Colorado Rapids
Colorado Rapids | |||
Basic data | |||
---|---|---|---|
Surname | Colorado Rapids | ||
Seat | Commerce City , Colorado , USA | ||
founding | 1996 | ||
Colours | Red White | ||
owner | Stan Kroenke | ||
president | Tim Hinchey | ||
Website | coloradorapids.com | ||
First soccer team | |||
Head coach | Anthony Hudson | ||
Venue | Dick's Sporting Goods Park | ||
Places | 19,680 | ||
league | Major League Soccer | ||
2019 | Western Conference: 9th place Overall table: 16th place |
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The Colorado Rapids are a franchise of professional football - League Major League Soccer (MLS) from Commerce City , Colorado , a suburb of Denver . The franchise was founded in 1995 and began operating in the 1996 premiere season . The team colors are burgundy red and sky blue.
The name Rapids refers to the rapids of the Colorado River . The home games have been played at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City since the 2007 season. In 2010 the Rapids won the MLS Cup for the first time in their history .
history
The first ten years (1996-2006)
The Colorado Rapids are among the ten founding members of Major League Soccer. The owner was the Anschutz Corporation and later its subsidiary Anschutz Entertainment Group . At the end of the first season , the Rapids finished last in the Western Conference and could only achieve 11 wins in 32 games. The Denver team had a number of experienced players in their squad, such as Marcelo Balboa , Chris Woods and Shaun Bartlett . The first coach of the soccer franchise was the Englishman Bob Houghton , who was sacked at the end of the season. Roy Wegerle briefly took over the position of coach on an interim basis as player-coach.
The following season was far more successful. Under the new coach Glenn Myernick and the new general manager, Dan Counce, a number of new players were signed, such as: B. Marcus Hahnemann , Wolde Harris or Paul Bravo. The first games were not very successful, but at the end of the season the team was able to save itself to the penultimate place in the Western Conference and thus got into the play-offs. After victories against the Kansas City Wizards , which were considered favorites, and Dallas Burn , the team faced DC United in the final of the play-offs, the MLS Cup, on October 26, 1997 . Colorado lost the game 2-1, but was able to qualify for the qualifying round for the CONCACAF Champions' Cup 1998 , where they were eliminated by Club Leon.
The following years became a rollercoaster ride for the Rapids. In 1999 the Rapids reached the final of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup . The final was lost 2-0 against the Rochester Raging Rhinos . To date, the Rapids are the only MLS club that has lost the cup final to a lower-class team. In 2001 Tim Hankinson became the Rapids coach. His defensive style of play and questionable player commitments caused controversy among fans more than once. After several years of mediocrity, he was fired after the 2004 season.
In 2005 the Rapids were taken over by Kroenks Sports Enterprises. In addition to a new logo, Fernando Clavijo has been hired as a new coach. The Rapids reached the semifinals after a dramatic win on penalties against FC Dallas . In the 2006 season, the Rapids reached the playoffs on the last day of the regular season and reached the semi-finals again.
On the way to the MLS Cup (2007-2010)
In early 2007 the club announced that it had entered into a cooperation with the English Premier League club Arsenal London , which should bring both sides financial and sporting benefits. In the course of this partnership, the Rapids changed their logo. The club colors are no longer blue and black, but burgundy-red and sky-blue. At the same time, a partnership was entered into with the Mexican club CF Pachuca .
In 2010 the club took part in the MLS Cup for the second time in its history . The game against FC Dallas could be won 2-1 after extra time, whereby the championship could be won for the first time.
Recent events (since 2011)
The team was little changed for the 2011 season. The most famous newcomer was the former Irish international Caleb Folan . With a fifth place in the Western Conference, the team was able to qualify for the play-offs. There they failed but in the quarterfinals (Conference semifinals) at Sporting Kansas City. By winning the MLS Cup 2010, the Rapids played in the CONCACAF Champions League , but were eliminated in the group stage. In November 2011, the contract of coach Gary Smith was not renewed. The new coach was the Colombian Óscar Pareja. He led the team to 5th place in the Western Conference in the 2013 season. In the following play-offs you fail in the first round at the Seattle Sounders.
Former soccer player Pablo Mastroeni has been the team's new coach since January 2014 .
