 World Cup squad.

Born in Texcoco, in the state of Mexico, on December 17, 1968, Suárez currently resides in Southern California with his wife and three children.

PROFESSIONAL (MLS)

2007: Regular season: Played 26 regular-season games for Chivas USA (starting 25), logging 2153 minutes, registering 3 goals and 1 assist. Named Chivas USA’s Defender of the Year for the second year in a row after a standout campaign on the Red-and-White back line. Playoffs: Played 2 postseason games for Chivas USA (starting 2), logging 180 minutes. 2006: Regular season: Played 20 regular-season games for Chivas USA (starting 20), logging 1778 minutes, registering 6 goals and 1 assist. Named Chivas USA’s Defender of the Year after standout campaign on the Red-and-White back line. Playoffs: Played 2 postseason games for Chivas USA (starting 2), logging 180 minutes. International: Member of Mexican National Team at 2006 FIFA World Cup.

PROFESSIONAL (MEXICO)

A product of the youth system of Mexico City club Pumas UNAM, Suárez played professionally for Chivas USA’s sister team, Club Deportivo Guadalajara, from 1996-2000, as well as fellow Mexican First Division clubs Pumas UNAM (1989-1996) and Tigres UANL (2000-2005). He made his Mexican First Division debut with Pumas on February 23, 1989, and two years later, during the 1990-91 season, won the first of two league titles with UNAM.

In 1996, Suárez joined Chivas Guadalajara, where he won his second league championship - Chivas’ tenth Mexican league title - at the end of the Verano 1997 season alongside Chivas USA teammate Ramón Ramírez. In 2000, Suárez joined his third Mexican league club, Tigres UNAL of Monterrey, where he played in two league finals and one edition of the Copa Libertadores, before joining Chivas USA in 2006.

INTERNATIONAL

Suárez is perhaps the greatest central defender in the history of Mexican football. The ‘Emperor’, as he is known, was a member of the Mexican national team at the USA ‘94, France ‘98 and Germany ‘06 World Cups.

Since making made his debut with the Mexican national team on July 26, 1992 in an international friendly against El Salvador, Suárez has accumulated more than 178 international appearances, behind Saudi Arabia goalkeeper Mohamed Al-Deayea on the all-time list.

IN HIS OWN WORDS

Chivas USA: It has been a challenge since I didn’t know the level of soccer in this country.
Nicknames: Emperador (Emperor), but before, people used to called me Little Bird.
Idols: Hugo Sánchez, Luis Flores, Alfredo Tena, and at the international level, Marco Van Basten.
For fun: I like to be with my family, play games, watch movies, read.
Other sports: I like the Dallas Cowboys; I also played American football and baseball.

QuickFacts

• Chivas USA’s only draft pick in the 2008 MLS SuperDraft (43rd overall)
• Played midfield and forward at the University of West Florida (Div. II) where he was a first team All-American in 2006
• Scored 47 goals and had 25 assists in his four seasons at West Florida, and scored 11 goals and added 3 assists in two seasons with the Central Florida Kraze of the PDL

Keith Savage, a native of Gulf Breeze, Florida, was drafted by Chivas USA with the 43rd overall pick, the Red-and-White’s only selection, in the 2008 SuperDraft. A midfielder who can also play forward, the six-foot-two, 185-pound Savage spent the summers of 2006 and 2007 with the Central Florida Kraze of the Premier Development League, scoring 11 goals and adding 3 assists in the two seasons.

UNIVERSITY

• Had a standout, four-year career at the University of West Florida, where he scored 47 goals and had 25 assists in his four seasons at West Florida
• Was named All-South Region Most Outstanding Player and Division II First Team All-American, both in 2006
• A three-time member of the All-South Region first team

QuickFacts

• A versatile player, Pozniak can be used on the right side of defense or midfield, as well as in a holding midfield role
• Born in Krakow, Poland, moved to Canada in 1990 and has played for every level of the Canadian National Team
• Acquired by Chivas USA on March 28, 2008, in a trade with San Jose who had selected him in an expansion draft from Toronto FC.

Pozniak spent the 2007 MLS season with Toronto FC, playing 22 games (starting 16) and registering 3 assists before being selected by San Jose with the tenth pick in the 2007 Expansion Draft during the offseason. A versatile player, Pozniak can be used on the right side of defense or midfield, as well as in a holding midfield role.

Born in Krakow, Poland, on January 10, 1981, Pozniak and his family emigrated to Canada in 1990. Pozniak was a member of the Canadian National Teams at the U-17, U-20 and U-23 levels before receiving his first cap with the full national team in January of 2001 against Haiti in the Gold Cup. Prior to joining Toronto FC, Pozniak had played for FK Haugesund of Norway, Örebro SK of Sweden, and he started his professional career with the Toronto Lynx of the United Soccer Leagues as an 18-year-old in 1999.

QuickFacts

• A product of Chivas Guadalajara’s youth system, joined Chivas USA prior to the 2005 season and is one of two players still on the roster from the original season (with Brad Guzan)
• A mercurial midfielder, has become a dangerous left sided player who has become one of the club’s most potent and unpredictable offensive weapons
• Is the club’s all-time leader in both games played (83) and minutes (6989) ahead of the 2008 season

Mercurial midfielder who joined Club Guadalajara’s youth system through open tryouts in 1999 and has since shone in Major League Soccer, becoming a regular starter for Chivas USA and one of the club’s most potent and unpredictable offensive weapons.

Before joining Chivas USA, Mendoza played 11 games (starting six) for La Piedad during the 19-game Apertura (Fall) 2004 season, scoring four goals. Born in the soccer hotbed of El Salto, Jalisco, Mendoza currently resides in Southern California.

PROFESSIONAL (MLS)

2007: Regular season: Played 28 regular-season games for Chivas USA (starting 27), logging 2652 minutes, registering 2 goals and 4 assists. Playoffs: Played 2 postseason games for Chivas USA (starting 2), logging 171 minutes.

2006: Regular season: Played 31 regular-season games for Chivas USA (starting 31), logging 2652 minutes, registering 3 goals and 6 assists. Finished third on Chivas USA in assists (tied with Juan Pablo García). Playoffs: Played 2 postseason games for Chivas USA (starting 2), logging 180 minutes.

2005: Played 24 regular-season games for Chivas USA (starting 20), logging 1878 minutes. Played four Reserve Division games (all starts), logging 316 minutes and registering 1 goal and 1 assist.

CHIVAS GUADALAJARA

Represented Chivas at the Piloto, Tercera, Segunda, Reservas and Primera ‘A’ levels. Registered with Primera ‘A’ (second-tier) side Chivas La Piedad since 2003, saw action with both La Piedad and Chivas’ Segunda División teams.

Mendoza logged minutes for Chivas’ first team in exhibition matches and international tournaments, making his debut at age 16 in the Copa Mercosur 2001 under then-head coach Oscar Ruggeri.

Mendoza’s last match as a Club Guadalajara player was in the final of the Copa Lowe’s at East Los Angeles College in January 2005.

INTERNATIONAL

A member of Mexico’s U-17 squad during the qualifying process for the 2001 World Championships.

IN HIS OWN WORDS

Beginnings: I started playing since I was six years old in a team in my neighborhood called Atlante.

Chivas USA: A challenge since I’ve been with the first team and in which I want to become a champion.

Idols: Ramón Ramírez he is a player that I have always admired and I think that I have many of his qualities.

Other sports: I used to play basketball in school but I didn’t keep playing since I am very short.

Charitable causes: I like to help the poor kinds in my town, El Salto, Jalisco. I try to help them every time I go there.