A normal day of running was all Stoffel Vandoorne was hoping for on Friday in Hungary, and the Belgian got just that after reverting back to an older McLaren MCL33 chassis.

For this weekend’s race, the Woking-based outfit ditched the Belgian’s previous MCL33 chassis following a two-race slump marked by inexplicable issues that impacted Vandoorne’s performance.

At the end of the day however, and despite a spin in FP1 on the ultrasoft tyres, the 26-year-old was both satisfied and relieved by his practice sessions.

“The feeling was actually back to normal, so that was a positive thing to get into this weekend – we actually had a normal Friday where we could work normally on the car set-up,” he said.

“Unfortunately no lap time on the ultrasofts for me because I spun off the track, but long run pace was good, back to normal, quite competitive.

McLaren’s Vandoorne gets new chassis ahead of Hungarian GP

“A good feeling in the car again and it feels finally like tomorrow we can start putting some pieces together again and prepare the best we can for qualifying.”

Obviously, with improvements come the prospect of fighting once again for a spot among the top-10 in qualifying, although the McLaren isn’t sure that is where he really wants to be at the end of Saturday.

“It is very tight,” he said.

“I think the target for us is to be as close to possible to the top 10. I don’t know for us if being in Q3 is a good thing with the tyres, the ultrasofts, so being as close as possible would be ideal.”

Regardless of how the remainder of the weekend day pans out, Vandoorne was simply happy to regain his footing after a very complicated couple of races.

“It’s nice just to have a normal weekend, get into the weekend and finally start working again and not just completely look after problems all the time,” he said.

“So, happy how today went and looking forward to progress a bit tomorrow.”

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A week off from racing and his national side’s success in the soccer World Cup will combine to give Pierre Gasly an extra spring in his step heading into this weekend’s German Grand Prix.

The French driver will be hoping it will boost him into breaking a pointless streak for Toro Rosso that extends all the way back to the Monaco Grand Prix in May.

After receiving a new-specification Honda engine in Canada, Gasly went through the ‘triple-header’ of races on consecutive weekends in France, Austria and Britain without a single top-ten finish.

But he is heading to Hockenheim on a high after Formula 1’s weekend off coincided with the final of the World Cup tournament.

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“It was really nice to have a rest,” he said. “I went back to my home town in Rouen, and got to watch the World Cup Final with all of my friends while having a BBQ.

“I watched the game intensely, I was so stressed! It was almost as if I was playing or even about to start an F1 race!

“I’m super happy that we’ve put the second star on our jersey!,” he said. “We went into town after to celebrate with all of the French fans, and seeing everyone singing in the streets just enjoying the moment was fantastic.

“It’s the first time in my life I’ve seen so many people in my city, it’s like the population doubled!

• Horner clarifies Toro Rosso ‘test team’ position

“To be able to enjoy a weekend off with my friends and family after three weeks away was great, it gave me time to recharge before we go again for two more races in a row.”

Although Gasly hasn’t raced in a Formula 1 car at Hockenheim, he’s no stranger o the circuit from junior formulae.

“I had my first Renault 2-litre race at Hockenheim, where I qualified second on the front row alongside Stoffel Vandoorne,” he recalled.

“The last time I was there was in GP2 in 2016,” he added. “I was having a good race but my fire extinguisher went off going down the straight and the cockpit filled with smoke.

“I was disqualified on safety grounds. It had been a really good race up until then.”

Like most of the drivers taking part in this weekend’s race, Gasly listed the stadium section as his favourite part of the modern Hockenheim circuit.

“The Hockenheim track has plenty of character with a lot of history behind it,” he said. “It is very technical with not much in the way of straights and it’s the most fun to drive.

“I’d like to go and see the old part, as I gather it was really impressive with the very long straights and the chicane before it turned back towards the pits.”

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As tens of thousands of Californians faced evacuation orders and power outages amid intensifying wildfires in recent weeks, the industry of punditry cranked into gear. California, cowed by high housing costs and increased threats of fire because of climate change, was over.

One of the most prominent columns came from Farhad Manjoo, opinion writer for the New York Times, who argued that reorienting the state to move lots more people into cities and away from fire-prone areas seemed like an impossibly tall task.

“California, as it’s currently designed, will not survive the coming climate,” Manjoo wrote in “It’s the End of California as We Know It.” “Either we alter how we live here, or many of us won’t live here anymore.”

On this episode of “Gimme Shelter: The California Housing Crisis Podcast,” we interviewed Manjoo about the column and described how state officials are attempting to deal with housing concerns after years of destructive wildfires. We also checked in with John Thill, a resident of Santa Rosa who lost his home and business two years ago in the Tubbs fire, to hear about his rebuilding process.

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And we detailed a big move by local governments in Southern California to plan for future growth in already developed coastal areas rather than in the Inland Empire — a decision motivated in part by climate concerns.

