EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey, 20 August 2007 — David Beckham brought back memories of Pele and Franz Beckenbauer, reviving soccer in the New York area for a night.

Playing before a record crowd of 66,237, Beckham made his first Major League Soccer start and set up a pair of goals in the first eight minutes. But the New York Red Bulls rallied for a wild 5-4 win over the Galaxy when Juan Pablo Angel scored his second goal of the game in the 88th minute.

Giants Stadium is nearly empty for most Red Bulls games — the team’s average of 11,573 for its first 10 home matches was next to last in the league. The crowd that came out for Beckham was the largest in franchise history and the biggest there for a US league game since the Cosmos drew 70,312 against Fort Lauderdale in 1980.

“It makes you feel great. It makes you feel honored,” Beckham said. “And hopefully, it continues, because this is what this league needs, this is what this sport needs in America.”

Fans showed support for the home team, many booing Beckham when he took a free kick midway through the second half. But they cheered as he walked — shirtless — off the field after the match, with his injured left ankle not responding well to playing a match on artificial turf.

“My ankle took quite a bit of pounding, of course. It’s a surface that I’m obviously not used to playing on,” he said.

He created Los Angeles’ first goal in the sixth minute with a corner kick on the left side that was headed in by Carlos Pavon at the far post. Two minutes later, Beckham took a 37-yard free kick on the right side — too far out to score — and fed an open Pavon, who beat goalkeeper Ronald Waterreus with a diving header. They were the first two MLS goals for Pavon, a Honduran forward who also signed with the Galaxy this year.

England’s ex-captain was choppy in the second half, when three free kicks were blocked by defenders and he gave the ball away. But he also had a brilliant through ball in the 56th to Landon Donovan that nearly led to a goal. It was the 10th time in MLS history teams combined for nine or more goals and just two shy of the record set when Los Angeles beat Columbus 7-4 on May 6, 1998. “It was very different,” Beckham said. “I haven’t been involved in a game like that since I was 9 or 10 years old, where there were so many goals.” It was a rare night of attention for the Red Bulls.

“We’ve struggled in this marketplace,” New York coach Bruce Arena said. “It’s our job when people to show up to try and give them a reason to come back. So, hopefully, we converted a few people tonight.”

New York striker Clint Mathis wants the crowds to keep coming.