Coat of arms and colors
Since 1996, the Colorado Rapids coat of arms has been changed twice. The first logo reflected the environment in Colorado. The lettering Colorado Rapids stood on raging rapids and in the background you could see the mountains of the Rocky Mountains. In 2001 the coat of arms changed and merged with the second logo that had existed up until then. It became a round symbol with a soccer ball outlined in green in the middle. A red logo has existed since 2007, which again carries the hint of the Rocky Mountains.
Just like the coat of arms, the team colors have changed over the past few years. Until 2003, the team played in green and white jerseys. These changed their appearance again and again because the team had different outfitters, but the basic color pattern remained the same. For the 2003 season, the Rapids players wore blue and black jerseys, similar to Inter Milan . This resulted from the fact that the Mexican sporting goods manufacturer Atletica had taken over the shirt design. In 2007 the appearance of the Rapids was completely changed again. The jerseys were now burgundy red and white.
Stadion
- Mile High Stadium ; Denver , Colorado (1996-2001)
- Invesco Field at Mile High ; Denver , Colorado (2002-2006)
- North Area Athletic Complex ; Arvada , Colorado (2003) 1st game in the US Open Cup
- Dick's Sporting Goods Park ; Commerce City , Colorado (since 2007)
The Rapids home games are played at Dick's Sporting Goods Park. The football stadium was opened on April 7, 2007 and has space for 17,424 spectators and can be expanded to 19,680. The park is owned by Kroenke Sports Enterprises.
Until 2007, the Rapids shared Mile High Stadium and Invesco Field at Mile High with the Denver Broncos .
organization
owner
The franchise is owned by Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, owned by the US businessman E. Stanley Kroenke . He bought the Rapids in 2004 from the Anschutz Entertainment Group . In addition to Stan Kroenke, the franchise is also owned by Josh Kroenke, Jim Martin and Matt Hutchings. Martin is President and Chief Executive Officer of Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Hutchings is the COO.
Sponsors
The Rapids were one of the last teams in the MLS that did not have a shirt sponsor. In May 2014, a shirt sponsorship agreement was signed with the US technology company Ciao Telecom . The supplier is the German sporting goods manufacturer adidas .
media
All Colorado Rapids players are available on Altitude Television. Like the Rapids, Altitude is part of Kroenke Sports Entertainment. The station can be received in the Rocky Mountain region, especially in the Denver metropolitan area . Individual games can be received nationwide via ESPN-2, NBCSN and Unimas. Furthermore there is the possibility to follow the games via stream on the MLS homepage.
Fans and rivals
Fan groups
Even if the Rapids have always had a comparatively high number of viewers in their history, the history of the fan groups has been changeable. A handful of organized fan clubs came and went. In 2005 and 2006 two new fan clubs were founded. While the "Centennial Firm" is trying to build an ultra scene , the "Class VI" group is an organization of season ticket holders.
Before the 2007 season, the Rapids moved to a new stadium. Part of the stadium is intended for the “Centennial Firm” and will be named “The Front Range”. This is also the name of the club's official fan club.
Rivals: Rocky Mountain Cup
The MLS expansion in 2005 made Real Salt Lake the second Rocky Mountain team in the MLS and the Rapids' closest neighbor. The fans of both clubs then created the Rocky Mountain Cup to consolidate the rivalry between the two clubs. The winner of the Rocky Mountain Cup is the team that wins the most points from the direct duels in the regular season.
The Rocky Mountain Cup is comparable to the Atlantic Cup and the Brimstone Cup.
