Houston Dynamo

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Houston Dynamo
Houston Dynamo
Full name Houston Dynamo
Nickname(s) Dynamo, Orange Crush, La Naranja,
The Men in Orange, The Orange
Founded 2005
Stadium Robertson Stadium
Houston, TX
(Capacity 32,000)
Owner Flag of the United States Anschutz Entertainment Group
Flag of the United States Golden Boy Enterprises LLC
Flag of the United States Brener International Group
Coach Flag of Scotland Dominic Kinnear
League Major League Soccer
2007 Western Conference: 2nd
Overall: 3rd
Playoffs: MLS Cup Winners
First game Colorado Rapids 2–5 Houston Dynamo
(Robertson Stadium; April 2, 2006)
Largest win 4-0, three times
Largest defeat Gamba Osaka 6–1 Houston Dynamo
(Aloha Stadium; February 23, 2008)
All-time top scorer Flag of the United States Brian Ching (18)
Supporters groups Texian Army, El Batallón
Honors MLS Cup (2)
Team colours Team colours Team colours
Team colours
Team colours
 
Home colors
Team colours Team colours Team colours
Team colours
Team colours
 
Away colors
Current season

Houston Dynamo is a North American professional soccer team based in Houston, Texas, United States. Founded in 2005, the team plays in Major League Soccer (MLS) and is the back-to-back MLS Cup champion.

Houston Dynamo's home is the 32,000 capacity Robertson Stadium, located on the University of Houston campus in southeast Houston, where they have played since their foundation. A three-year lease was signed to play at the stadium while plans for a soccer-specific stadium are finalized. The team is owned by majority owners Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) in partnership with Brener International Group (headed by Gabriel Brener), and multiple world and Olympic boxing champion Oscar De La Hoya.

Contents

[edit] History

The team was created on December 15, 2005 when the San Jose Earthquakes players and head coach Dominic Kinnear were relocated, due to AEG being unable to secure a soccer-specific stadium. Although all of San Jose's players and Kinnear moved to Houston, the team's name, logo, history and statistics were not transferred and remained inactive in San Jose until the Earthquakes were reactivated in 2007. The Dynamo was thus a new team, similar to the Baltimore Ravens in the National Football League (NFL).

[edit] Choosing a Name

On January 25, 2006, Houston 1836 was first announced as the team name. This followed an online survey for the fans to provide unofficial suggestions for the new team name, with given options of: Apollos, Bulls, Eagles, Gatos, Lonestars, Stallions, Toros, Americans, Buffaloes, Generals, Houston 1836, Mustangs, and Stars. According to MLS & AEG, who chose the name, the 1836 name referred to the year that the city of Houston was founded by brothers Augustus Chapman Allen and John Kirby Allen, though it had perceived ambiguity, as it is also the year of Texan independence from Mexico. Houston 1836's logo featured a silhouette of General Sam Houston, one of Houston's and Texas' most famous historical figures.

[edit] Controversy

The choice of Houston 1836, however, soon became a political issue. While their stated intent was to link to the founding year of the city, the team name was changed to Houston Dynamo after the Houston 1836 name raised a furor among some locals of Mexican descent, a target audience, who related 1836 with the war for Texas independence. Sylvia Garcia, Harris County's first Hispanic commissioner in more than a century, rallied for a boycott of the team name. Most of the problem was because most of the people protesting did not understand Mexican and Texas history, and did not realize that Texas was not the only Mexican state to revolt against Santa Ana, and that Hispanics played a major part in Texas gaining independence, just like they did when the Yucatan broke away from Mexico at the same time and for the same reason as Texas. Hispanics revolted against dictator Santa Ana, not just whites. But because of lack of knowledge of history by the masses, the name was changed.[citation needed]

After the controversy, MLS selected the team name "Dynamo". It refers to Houston's energy-based industrial economy, as well as two previous Houston soccer teams, the Houston Dynamos who played in the Lone Star Soccer Alliance from 1987 to 1991, and the Houston Dynamos who played in the United Soccer League (USL) in 1984. The official reason for the name is that "Dynamo is a word to describe someone who never fatigues, never gives up. The name is symbolic of Houston as an energetic, hard-working, risk-taking kind of town." The team colors are orange, white, and "Space City" blue (light blue), meant as a symbol of yet another team in Houston's sports history - the Houston Oilers of the NFL.

