Lamar Hunt fighting for his life

Sad news out of Dallas, where Lamar Hunt, the patron saint of U.S. soccer and owner of the Columbus Crew and FC Dallas, is ailing with a collapsed lung. His family is said to be hoping for “miracles.”

The U.S. Soccer Federation released a statement that reads as follows:

There quite simply has never been a more influential person in sports in the United States, and when it comes to soccer he was the pioneer, the innovator and the patriarch all rolled into one. And that statement was as true in 1966 as it is in 2006

Update (12/14/06): Lamar Hunt has passed away.