Players and staff
Current professional squad
As of July 15, 2020
No. | Nat. | Surname | birthday | in the team since | MLS player status |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
goal | |||||
1 | Clint Irwin | Apr 1, 1989 | 2019 | ||
15th | Andre Rawls | Dec 20, 1991 | 2019 | ||
30th | Abraham Rodriguez | July 19, 2002 | 2020 | HGP | |
50 | William Yarbrough | 20 Mar 1989 | 2020 | ||
Defense | |||||
2 | Keegan Rosenberry | Dec 11, 1993 | 2019 | ||
3 | Drew Moor | Jan 15, 1993 | 2019 | ||
4th | Danny Wilson | Dec 27, 1991 | 2018 | ||
5 | Auston Trusty | Aug 12, 1998 | 2019 | ||
6th | Lalas Abubakar | Dec 25, 1994 | 2019 | ||
13 | Sam Vines | May 31, 1999 | 2018 | HGP | |
14th | Abdul Rwatubyaye | Oct 23, 1996 | 2019 | ||
18th | Jeremy Kelly | Oct 21, 1997 | 2020 | ||
22nd | Sebastian Anderson | Aug 8, 2002 | 2019 | HGP | |
24 | Kortne Ford | Jan. 26, 1996 | 2017 | HGP | |
27 | Deklan Wynne | 20 Mar 1995 | 2018 | ||
midfield | |||||
10 | Kellyn Acosta | July 24, 1995 | 2018 | ||
15th | Sam Hamilton | July 27, 1995 | 2017 | ||
16 | Will Vint | Oct 12, 2001 | 2020 | HGP | |
19th | Jack Price | Dec 19, 1992 | 2018 | ||
20th | Nicolás Mezquida | Jan. 21, 1992 | 2018 | ||
21st | Younes Namli | June 20, 1994 | 2020 | DP | |
26th | Cole Bassett | July 28, 2001 | 2018 | HGP | |
32 | Collen Warner | June 24, 1988 | 2014 | ||
52 | Braian Galvan | Oct 6, 2000 | 2020 | ||
Storm | |||||
7th | Jonathan Lewis | June 4th 1997 | 2019 | ||
9 | Nicolas Benezet | Feb. 24, 1991 | 2020 | ||
11 | Diego Rubio | May 15, 1993 | 2018 | ||
23 | Kei Kamara | Sep 1 1984 | 2018 | ||
99 | Andre Shinyashiki | June 11, 1997 | 2019 |
Previous players
- see main article: List of Colorado Rapids Players
Coaching staff
As of July 15, 2020
- Robin Fraser - Trainer
- Darren Bazeley - assistant coach
- Neil Emblen - Assistant Coach
- Chris Sharpe - Assistant / Goalkeeping Coach
Trainer
- Bob Houghton (1996)
- Roy Wegerle (1996) Interim.
- Glenn Myernick (1997-2000)
- Tim Hankinson (2001-2004)
- Fernando Clavijo (2005-2008)
- Gary Smith (2008-2011)
- Óscar Pareja (2012-2014)
- Pablo Mastroeni (2014-2017)
- Steve Cooke (2017) Interim.
- Anthony Hudson (2017-2019)
- Conor Casey (2019) Interim.
- Robin Fraser (since 2019)
Youth and development
Colorado Rapids Soccer Academy
The youth education structure at the Rapids is the Colorado Rapids Soccer Academy. The U-18 and U-16 teams are represented in the leagues of the US Soccer Development Academy. The other age groups compete in regional leagues. There has been a cooperation since 2012 with the Colorado Fusion Soccer Club.
USL partnership
Since the MLS Reserve Division was dissolved, there has been a partnership between the MLS and the United Soccer League , the second division in the USA. The Rapids are partners of Charlotte Independence , who have played in the league since the 2015 season. This partnership includes loan transfers from players, but also friendly matches or joint activities.
successes
-
MLS Eastern Conference
- Winner (Play-off) (1): 2010
-
MLS Western Conference
- Winner (play-off) (1): 1997
-
Lamar Hunt US Open Cup
- Finale (1): 1999
-
More Achievements
- MLS Reserve Division (2) 2006, 2007
- Rocky Mountain Cup (2) 2005, 2006
statistics
Seasonal balance
season | Regular season | Play-offs |
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup |
CONCACAF Champions League |
---|---|---|---|---|
1996 | 5th place (west) | not qualified | Semifinals | not qualified |
1997 | 4th place (west) | final | Round of 16 | not qualified |
1998 | 3rd place (west) | Quarter finals | not qualified | Qualifying round |
1999 | 4th place (west) | Quarter finals | final | not qualified |
2000 | 3rd place (west) | Quarter finals | Round of the last 32 | not qualified |
2001 | 4th place (west) | not qualified | Round of the last 32 | not carried out |
2002 | 4th place (west) | Semifinals | Quarter finals | not qualified |
2003 | 3rd place (west) | Quarter finals | Quarter finals | not qualified |
2004 | 3rd place (west) | Quarter finals | Round of 16 | not qualified |
2005 | 3rd place (west) | Semifinals | Round of 16 | not qualified |
2006 | 4th place (west) | Semifinals | Quarter finals | not qualified |
2007 | 4th place (west) | not qualified | Quarter finals | not qualified |
2008 | 4th place (west) | not qualified | 3rd qualifying round | not qualified |
2009 | 6th place (west) | not qualified | 2nd qualifying round | not qualified |
2010 | 5th place (west) | master | 3rd qualifying round | not qualified |
2011 | 5th place (west) | Quarter finals | 2nd qualifying round | Group stage |
2012 | 7th place (west) | not qualified | 4th round | not qualified |
2013 | 5th place (west) | Knockout Round | 3rd round | not qualified |
2014 | 8th place (west) | not qualified | 5th round | not qualified |
2015 | 10th place (west) | not qualified | 5th round | not qualified |
2016 | 2nd place (west) | Semifinals | 5th round | not qualified |
2017 | 11th place (west) | not qualified | 5th round | Group stage |
- ↑ Since 2002 the competition has started in the autumn of the previous year. Until 2008 under the name CONCACAF Champions' Cup .
