U.S. Has No Problem With Wales

The United States ended Wales’ 10-game unbeaten streak Monday night with a 2-0 victory in front of 12,282 fans in a friendly international played at Spartan Stadium in San Jose.

Goals by Landon Donovan, on a 41st-minute penalty kick, and Eddie Lewis in the 59th minute separated the sides in a game in which neither coach used his full-strength lineup.

Donovan’s goal, his ninth for the U.S., came after Jovan Kirovski was fouled by Matthew Jones, whose later deliberate hand ball foul caused him to be ejected by Mexican referee Benito Archundia Tellez and left Wales playing a man down for the final 42 minutes.

Ryan Suarez, Brian Ching and Alecko Eskandarian made their debuts for the U.S., the latter two as late substitutes, and goalkeeper Nick Rimando earned his first shutout, the U.S. team’s third in a row.

Adu’s $1 Million

Freddy Adu, the 13-year-old starter on the U.S. under-17 national team that has qualified for the FIFA Under-17 World Championship in Finland in August, has been given a $1-million sponsorship contract by Nike, the Washington Post reported.

Adu, born in Ghana but a U.S. resident since coming to Potomac, Md., with his mother and brother when he was 8, gained American citizenship in February in time to help the U.S. qualify.

His mother, Emilia, signed what was described as a multi-year contract on his behalf Thursday, the Post reported.

It will serve, in effect, as an insurance policy in case of injury until such time as Adu, who turns 14 on June 2, joins a professional club.

U.S. Splits Two

The Galaxy’s Guillermo “Memo” Gonzalez scored one goal and assisted on another Monday as the U.S. under-17 national team defeated Costa Rica, 3-2, at the Lancaster Soccer Complex in Lancaster. Adu and Eddie Gaven got the other U.S. goals.

Sunday, the U.S. lost, 2-1, to Mexico at the same stadium.

In the three-team tournament’s opening game, Mexico and Costa Rica, also headed for Finland, tied, 0-0, on Saturday night.

Merk Selected

German referee Markus Merk, a 41-year-old dentist and triathlon competitor well known for his charity work in India and Sri Lanka, has been selected to officiate Wednesday’s European Champions Cup final between AC Milan and Juventus in Manchester, England.

Merk, from Kaiserslautern, has been a FIFA referee for more than a decade and has refereed in such tournaments as the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, the 2000 European Championship in Belgium and the Netherlands and the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan. His only previous championship match was the 1997 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup final between Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain.

Egypt Bids

Egypt’s Youth Minister, Ali Eddin Hilal, said in Cairo on Monday that his country will officially bid to stage the World Cup in 2010 and will hire a French company to organize its campaign.

South Africa already has announced its candidacy, and bids also are expected from Libya, Morocco, Nigeria and Tunisia.

Quick Passes

AC Milan is willing to spend $57.4 million in an effort to sign Manchester United midfielder David Beckham, the Times of London reported.... Jamaica defeated Nigeria, 3-2, in Kingston on Sunday, with the Chicago Fire’s Andy Williams scoring the winning goal.... Goals by Mark Kennedy, Nathan Blake and Kenny Miller earned Wolverhampton a 3-2 victory over Sheffield United in a playoff in Cardiff, Wales, on Monday and earned it a place in the English Premier League. Wolverhampton has been out of the top flight for 19 years