ESPN said he has been the target of several racist outburst across Europe, but they also mention possible soccer hooligan crap. First I have heard of it.
DaMarcus Beasley, the former Galaxy and Chicago Fire player and current U.S. international, was the target of vandalism this week when his car was firebombed and destroyed.
The incident took place on Monday night, when Beasley, who plays for the Glasgow Rangers in the Scottish Premier League, was at his home in the fashionable Dowanhill section of Glasgow.
Hearing a screech of tires about 11 p.m., Beasley looked out a front window and saw a car speeding away and his own $80,000 BMW in flames.
A neighbor who witnessed the incident said a hooded figure had been seen placing what was apparently a gasoline bomb beneath Beasley's car.
"The guy put something under the car, then walked backwards crouching down, making a line of petrol for about five meters," the unidentified witness told Scotland's Daily Record newspaper. "He lit it with what looked like a [cigarette] lighter and the car went up."
The explosion destroyed the BMW, but not Beasley's sense of humor. The 27-year-old player wrote on his Twitter account:
"Someone blew up my car today. Thanks again for ALL the messages and kind words. But, yea, I'm doin' ok and in the market for a new car! LOL. Gotta try to find some humor."
A Rangers spokesperson called the vandalism "a disturbing and deplorable incident," and said the soccer club is assisting police in their inquiries and has been increasing the security on its players.
Glasgow police said Beasley's car was the only one on the street to be targeted, but they had no immediate explanation for the attack.
The motivation could have been either sectarian or racial in nature, but could also be another instance of thuggish behavior that has become increasingly common in Britain.
Four other Rangers players have recently had cars vandalized.
Beasley joined the Rangers in 2007.
He was a World Cup player for the U.S. in 2002 and 2006 and is a long-shot candidate to make the 2010 team, depending on whether he regains his form once he recovers from his current thigh injury.
Walter Smith, the Rangers' manager, said it would be mid-February before Beasley would be able to return from an injury that he said "has been slow to clear up."
Whether Beasley is in contention for a U.S. roster spot will be made clearer when Bob Bradley, the U.S. coach, names his squad for a March 3 game against the Netherlands in Amsterdam.
Before moving to Scotland, the midfielder, from Fort Wayne, Ind., played in Major League Soccer for the Galaxy and Fire, and later for PSV Eindhoven in the Netherlands and Manchester City in England.