“Gimme Shelter,” a biweekly podcast that looks at why it’s so expensive to live in California and what the state can do about it, features Liam Dillon, who covers housing affordability issues for the Los Angeles Times, and Matt Levin, data and housing reporter for CALmatters.

You can subscribe to “Gimme Shelter” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Soundcloud, Google Play and Overcast.

SACRAMENTO — 

California and Los Angeles County officials announced a lawsuit against Juul Labs Inc. on Monday, alleging the vaping brand targeted young people through advertising and failed to give warnings about health risks posed by using e-cigarettes with nicotine.

Although the state bars sales of the devices to people younger than 21, the lawsuit alleges electronic cigarette firms made products with nicotine that appealed to young smokers by marketing flavors such as mango, cool mint, crème brûlée and cucumber.

“We’ve worked too hard, committed our hard-earned money for too long combating harmful tobacco use to stand idly by as we now lose Californians to vaping and nicotine addiction,” state Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra said at a news conference in Los Angeles. “Juul adopted the tobacco industry’s infamous playbook, employing advertisements that had no regard for public health and searching out vulnerable targets.”

Amid backlash from the public, Juul recently announced it would stop selling some flavored electronic cigarettes, including mint. A government report recently said Juul was the most popular brand among high school students.

“These results are unacceptable,” Juul Chief Executive K.C. Crosthwaite said in a statement last week, adding that the company must “earn the trust of society.”

Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey said Monday that Juul’s decision to stop selling some flavored vaping products has come “too late,” noting that many teens are already caught up in using e-cigarettes.

State officials said the percentage of high school students who have vaped has increased from 11.7% in 2017 to 27.5% this year.

“Unfortunately tobacco and nicotine use is on the rise among young people, driven largely by vaping products,” Lacey said at the news conference on Monday.

Juul spokesman Austin Finan said Monday that the firm has not yet reviewed the complaint.

“We remain focused on resetting the vapor category in the U.S. and earning the trust of society by working cooperatively with attorneys general, regulators, public health officials, and other stakeholders to combat underage use and convert adult smokers from combustible cigarettes,” he said.

Finan said that Juul has suspended all broadcast, print and digital product advertising in the U.S. and is “expanding our commitment to develop new technology to reduce youth use. Our customer base is the world’s 1 billion adult smokers and we do not intend to attract underage users.”

Juul holds about 60% of the market for electronic cigarettes, state officials said.

The lawsuit comes amid a national health emergency in which 42 people, including four Californians, have died of lung illness after vaping.

The lawsuit filed in Alameda County Superior Court, which also names San Francisco-based Pax Labs Inc., seeks civil penalties and a permanent injunction against use of “deceptive” practices by the firms.

Becerra said the legal action is a result of a 21-month investigation with Lacey’s office that found improper activity and marketing. The legal brief quotes emails and other comments from vaping firm employees who talked about efforts to use social media to make vaping “cool.”

Samples were handed out at street festivals, a Cinespia outdoor movie screening event and concerts in Los Angeles, the lawsuit alleged.

State officials also allege that Juul Labs Inc. failed to include required warnings about exposure to chemicals linked to cancer, birth defects and other potential reproductive harm.

The suit also alleges Juul delivered products to underage people, failed to verify the age of buyers and violated privacy rights of minors by sending marketing material to the email addresses of those who failed age verification on the company‘s website.

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“Despite now claiming that its mission is to help ‘adult smokers,’ starting with its launch, [Juul] has engaged in a systematic campaign to target underage California residents,” the lawsuit alleges. Juul’s “campaign has been wildly successful, with millions of teens and young adults using their product. While [Juul’s] profits soared, users became addicted and their health was harmed.”

WASHINGTON — 

A lack of permanent leadership and high attrition under the Trump administration is hurting the federal government’s third-largest agency, the Homeland Security Department’s inspector general warned in a new report.

The agency’s internal watchdog ranked the leadership vacancies and hiring difficulties among the most serious challenges facing the Homeland Security Department in the annual report. As of the end of September, “acting” officials filled almost one-third of senior leadership positions, according to the report, which is required by Congress to conduct oversight of the agency and its roughly 240,000 employees.

“Unfortunately, many of these senior leadership positions continue to suffer from a lack of permanent, presidentially appointed and Senate-confirmed officials,” the inspector general wrote in the report released Monday.

More broadly, the report stated, the Homeland Security Department work environment is “marked by high attrition, changing mandates, and difficulties implementing permanent plans, procedures and programs.”

While stating that Homeland Security had “limited time” to review a draft of the report, an agency representative wrote to the inspector general that a “high-level review” assessed that his findings “generally comport with challenges the department is already aware of and working to address.”

Homeland Security, with a broad mission that includes tasks as disparate as counterterrorism and disaster response, has seen record turnover under President Trump, troubling both the president’s critics and his allies.