[edit] The Awesome Inaugural (2006)

The Dynamo played their first game on April 2, 2006. In front of a crowd of 25,462 in Robertson Stadium, the Dynamo beat the Colorado Rapids 5–2.

Houston Dynamo vs FC Dallas on April 6, 2008
Houston Dynamo vs FC Dallas on April 6, 2008

Brian Ching led the charge for the Dynamo with four goals, all of which were set up with assists from teammate Dwayne De Rosario. Later in the season they went on to beat established MLS clubs such as D.C. United, Los Angeles Galaxy, New England Revolution, Chicago Fire and eventually their Texan state rivals FC Dallas.

The Dynamo finished their first season in Houston with an 11-8-13 record, earning them second place in the Western Conference. In the Conference Semi-final playoffs, they beat Club Deportivo Chivas USA (Chivas USA). On November 5, 2006, they beat Colorado Rapids 3-1 in the Western Conference Final to advance to the MLS Cup.

Paul Dalglish holds the trophy after the 2006 MLS Cup victory
Paul Dalglish holds the trophy after the 2006 MLS Cup victory

On November 12, 2006 at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas, Houston beat New England Revolution 4-3 on penalty kicks after a 1-1 tie to win the 2006 MLS Cup. The game was scoreless until the second half of extra time, when New England's Taylor Twellman scored. Only one minute and six seconds later, Brian Ching headed in the tying goal for Houston, and the championship was, for the first time in MLS history, decided by a penalty shootout. Substitutes Kelly Gray and Stuart Holden scored Houston's first two penalty kicks. Dwayne De Rosario and Brian Ching scored the last two. Ching's gave Houston a 4-3 lead, and goalkeeper Pat Onstad saved New England's Jay Heaps penalty kick to secure the MLS Cup for Houston. By winning the MLS Cup, Houston qualified for the 2007 CONCACAF Champions Cup.

[edit] 2007 season: Repeat

Houston began the 2007 season early, competing in the 2007 CONCACAF Champions' Cup. After winning a dramatic quarterfinal, beating Costa Rican team Puntarenas F.C., Houston went out of the competition in the semifinals, beating Mexican team Pachuca 2-0 in the first leg but losing 5-2 after extra time in the return leg.

Immediately after, Houston began its 2007 MLS league season with consecutive shutouts against Los Angeles Galaxy and Chivas USA. Houston then struggled in the regular season, losing against Red Bull New York, Chicago Fire, Toronto FC, and New England Revolution. Due to their success in winning the MLS Cup in their first season, Houston were invited to spend the day at the White House on May 29, 2007 and meet with President George W. Bush. Only one other team, D.C. United in 1997, has visited the White House.

Houston also made some significant trades during the 2007 season They traded Kevin Goldthwaite and a first round pick in the 2008 SuperDraft to Toronto FC for Richard Mulrooney. They also traded Alejandro Moreno to Columbus Crew in exchange for Joseph Ngwenya. And they traded Kelly Gray to Los Angeles Galaxy for Nate Jaqua. After regrouping and pulling off a win against FC Dallas, Houston began an unbeaten streak of eleven games and a shutout streak of 726 minutes,[1] a new MLS record.

Houston was also invited to compete in the inaugural North American SuperLiga, where they dominated the group stages before losing in a semifinal shootout against Pachuca.

They finished in second place in the regular season in the Western Conference, advancing to the 2007 MLS Cup Playoffs, where they met state rivals FC Dallas in the first round. Dallas won the first leg 1-0, but Houston won the second leg at Robertson Stadium, 4-1 in extra time, to win 4-2 on aggregate. Houston faced the Kansas City Wizards in the Western Conference final, winning 2-0 to advance to the MLS Cup championship game for the second year in a row. Just like in 2006, they faced the New England Revolution for the championship, and won it 2-1 on a game-winning goal by Dwayne De Rosario in the second half, thus winning their second MLS Cup in a row.

