New York Red Bulls

Lore & Background

The club's original name was the New York/New Jersey MetroStars, which gave birth to the name of the team's largest supporters' group, Empire Supporters Club. The team's original owners were John Kluge and Stuart Subotnick. The name MetroStars was chosen in reference to Metromedia, the media company founded by Kluge, after Nike's original suggestion 'MetroFlash' was rejected. The owners also considered but rejected buying the rights to the name 'Cosmos'.

Tab Ramos, the first player to sign with MLS, became the first MetroStars player, and was soon joined by 1994 FIFA World Cup teammate Tony Meola. 1990 World Cup player Peter Vermes was named the first team captain, but it was the previously unknown Venezuelan Giovanni Savarese who became the Metros' first breakthrough star. The team's first coach was Eddie Firmani of New York Cosmos fame. In 1996, the MetroStars made news when they selected players named Juninho and Túlio in the 1996 MLS Supplemental Draft.

This report set off an immediately positive reaction which was quickly crushed after the MetroStars revealed that they had not actually drafted well-known Brazilian players Juninho Paulista and Túlio Costa, as people had assumed. The MetroStars waived both draftees on March 25, 1996. While the identity of 'Juninho' was later discovered, the true name and club history of 'Tulio' has also been documented. This bizarre episode has entered MetroStars folk lore.

When the league began play in 1996, it was expected that the MetroStars would quickly become the league's dominant team. This expectation never materialized. The team's first home game against the New England Revolution proved to be a harbinger of things to come. Former Juventus defender Nicola Caricola inadvertently flipped a cross into his own net in the dying minutes to hand New England a 1–0 win in front of 46,000 fans.

The resulting play would later be dubbed the 'Curse of Caricola' by fans to explain the team's inability to come through with a domestic trophy in their history. Firmani left after eight games (3–5) and was replaced by former Portugal coach Carlos Queiróz, who did no better than even (12–12) the rest of the season. The team made it into the playoffs, only to lose to eventual champions D.C. United.

Reader's Guide

The Red Bulls have played their home matches at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey, since 2010, having previously played at Giants Stadium. The club is one of two teams in MLS based in the New York metropolitan region along with New York City FC, which entered the league in 2015. The two teams compete against each other in the Hudson River Derby. Other rivals include the New England Revolution and fellow MLS originals D.C. United. The Red Bulls have reached the MLS Cup final twice, in 2008 and 2024, losing both times. The club has won three Supporters' Shield titles, in 2013, 2015 and 2018. They also twice reached the final of the U.S. Open Cup in 2003 and 2017, losing on both occasions, and once have reached the semi finals of the CONCACAF Champions League in 2018, losing to Guadalajara.