“The churning of leadership at DHS is concerning,” Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) recently told The Times.

Homeland Security rank and file — and in particular Customs and Border Protection, its main law enforcement branch, which includes the Border Patrol — have long struggled with retention. But the inspector general suggested those challenges have been exacerbated by Trump’s leadership purge.

“Since its inception, DHS has had difficulties ensuring it can expeditiously hire and retain highly qualified workers,” the report stated. “This situation is exacerbated by changes and vacancies in senior leadership, which are often beyond DHS’ control.”

In its first days, the administration issued an executive order mandating the hiring of 15,000 officers and agents. But nearly three years later, the agency has spent millions toward the effort and has not yet met even the minimum staffing levels set by Congress, much less the required surge, according to the report. After 10 months under one hiring contract, Customs and Border Protection had paid Accenture $13.6 million for the company to process only two accepted job offers. After criticism from overseers, the contract was canceled.

The continued personnel issues come amid the highest numbers of migrants arriving at the border in more than a decade, with more than 850,000 apprehensions. While numbers recently have decreased, coordination gaps between the agencies have hindered an effective response, as well as oversight, the inspector general’s report noted.

The inspector general also identified a continued lack of procedures to address employee misconduct. In July, at least 70 current and former Customs and Border Protection personnel came under investigation as part of an administrative probe into a secret Facebook group, first reported by ProPublica. In the group, members used dehumanizing and derogatory language toward Latina members of Congress and deceased migrants.

Approaching the 2020 presidential election, the inspector general said the department, which is charged with protecting the country’s election infrastructure, hasn’t completed plans to identify and respond to emerging threats, despite federal requirements to do so. The report specifically cited “senior leadership turnover and a lack of guidance” as obstacles.

Trump has said he likes keeping officials in “acting” positions rather than nominating them to permanently fill posts and face the Senate confirmation process, believing it provides him more flexibility.

But particularly at Homeland Security — an agency central to Trump’s primary political agenda of restricting immigration — the administration has begun to reach the limits of federal law, and, according to the inspector general’s report, functionality.

Acting Homeland Security chief Kevin McAleenan recently stepped down after six months, despite having never been formally nominated.

Just before his exit, McAleenan named Chad Wolf, a close aid to McAleenan’s predecessor, to an undersecretary role. After the Senate confirmed Wolf for that post on Wednesday, Trump named him as his next acting secretary.

Ken Cuccinelli, acting head of Citizenship and Immigration Services, was tapped as Wolf’s No. 2. That move was widely seen as positioning Cuccinelli, an immigration hardliner, to take over the top post.

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Trump’s own Justice Department said he couldn’t pick Cuccinelli to head the department because of the Federal Vacancies Act. The law generally dictates that succession in government agencies must follow seniority among Senate-confirmed officials, and limits “acting” roles.

Additionally, lawmakers are asking for an emergency review of whether McAleenan’s tenure violated a federal statue, calling into question both Wolf’s and Cuccinelli’s selections as well.

If Trump ultimately nominates Cuccinelli as Homeland Security secretary, Republican senators whom Cuccinelli once tried to unseat have made clear he would face stiff opposition.

“He’s got some history,” Cornyn said. “Memories are long around here.”

For his part, Cuccinelli said at a recent media breakfast before the report’s release that the vacancies in permanent leadership at Homeland Security aren’t negatively affecting the agency.

“I don’t think it hurts at all, really,” he said.

San Diego developer Doug Manchester is at the center of a possible “pay-to-play” solicitation from the Republican National Committee, which reportedly sought a $500,000 contribution from him as the U.S. Senate considered his ambassadorship.

Manchester told CBS News in a report broadcast Monday that national committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel asked him for the donation in September, long after President Trump’s nomination of him to become the U.S. ambassador to the Bahamas was stalled in the Senate. He was never confirmed.

In an email obtained by CBS News, McDaniel asked Manchester for the six-figure donation days after Hurricane Dorian struck the Bahamas and Manchester made a high-profile visit to the island nation to offer help.

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In a Sept. 7 tweet, Trump thanked Manchester “for the incredible amount of time, money and passion he has spent on helping bring safety to the Bahamas.”

Three days later, McDaniel emailed Manchester to ask whether he would donate to the Republican National Committee, according to the email obtained by CBS News.

“Would you consider putting together $500,000 worth of contributions from your family to ensure we hit our ambitious fundraising goal,” McDaniel wrote.

In a return email — which Manchester also copied to the aides of two senators who controlled the fate of his nomination — Manchester implied that he would make additional contributions after he was confirmed by the Senate.

“As you know, I’m not supposed to do any [political donations during the confirmation process] but my wife is sending a contribution for $100,000,” Manchester replied, CBS News reported.

“Assuming I get voted out of FRC (Foreign Relations Committee) on Wednesday to the floor we need you to have the majority leader bring it to a majority vote,” he wrote. “Once confirmed, our family will respond.”