[edit] Partnership with Golden Boy Promotions

Late in 2007, Major League Soccer informed Dynamo owners Anschutz Entertainment Group that they should divest their interest in the Dynamo, as they wanted each ownership group to own only one team. AEG also owns the Los Angeles Galaxy.[2] On November 21, 2007, it was announced that AEG was in negotiations to sell the Dynamo to a partnership of Brener International Group and Golden Boy Promotions, owned by the famed boxer Oscar de la Hoya.[3]

On February 26, 2008 Houston Dynamo President Oliver Luck revealed the planned negotiations to the media stating that the Houston Dynamo would be managed in majority by original owners Anschutz Entertainment Group (who will hold 50% of ownership) along with newfound partners Gabriel Brener, head of Brener International Group, and multiple World and Olympic boxing champion Oscar De La Hoya (each with 25% ownership each).[4]

[edit] Crest

The colors of the Dynamo crest are orange, black and white, with Carolina blue added as an accent and border color. That color is represented on the uniform with the adidas snake. The star on the crest is an ad hoc adoption, likely a nod to the "Houston 1836" crest concept. It also retains the soccer ball with the star in the middle from the "1836" logo, though the shadow is changed to Carolina blue, likely to simplify coloration.

With the 2006 MLS Cup win, a sanctioned star has been added above the shield in 2008, after wearing the scudetto in 2007. Since they won the MLS Cup again in 2007. they will wear the scudetto for the second consecutive year in 2008. Consequently, a sanctioned star will be added to the logo in 2009 for their win at MLS Cup 2007.

[edit] Mascot

In 2007, Houston started a search for a mascot by asking members of the Art Institute of Houston to submit drawings, from which several finalists were selected and an official mascot would be decided through an online poll, both for the mascot design and name. The winning design was of an orange haired fox and named, Dynamo Diesel. He was unveiled at Houston Zoo on 3 April 2007.[5] Dynamo Diesel began working alongside the Houston Dynamo marketing and community outreach programs. He is not only present at games, cheering on the team, but also joins the Houston dancers, the Dynamo Girls[6] helping to promote the Dynamo in Houston.[7]

[edit] Stadium

Robertson Stadium
Robertson Stadium

Houston Dynamo plays its home matches at Robertson Stadium on the University of Houston campus. The Dynamo signed a three year lease, through 2008, to play at the stadium temporarily as they make make plans to construct a permanent soccer-specific stadium.

Club owner, AEG, is hoping to finalize an agreement to construct a 20-22,000-seat soccer specific stadium in Downtown Houston east of Minute Maid Park, across Highway 59 which would be the third sporting facility for Downtown Houston. The new stadium is projected to open in time for the 2010 season.[8]

[edit] Sponsorship

The Dynamo reached a four-year sponsorship deal with Houston based retail electricity provider, Amigo Energy, worth US$7.5M,[9] making it the largest sponsor in team history.[10] Amigo Energy became the official jersey sponsor. Houston were the fifth league team to sign jersey sponsors, after Los Angeles Galaxy, Chivas USA, Real Salt Lake and Toronto FC[9] with Columbus Crew and Chicago Fire each adding jersey sponsors for the 2008 season

The Amigo Energy logo appears on all team jerseys, along with other on-field gear, and Amigo Energy also became the official home and business retail energy provider of the Dynamo. As part of the deal, Amigo Energy established a focused marketing strategy that uses the Dynamo in co-branded advertising, customer retention, and new customer acquisition programs.[11] The replica Dynamo jersey with the Amigo Energy logo is being produced by Adidas, with replica jerseys expected to be available at retail establishments in January 2008.[11]

[edit] Supporters

The Dynamo enjoyed good fan support in its first season. Their first ever match attracted 25,462 fans against Colorado Rapids on April 2, 2006. Attendance gradually declined throughout the remainder of the spring and summer months. During July and August they played five matches at Robertson Stadium, and the average attendance for those matches was 10,348.

The team's attendance figures received a boost on 9 August when they played a game against Los Angeles Galaxy in Houston's Reliant Stadium as part of a double-header, with the other game being an exhibition match between FC Barcelona and Mexican side Club América), which attracted a crowd of 70,550. Home attendance began to rise again as the weather cooled and the playoffs approached.

For the 2006 season they averaged 18,935 over the 16 regular season home games. Attendance remained high during their playoff run, where home attendance was 17,440 and 23,107 in games against Chivas USA and Colorado Rapids. Dynamo fans contributed greatly to the sell-out crowd of 22,427 in the 2006 MLS Cup, which was played about 275 miles (450 km) from Houston, in Frisco, Texas.

