Columbus Crew coach Sigi Schmid was born in Germany but raised in the Los Angeles area. Having coached UCLA and winning an MLS title with the Los Angeles Galaxy in 2002, Schmid has close ties with Los Angeles, the venue for this year's MLS Cup final.

"It's nice. It's sweet. I'm not going to say it's not but I'd go anywhere to play the championship game. But the most important thing is we're there," Schmid said following Thursday's 2-1 win against the Chicago Fire in the Eastern Conference Championship.

Sigi Schmid was let go by LA Galaxy after six seasons with many fans questioning the decision by the LA Galaxy front office at the time in 2004. Schmid will lead his team against pre playoff outsiders New York Red Bull next weekend in the 2008 MLS Cup final.

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