Manchester, who hosted Trump in a 2016 campaign visit to San Diego and later donated $1 million to his inauguration, told the San Diego Union-Tribune on Monday that his comment was being misconstrued.

“I was just saying we will respond,” he said in a telephone interview. “We could respond, ‘We don’t want to do anything more, period.’ It wasn’t what everyone is trying to make of it. They are trying to make it a pay-for-play, which it is not.

“I never in fact guaranteed to do anything,” he said.

Manchester said he withdrew from consideration for the Bahamas post in October after threats against himself and his family. He specifically cited an April incident in which a man attempted to set fire to his La Jolla home.

“I resigned solely due to the fact that a person who was a Trump hater and a defense contractor hater came out to my house at 1 o’clock in the morning and tried to kill my wife, myself and my three infant children,” Manchester said.

The U.S. attorney’s office in San Diego issued a news release Nov. 5 announcing that Daniel Hector Mackinnon had been sentenced to seven years in prison for politically motivated attacks against Manchester and a Raytheon building.

“Mackinnon’s arsons not only caused damage to a building, but also endangered the lives of small children who were asleep in their homes,” U.S. Atty. Robert Brewer said in the statement.

The Republican National Committee denied that it sought a pay-to-play deal with Manchester. In a statement to CBS News, the committee said McDaniel “did not suggest to Mr. Manchester in any way that it would more quickly advance his confirmation if members of his family made a political contribution.”

The committee said, “Mr. Manchester’s decision to link future contributions to an official action was totally inappropriate.”

CBS News reported that the party cut ties with Manchester and returned the money his family donated.

Manchester, a real estate magnate who owned the Union-Tribune from 2011 to 2015, is not the only prominent Trump donor to be nominated for an ambassadorship.

Hotelier Gordon Sondland, who is now a key witness in the House impeachment investigation, was confirmed as the European Union ambassador after donating $1 million to the Trump inauguration.

Robin Bernstein was named ambassador of the Dominican Republic and Lana Marks was confirmed as ambassador to South Africa after Trump was elected president. Both are members of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club, which charges $200,000 for a membership, CBS News said.

The CBS News report also quoted former Sen. Bob Corker as a reason Manchester’s nomination, first suggested in January 2017, was delayed so long.

“We had concerns about judgment, about demeanor, about just the whole reason for taking the job,” said Corker, who until his retirement last January served as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

The two-term senator from Tennessee also criticized Manchester for emailing copies of his response to McDaniel to aides for Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Jim Risch of Idaho, who are both on the committee.

“I can only tell you that if I received an email like that, there would have been a five-bell alarm that went off,” Corker told CBS News.

U.S. presidents on both sides of the political aisle for decades have handed out ambassadorships as a way to thank prominent donors. But Trump appears to have escalated the frequency of such appointments.

According to the nonprofit the Conversation, which publishes news and analysis from university researchers around the globe, U.S. presidents historically recruit about 70% of their ambassadors from the foreign service and 30% from political donors.

But 45% of Trump’s ambassadors have been political supporters, the Conversation reported Monday. The report also noted that the number of political appointments versus career foreign service ambassadors is typically higher early in presidential terms.

Hello and welcome to another edition of the L.A. Times soccer newsletter. I’m Kevin Baxter, the Times’ soccer writer. With the MLS season over, we’ll start this week with the U.S. national team which, depending on your point of view, either 1) pulled out of its tailspin with last week’s win over Canada or 2) accomplished nothing since the Americans were outplayed for long stretches by a team they have typically dominated.

It’s likely a bit of both.

On the positive side, the U.S. did what it had to do, avenging an October loss to Canada – its first to that country since 1985 – by scoring three goals in the first 34 minutes, then cruising to a 4-1 win.

Canada hadn’t allowed four goals in a game since October 2016. And with those scores the U.S. erased Canada’s lead in goal differential in the CONCACAF Nations League group standings, leaving the Americans in position to advance to the tournament semifinals with a win over Cuba today in the Cayman Islands.

What’s more the Americans accomplished all that without three of their best players, missing forward Christian Pulisic, midfielder Michael Bradley and goalkeeper Zack Steffen to injury.

But while the score was one-sided the game wasn’t. Canada had the ball for more than 60 of the 90 minutes, had just one fewer shot and completed 126 more passes than the Americans attempted.

“One thing I said to the team after the game is you have nights where you play absolutely brilliant, and everything works and you’re executing everything, you’re scoring goals. And then you have days that you don’t play great and things aren’t working and it’s not as fluid as it is normally,” embattled U.S. coach Gregg Berhalter said afterward. “In all those cases you need to show the type of effort and type of tenacity that the group showed today.”