Club records
These records relate to the regular season up to and including the 2014 season:
- Most games: Pablo Mastroeni , 225
- Most goals: Conor Casey , 50
- Most assists: Chris Henderson , 53
Visitor average
Regular season / play-offs
- 1996: 10,213 / not qualified
- 1997: 11.835 / 15.785
- 1998: 14.812 / 6.582
- 1999: 14,029 / 6,542
- 2000: 12,580 / 8,789
- 2001: 16,481 / not qualified
- 2002: 20.690 / 11.002
- 2003: 16.772 / 15.202
- 2004 14,195 / 8,028
- 2005: 13,638 / 11,207
- 2006: 12.056 / 4.176
- 2007: 14,749 / not qualified
- 2008: 13,658 / not qualified
- 2009: 12,330 / not qualified
- 2010: 13,328 / 11,872
- 2011: 14,838 / 8,601
- 2012: 15,175 / not qualified
- 2013: 15,440 / N / A
- 2014: 15,082 / not qualified
Women's soccer
From 2003 to 2013, the women's soccer team Colorado Rapids Women played in the USL W-League . Until 2012 the team was called Colorado Force FC. This franchise joined the Colorado Rapids organization in 2011.
The squad of the 2013 season, and thus the last line-up of the Rapids, included the Australian selection player Brooke Spence and the German U-20 national player Sophie Howard . For the 2014 W-League season, the Colorado Storm franchise took over the Rapids' license.
Web links
- Official website (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ Rapids, Smith part ways after rocky 2011 campaign . MLS. November 7, 2011. Retrieved November 9, 2011.
- ^ Front Office Staff . Colorado Rapids. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
- ^ Colorado Rapids announce 5-year deal with Ciao Telecom as club's first-ever jersey sponsor . MLSsoccer.com. May 1, 2014. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
- ^ Colorado Rapids - Players. Retrieved July 19, 2020 .
- ^ Colorado Rapids - Technical Staff. Retrieved July 15, 2020 .
- ^ Colorado Rapids Soccer Academy . Colorado Rapids. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
- ^ Colorado Rapids' Pablo Mastroeni ecstatic about USL PRO partnership with Charlotte Independence . September 18, 2014. Retrieved February 15, 2015.
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m MLS Factbook 2012. (PDF; 1.2 MB) MLSsoccer.com, archived from the original on December 24, 2012 ; accessed on July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ TheCup.us - game details for the competitions. Retrieved July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ Game details for the competitions. rsssf.com, accessed July 28, 2012 .
- ↑ MLS - 1996 Full Season Stats. Retrieved July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ MLS - 1997 Full Season Stats. Retrieved July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ MLS - 1998 Full Season Stats. Retrieved July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ MLS - 1999 Full Season Stats. Retrieved July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ MLS - 2000 Full Season Stats. Retrieved July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ MLS - 2001 Full Season Stats. Retrieved July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ MLS - 2002 Full Season Stats. Retrieved July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ MLS - 2003 Full Season Stats. Retrieved July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ MLS - 2004 Full Season Stats. Retrieved July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ MLS - 2005 Full Season Stats. Retrieved July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ MLS - 2006 Full Season Stats. Retrieved July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ MLS - 2007 Full Season Stats. Retrieved July 28, 2012 (English).
- ↑ Force Partner With Colorado Rapids ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , United Soccer Leagues (USL)
- ↑ Women Recap: Rapids defeat Colorado Rush 3-2 in 2013 Season Opener ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Women's Soccer News: W-League Continues Expansion with Colorado Storm ( Memento April 2, 2015 in the Internet Archive ), soccernation.com (English). Retrieved March 3, 2015.