With the MLS season finally kicking off this weekend, all three area soccer teams all find themselves in different places, all struggling with challenges. They all share the same goal: Mattering in the world's biggest sports market.
The Red Bulls have suffered a turbulent off-season, largely self-inflicted. (Rob Tringali/New York Red Bulls)
For the New York Red Bulls, it's a year of trying to redefine what it all means.
Even by the most forgiving of standards, this off-season has been particularly brutal for the club based out of Harrison. Where to start: the shock firing of beloved head coach Mike Petke? The ugly town hall and protests that followed? The departure of star players Thierry Henry (retired) and Tim Cahill (would rather play in China), with no serious attempts to replace them? The perception that NYCFC is the new big spenders and the Red Bulls are closing their pocket books?
It's an odd time to shed what had been a well-earned reputation for spending big on international superstars in the twilight of their career, especially when NYCFC is using the same playbook. Instead, the Red Bulls will look to appeal to NYC with a group of solid performers casual fans may not have heard of. Striker Bradley Wright-Phillips may have tied the league's goalscoring record last season, but that doesn't make him a household name. He will try to develop a partnership with American midfielder Sacha Kljestan, who returned to MLS from Europe in the off-season. And while fan-favorites like ginger midfielder Dax McCarty (who has been named captain) and goalkeeper Luis Robles are back, they may be a tough sell for fans looking for glitz and glamour.
The Red Bulls' biggest strength going into 2015 may not be the players on the field but the field itself. Red Bull Arena remains one of the best venues in MLS, and when it's at capacity with fans who have still found reason to believe in the club even after years of what could probably be categorized as emotional abuse, the atmosphere is unmatched. It is a strong advantage when the alternative is going to a converted baseball or lacrosse stadium, even if it is in New Jersey.
One last card they can play: the club has finally realized it has more history than either of their competitors. NYCFC is newly minted; even if you're counting both incarnations as the Cosmos as the same club, they've only existed for a combined eighteen years. The Red Bulls have continued their slow embrace of their twenty year history, going so far as to put a Metrostars logo on merchandise this year.
But does history hold any value when so much of it is steeped in failure and sadness, and when merely being here was never enough to break through?
The Red Bulls begin their season on the road tonight at Sporting Kansas City. The match will be aired on Fox Sports 1 at 7PM. The Red Bulls open at home on March 22nd at 5PM against D.C. United.
NYCFC trains in Orlando ahead of their first ever match. (NYCFC.com)
For New York City FC, it's a year of trying to stay on the right foot.
It's been nearly two years since NYCFC were originally announced, and in those two years, every advance has been set back in problems. They signed Spanish legend David Villa, but then had the signing of English superstar Frank Lampard effectively blow up in their face. Despite putting together an ownership group with plenty of money (80% City Football Group) and sway with local politics (20% Yankees), they've failed to move the needle at all on finding a stadium location, and have bunkered down in Yankee Stadium for the foreseeable future. They won kudos for their club badge, but then got panned for their jerseys.
Despite the Lampard-shaped missteps, there is plenty to be optimistic about with the roster. Despite battling some niggling injuries, David Villa looks like he hasn't lost a step during pre-season and will captain the club. Current USMNT midfielder Mix Diskerud was added to the roster in January and will add energy and creativity to the midfield. There's some talented youth, including attacker Khiry Shelton and midfielder Kwadwo Poku. The club even finally grabbed a player from the Manchester City youth program, bringing defender Shay Facey in on loan for half the season.
The club certainly has satisfied a local need for soccer that the Red Bulls never captured. The club trumpeted in late February they surpassed 14,000 season ticket holders, with over 60% not having previously held season tickets for any sport. And the home opener, scheduled for next weekend, surpassed 25,000 tickets sold around the same time, forcing the club to open the 300 level at Yankee Stadium.
But the challenge, as it always is for new sports franchises, is making sure that enthusiasm can survive in the long term. MLS expansion teams typically struggle to perform in their first year, and there are big question marks about how they'll integrate Frank Lampard after his mid-season arrival. And while Yankee Stadium has its charms, and a long history of hosting soccer matches, it is not an ideal venue for the beautiful game.
If the team is not a winner straight out of the gate, or if the experience is subpar, will those early fans who have bought in stick around?
NYCFC begins their inaugural season on the road tonight at fellow expansion side Orlando City. The match will be aired on ESPN2 at 5PM. NYCFC opens at home on March 15th at 5PM against the New England Revolution.
The Cosmos during preseason action in Hong Kong. (nycosmos.com)
For the New York Cosmos, it's a year of trying to turn the corner.
The trajectory of the Cosmos has been a curious one. When the rebirth started in 2010, 25 years after the original club had dissolved, all signs pointed to them eventually joining MLS. But somewhere along the road—likely when it came to the franchise fees and intellectual property rights concerns when entering a single entity league—the Cosmos decided they would take a different path. They joined the reborn NASL, leaving a hole in the MLS plans for a second team in NYC, which lead to NYCFC's creation.
Why choose the second division over the first? (Beyond not having to pay a $100M franchise fee, that is.) Theoretically, the freedom of not being a part of a single entity structure gives them an easier time acquiring players on the international transfer market. There's no brighter example of this than the off-season acquisition of Spanish legend Raul, Real Madrid's all-time leader in goals and appearances. Even if Raul's at the end of his career (he'll also lead the Cosmos youth academy), that's a big signing—especially for a second division club.
That "second division" qualifier is one that makes most Cosmos fans indignant, but remains true. With that status comes a few sad realities. They're not on national TV (games are broadcast on One World Sports, which there's a high probability you didn't know was a TV station). Their merchandise is not easily found in area sports stores. And their home attendance has fluctuated wildly, from as high as 9,364 when they thrashed the Red Bulls in the Open Cup to as low as 3,091 when they hosted Minnesota United.
The thing the Cosmos most need is some finality on their stadium situation. It's been over two years since the club proposed a stadium in response to a Empire State Development RFP to re-develop a parcel of land by Belmont Park. What's the hold up? Who knows—it's Albany!—but the club is growing restless.
Many pundits have credited the Cosmos as "winning" the off-season for avoiding the drama that both the Red Bulls and NYCFC find themselves constantly mired in. But the Cosmos can't settle to merely be the least dysfunctional team in the area: they want to be New York's #1 team. It's why the most notable news of their off-season may not have been the Raul signing, but that they will play a regular season game at Coney Island.
If the Cosmos can't find a permanent home this year, then what's left for a club struggling to break through?
The Cosmos start the 2014 NASL season on the road at Fort Lauderdale on April 4th. Their home opener will be April 18th at 7:00 PM against the Tampa Bay Rowdies.
A personal appeal to close:
Sports fans who only get up for soccer every four years may look at all of this drama and run for the door. Sports are supposed to be about competition and fun, not about political gridlock and ticket sales. And hell, the Premier League is on TV every weekend—why bother?
Let me assure you that despite all of the bizarre drama around the local teams—things that I have lived and breathed for the last three years on this "beat"—soccer culture in NYC continues to thrive. Despite all of the pain, there's still countless diehards ready to sing for their clubs every weekend. (Besides, it's not like other sports are drama free!)
So if you're on the fence, find someone who's bled red since 1996, and ask them about their club. Talk to someone who's all in for the sky blue as they join the league. Ask a friend who can't wait to wear green and head to Hofstra in April. The passion of the fans will outlast any dysfunction—that's the true strength of soccer in NYC. And there's always room for more.
Dan will be covering all three soccer NYC teams to the utter detriment of his personal life this season. For more frequent updates, follow him on Twitter.