That kind of pride and passion have long been hallmarks of a U.S. program that can’t match the world’s top teams in talent. Yet it was noticeably absent in the loss to Canada and that, combined with a tactical approach that seemed ill-suited to his roster, had critics questioning Berhalter’s fitness for the job.

As a result, the fight the team showed in last week’s win was notable.

“There was some real big criticism on the group,” Berhalter admitted. “You know, it was a perceived lack of effort, a lack of heart. You couldn’t mention that today. The way the guys were fighting for each other, the way they had their back, the amount of effort that was put in. To me the difference was we were ready to overcome anything.”

That worked against Canada. But it will work against Mexico, a team the U.S. has beaten just once in its last six tries? It certainly won’t be enough against teams like England, Spain, Belgium, Germany or Brazil.

And it’s against those teams, not Canada, that the U.S. must start measuring itself.

If Berhalter can follow up the win over Canada by beating Cuba and ending his first year in charge by winning his Nations League group, it will certainly buy him some breathing room.

“They silenced some critics here,” Canadian coach John Herdman said.

Equally as encouraging was the performance of speedy teenager defender Sergiño Dest, who was impressive in his competitive debut with the U.S., one that cap-tied to Dutch-born dual national to the team. He helped set up the first two goals, giving the Americans a 2-0 lead after 23 minutes, attacked all night and was perhaps the best player at linking up with his teammates.

And he did that while matched against Bayern Munich winger Alphonso Davies.

“I just don’t play with stress,” Dest said. “I’m never scared to lose a ball. If I lose a ball, I lose a ball. If you don’t play with confidence you’re never going to play a really good game.”

That’s a lesson many of Dest’s older teammates should take.

(Check out the highlights by clicking here.)

‘Great’ White North?

Last week’s loss in Orlando notwithstanding, Canada is experiencing a soccer boom. Its women’s team is ranked seventh in the world and has medaled in the last two Olympics while the men’s team won 10 of its first 12 games under Herdman and is positioning itself to qualify for the final six-team hexagonal round of regional World Cup qualifying.

Along the way the sport has eclipsed even hockey, Canada’s national pastime, in popularity with Canada Soccer saying more than 865,000 people are registered to play soccer there. That’s twice the number registered for hockey.

When Kings’ defenseman Drew Doughty was growing up in London, Ontario, he was a standout soccer goalkeeper who seemed to be on track for a career with the national team. But he was also a talented hockey player and when he was 15 his parents told him to he had to pick a sport.

With soccer lagging in national interest at the time, Doughty, 29, took hockey — which proved to be a good choice since he’ll make $77 million over the next seven NHL seasons. And those are 77 million good reasons why, despite soccer’s growth at the grassroots level, hockey will continue to be Canada’s No. 1 professional sport.

For now. But soccer, Doughty admitted, was gaining.

“Most of the top athletes are going to go to hockey,” he told my L.A. Times colleague Jack Harris last week. “We’re getting better as a national team [in soccer] but we still haven’t gotten too much. The sport is definitely growing in Canada since I was a kid.

“You’ve got more indoor facilities than we did when I was a kid. I’m just hoping we can put some good teams on the field and make a World Cup someday.”

With Canada set to join the U.S. and Mexico in hosting the 2026 World Cup, he won’t have to wait much longer.

The children are our future

DaMarcus Beasley was in Orlando for Friday’s game only he was dressed sharply in a suit and tie rather than wearing the U.S. crest he sported for 126 national team games and a record four World Cups in a 20-year career.

“No regrets, no second thoughts,” Beasley said of his decision to retire this fall. “First game I’m watching [since] I’m retired so this is different. But I’m excited for a new chapter.”

The Nations League game wasn’t the main reason Beasley was in Orlando. He originally came for a 20-year reunion of the U-17 team he played on, one that included Landon Donovan, Kyle Beckerman and Oguchi Onyewu. That team was undefeated in group play of its World Cup, making it to the semifinals before losing to Australia on penalty kicks.

That’s still the best performance ever for an American U-17 team and stands in sharp contrast to this year’s team, which was winless in group play in Brazil. It also underscores what U.S. Soccer is losing this fall with the announced retirements of Beasley, Tim Howard, Nick Rimando and Michael Parkhurst. Beckerman, Chris Wondolowski and Benny Feilhaber can’t be far behind.

Those seven have more than 430 international caps, 27 World Cup appearances and seven MLS Cup titles combined. That’s a lot of experience and accomplishments to be leaving at the same time.

“It was a great run. And it really goes that quick,” Beasley said. “When I look back at my whole career it’s like, ‘man, where did it go?’ It makes you really appreciate the game you [and] the relationships.”

Beasley would like to follow Donovan, his former teammate, into either coaching an administrative role in soccer – Donovan is doing both with the expansion San Diego Loyal of the second-tier USL Championship.

“I’m trying to stay in the game, do, you know, whatever comes to mind,” he said. “I’m really intrigued about the business side of the game. Front office, sporting director, technical director, whatever you want to call it. Just to learn more, to get my feet wet. Hopefully, sooner or later, I have some opportunities to do that.”

And while the national team is changing, Beasley is certain everything will be just fine.

“I’m excited about the future. I see it as a plus we’re getting all these young guys,” he said.

“The results will come. As far as identity, I think they’re on the right path of finding who they really are as a group as a team. Coming together, playing for one another. They have all the tools, to be a very good team and be back to being team in this region.”

So long Zlatan, we hardly knew you

Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s tweet last week announcing he was leaving the Galaxy after two seasons was expected, even if it did seem to catch the team by surprise.

“I came, I saw, I conquered,” he posted beside a visage of himself overlooking Dignity Health Sports Park with the South Bay stretching out in the background. “To the Galaxy fans — you wanted Zlatan, I gave you Zlatan. You are welcome. The story continues … Now go back to watch baseball.”

The departure of the Swedish superstar, who scored a franchise-record 30 goals this season, leading the Galaxy back to the playoffs for the first time since 2016, was marked in a much-less dramatic way by the team’s communications staff: It emailed a straightforward, four-paragraph press release.

The team’s statement announcing that goalkeeper Matt Lampson had won the MLS Humanitarian of the Year award was twice as long.

Contrast that with how the team welcomed Ibra: with a full-page newspaper ad, a video featuring a live lion and a packed news conference in which several team executives, including AEG president Dan Beckerman, lavished praise on the player and those who signed him.

Most were quiet when Ibrahimovic left.

For all his dominance on the pitch, Ibrahimovic had clearly worn out his welcome in the locker room, the team’s front office and the league office by the time he tweeted his goodbye.

Teammates grew weary of their captain’s flamboyant on-field protests whenever they failed to get him ball. When rookie Emil Cuello didn’t react quickly enough as Ibrahimovic broke free on a counterattack late in a June game in Cincinnati, Ibrahimovic flopped face-first to the turf, where he remained for several moments as play continued around him.

Asked about Ibrahimovic’s departure before a national team training session last week, midfielder Sebastian Lletget couldn’t hide his indifference.

“Oh man, that guy,” he said. “I wish him the best, dude. It was a good run.”

The team, which paid Ibrahimovic a record $7.2 million, also tired of Ibrahimovic’s histrionics and selfishness despite the fact he kept the team relevant at a time when the second-year LAFC franchise was dominating attention up the freeway.

But Ibrahimovic was also suspended three times – and narrowly escaped censure two other times – for behavior that embarrassed the team.

Then there were the reports of a rift between Ibrahimovic and general manager Dennis te Kloese in the final days.

As for MLS, which welcomed the international legitimacy and attention Ibrahimovic brought to the league, it chafed under the player’s growingly pointed criticism, which touched on everything from quality of play and officiating to the use of a playoff tournament to decide the champion.

For Ibrahimovic, 38, MLS provided him not only with a decent payday but also a chance to prove that he was fit again after major reconstructive knee injury in 2017 had essentially ended his career in Europe.

Now that he’s rehabbed physically, expect Ibrahimovic, whose MLS contract expires Dec. 31, to pursue options elsewhere, with Italy’s AC Milan among the most-interested suitors.

(Relive the highlights of Ibrahimovic’s Galaxy career by clicking here.)

For MLS, Ibrahimovic’s departure comes just weeks after England’s Wayne Rooney and Germany’s Bastian Schweinsteiger played their final games in the league, leaving it without a major European superstar in uniform for the first time since David Beckham’s arrival in 2007.

That presents a massive opportunity for the league to continue its transition away from big-name but aging European players to mostly young, dynamic Latin Americans. Some of the league’s most successful teams over the last couple of seasons – Atlanta United, Seattle, LAFC, Philadelphia and Portland – have already been winning with players such as Venezuelan Josef Martinez, Mexicans Carlos Vela and Marco Fabian, Uruguayans Diego Rossi and Nicolas Lodeiro, Diego Valeri of Argentina and Peru’s Raul Ruidiaz.

Expect that trend to continue, if more slowly, because as New England coach and general Bruce Arena points out, the rush into South America by deep-pocketed teams like LAFC and Atlanta has driven up the price of the continent’s players dramatically over the past two seasons.

“South American now is almost cost-prohibitive,” he said. “Because of the money being spent there by Atlanta and LAFC, everyone thinks in South America now that the teams in MLS have a lot of money to spend. It’s becoming now too expensive.”

If MLS can manage that transition to young, talented if someone anonymous Latin Americans over older big-name Europeans, it would go a long way toward countering the mostly-disproven rhetoric that MLS is a retirement league while also improving play and continuing to increase the league’s Hispanic fan base, the fastest-growing segment of its audience.

“MLS was moving in the direction it was moving in because of the demographics in the United States. And from a commercial perspective, a marketing perspective, a branding perspective, certainly the Hispanic market is huge,” Arena said. “And we must attract that market to our league. That’s part of the emphasis in the players you recruit as well. However those things do change

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“Every market’s going to be a little bit different. Galaxy has decided what their team’s going to look like. I would not be surprised if they signed more players from Argentina. That’s going to be their team. The Portlands and the Seattles and the Torontos, they’re all going to be balanced a little bit differently the way they recruit players. So everything is going to be unique. And I think that’s kind of the beautiful part of MLS. It’s tremendous. That’s what our country is too is it not? Our country is diverse and I think our league will be diverse.”

That’s a big break from the past, said Arena, who was one of the original coaches when the league launched in 1996.

“That used to be the MLS: Teams that looked fairly common to each other. There wasn’t much of a difference,” he said. “And now it’s got great variety. I think it’s tremendous.”

Unprotected list

On Saturday, MLS released the names of the 222 players who have been left unprotected by their 2019 teams for today’s expansion draft, in which Nashville and Inter Miami will have the rights to choose as many as five players each.

With teams allowed to protect just 12 players each, LAFC and the Galaxy placed 28 players on the unprotected list combined.

LAFC: Lamar Batista, Steven Beitashour, Danilo Silva, Philip Ejimadu, Mohamed El-Munir, Alejandro Guido, Jordan Harvey, Dejan Jakovic, Tyler Miller, Lee Nguyen, Adrien Perez, Javier Perez, Josh Perez, Peter-Lee Vassell, Rodolfo Zelaya.

Galaxy: Favio Alvarez, Uriel Antuna, Servando Carrasco, Emil Cuello, Tomas Hilliard-Arce, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Perry Kitchen, Matt Lampson, Joao Pedro, Juninho, Chris Pontius, Jorgen Skjelvik, Diedie Traore.

Players wind up on the unprotected list for a variety of reasons, some strategic and some monetary. But regardless of the reason, suffice it to say it’s not a list you want to see your name on because it means your team has determined you are expendable (notice Carlos Vela, Diego Rossi, Jonathan dos Santos and Cristian Pavon weren’t included).

For LAFC, the decisions were clearly more difficult. Although the team is in the process of remaking its back line younger, it would prefer to keep veteran team leaders Steven Beitashour and Jordan Harvey around to help with that transition. But Beitashour is probably too expensive (he made $298,375 last year, according to the players’ association) and Harvey, who will be 36 next season, may be too old.

Those factors make it unlikely either Nashville or Miami will select either player though, which means both could resign with LAFC as free agents.

However the team appears comfortable cutting ties with goalkeeper Tyler Miller, who led the Western Conference in wins over the last two seasons, because it left him exposed but protected backup Pablo Sisniega.

For the Galaxy the decisions were far easier. Ibrahimovic has already said he won’t be back, Pontius announced his retirement (and his subsequent hiring by the Wasserman sports agency), Antuna and Alvarez are on loan and aren’t returning to MLS, the team isn’t interested in re-signing Skjelvik and it would welcome the unlikely prospect of someone claiming Kitchen and his $450,000 base salary.

Miami may do just that since Kitchen could step right into the team’s starting lineup.

The Galaxy really have only Miami to worry about since it is believed the team has a handshake agreement with Nashville that will prevent it from claiming any Galaxy players, a deal reached as part of last week’s Dave Romney trade.

The expansion draft will begin Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. PT. Once a player has been claimed from a club’s list of eligible players, Nashville SC and Inter Miami may no longer select players from that club’s list.

Programming note

The newsletter will take next week off. I’m supposed to say it’s for Thanksgiving but the real reason is I’m going to Palm Springs for a Randy Rainbow concert. (Don’t know Randy Rainbow? Here’s his YouTube page. You’re welcome!)

Quotebook

“I am truly honored to be named the first manager in San Diego Loyal history. This is the right place, at the right time, with the right people for me to begin my managerial career.”

Landon Donovan, the former Galaxy and U.S. national team standout, on being named manager of the USL Championship’s expansion team in San Diego

Podcast

Don’t miss my weekly podcast on the Corner of the Galaxy site as co-host Josh Guesman and I discuss the Galaxy each Monday. You can listen to the most recent podcast by clicking here.

Until next time

Stay tuned for future newsletters. Subscribe here, and I’ll come right to your inbox. Something else you’d like to see? Email me. Or follow me on Twitter: @kbaxter11.

The Lakers are taking the fan engagement up a notch this season where fans can win prizes and enter sweepstakes by simply picking the correct outcomes during games.

The Lakers and GTG Network, a sports gamification and content provider, have partnered up to launch a free-to-play prediction and fan engagement game customized for Lakers fans on the team’s official app called “Lakers Fan Pick”.

“The Los Angeles Lakers are one of the most recognizable and iconic brands in all of sports,” said Nathan Rothschild, co-founder and partner, GTG Network. “It is incredibly exciting to launch this innovative fan experience for Lakers fans. Our relationship with the Lakers establishes our vision of enhancing the way sports fans engage with their teams. This partnership is just the tip of the iceberg of how GTG Network can enhance the fan experience by powering engagement through data analytics and gamification.”

Prior to the start of each Lakers game, fans can log onto the Lakers app on their mobile device and click on the “Lakers Fan Pick”, a prediction competition for each Lakers game this season. Some of the categories fans can make predictions are on whether the points scored in the game will go over or under a specific total, through to a “wild card” pick such as total points for specific players. Each prediction category has a coin multiplier, which multiplies the number of coins users receive for correct picks. All players start off with 100 coins.

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Fans can earn additional coins by playing an arcade-style basketball game called “Hoops Galore”. The game involves players simply making three-pointers from five different shot angles within a time limit. The additional coins earned can be used to place wagers for the second-half predictions.

All coins earned at the conclusion of the Lakers game can be used for sweepstakes entries, prizes such as Lakers gear, and tickets for future games. There is a leaderboard where fans can check their ranking against other players during the game.

Both games are only available a couple of hours before a Lakers game until the conclusion of the game. Fans must also make their predictions prior to each half and do not have to physically be at Staples Center to play the game.

“It’s awesome to give our fans a chance to test how well they know their team, and also practice their shots in the Hoops Galore minigame,” said Mitch Holder, Lakers Vice President of Marketing.

The experience had a soft launch during the Lakers’ preseason, and the reception so far has been positive.

“Participation numbers have been strong and continue to grow, which shows that people are not only engaging with the product but there’s word of mouth spread as well,” said Rothschild.

The Lakers are the only team associated with this unique partnership, however, Clippers fans could also see a similar fan experience implemented to the team’s app.

“Our deal is direct with the Lakers, but we’re in discussions with a number of other teams, both in the NBA as well as other pro-leagues,” said Rothschild.

Fans can download the Lakers app for free on iOS and Android.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff will be particularly attentive to Force India’s administration proceedings that will unfold in the coming days and weeks.

As a creditor, the German manufacturer is a party to the legal action that was initiated last week by Sergio Perez.

But Wolff is also eager to learn more about the team’s prospective buyer and the possible implications for the relationship between Mercedes and Force India.

“Let’s see who shows interest,” Wolff said in Hungary.

“We as Mercedes are interested spectators of the process.

“We would like to understand what the funding strategy going forward from a potential new buyer is, how it could affect the collaboration between the two teams. We aren’t there yet.”

‘Heartbroken’ Perez asked by team members to take legal action

Force India’s situation is obviously fluid, but like the entire Formula 1 community, Wolff hopes the Silverstone-based outfit will weather the storm and emerge as a sound and strong entity.

While Force India co-owner has lost control of the team, Wolff offered a reminder that the Indian business tycoon had generously supported his team over the years.

“First of all we must pay tribute to Vijay Mallya, who always supported and financed the team. He had his difficulties and it affected the team,” he said.

“Now there are many potential buyers who show great interest in the team.

“They have the means and they understand how much money is required to achieve results, so now we’ll see what happens,” Wolff added.

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

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Horse racing, in the midst of an equine fatality crisis, will announce Tuesday the formation of the Thoroughbred Safety Coalition, in the hopes of promoting enhanced protocols in the sport.

The group includes the three main racing organizations — the Stronach Group, Churchill Downs Inc. and the New York Racing Assn. — plus the Breeders’ Cup Limited, Del Mar and Keeneland. The announcement will come late Tuesday morning at Keeneland, in Lexington, Ky. The Stronach Group, which owns Santa Anita and Golden Gate Fields in California, didn’t join the group until Monday.

A message left for Craig Fravel, chief executive of TSG, was not returned.

While no specifics were revealed before the announcement, Drew Fleming, chief executive of the Breeders’ Cup, explained some of the areas that will be addressed.

“[We’ll have] increased withdrawal times [for the administration of medications],” Fleming said. “Also, the mandatory reporting of some data and the sharing of databases.”

Currently horse racing is run by more than 30 individual state regulatory agencies. While these protocols won’t supplant these agencies, it is the hope that the standards will be adopted.

“This is just the start that will allow the major organizations to come together and share ideas,” Fleming said.

The coalition represents groups that conduct 85% of the stakes races in the country.

Southern California tracks have instituted significant safety reforms, but horses keep dying. In the recent Santa Anita meeting there were seven fatalities both racing and training, including Mongolian Groom in the $6-million Breeders’ Cup Classic. Last year, before the protocols, there were four fatalities. Del Mar, after no racing fatalities in its seven-week summer season, has had three racing and one training, in the first two weeks of its fall meeting.

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