Texian Army is one of the Supporter Clubs of the Dynamo
Texian Army is one of the Supporter Clubs of the Dynamo

There are currently two Supporter groups, the Texian Army and El Batallón. Both groups work together when supporting the team, as well as when going to support the team at away games.

[edit] Average attendance

Although regular season attendance dipped a little bit in 2007, in spite of the Dynamo's MLS Cup win in their first year, they nearly sold out the second leg of their Western Conference Semifinal match against FC Dallas, and then they did sell out the Conference Final match against the Kansas City Wizards.

regular season/playoffs

  • 2006: 18,935/20,274
  • 2007: 15,883/30,530

[edit] Rivalries

Main article: Texas Derby

The team's main geographic rival is FC Dallas. Each season they compete in the Texas Derby, or El Capitán Clasico, in which the victor wins an 18th century cannon named El Capitán. Houston won the 2006 series with a win on August 12, won the 2007 series with a win on August 19.

Season Played Dynamo Win Draw FCD Win Dynamo Goals FCD Goals +/- Texas Derby Winner
2006 4 2 1 1 6 5 +1 Houston Dynamo
2007 4 3 1 0 6 1 +5 Houston Dynamo
2008 2 0 2 0 5 5 0 To be determined
Total 10 5 4 1 17 11 +6 Houston Dynamo (2), FC Dallas (0)

Current as of May 28, 2008

[edit] Television and radio

Local English coverage is carried by KTBU channel 55, when not carried by the national MLS broadcast partners such as ESPN and the Fox Soccer Channel (FSC). Charlie Palillo calls the play-by-play with Glenn Davis usually calling the color-commentary. Spanish coverages is on KHLM-LP "TV Informa", channel 43.

English radio broadcasts (18 matches only) are carried by KBME (AM) 790 AM. Spanish radio broadcasts are carried by KEYH-AM and KXGJ-FM "Concierto".

The Soccer Hour or Houston Dynamo Power Hour, which it is called during the season, is a local Houston radio broadcast on KBME (AM), which is hosted by Glenn Davis. It regularly features Head coach Dominic Kinnear and the teams players.

[edit] Honors

[edit] Domestic

[edit] League

[edit] International

[edit] Invitational

[edit] Current roster

As of May 7, 2008. [12] The players in bold have senior international caps

No. Position Player
1 Flag of England GK Tony Caig
2 Flag of the United States DF Eddie Robinson
3 Flag of the United States MF Johnny Alcaraz
4 Flag of the United States DF Patrick Ianni
5 Flag of the United States FW Kyle Brown
6 Flag of the United States MF Erik Ustruck
7 Flag of the United States FW Chris Wondolowski
8 Flag of the United States MF Richard Mulrooney
9 Flag of the United States MF Brian Mullan
10 Flag of Argentina FW Franco Caraccio
11 Flag of the United States MF Brad Davis
12 Flag of the United States FW James Georgeff
13 Flag of the United States MF Ricardo Clark
14 Flag of Canada MF Dwayne De Rosario
No. Position Player
16 Flag of the United States DF Craig Waibel
17 Flag of the United States MF Mike Chabala
18 Flag of Canada GK Pat Onstad
19 Flag of the United States MF John Michael Hayden
20 Flag of the United States MF Geoff Cameron
21 Flag of the United States MF Nick Hatzke
22 Flag of the United States MF Stuart Holden
23 Flag of the United States DF Stephen Wondolowski
24 Flag of the United States DF Wade Barrett Captain (football)
25 Flag of the United States FW Brian Ching
26 Flag of the United States MF Corey Ashe
30 Flag of the United States GK Corbin Waller
32 Flag of the United States DF Bobby Boswell
99 Flag of Côte d'Ivoire FW Guy-Roland Kpene

[edit] Notable players

[edit] Head coaches

[edit] Team records

MLS regular season only, through June 8 2008

  • All-Time regular season record: 29-19-25 (through June 8 2008)

[edit] Home stadium

[edit] General managers

[edit] Year-by-year

Year Reg. Season Playoffs Open Cup CONCACAF
Champions' Cup
SuperLiga
2006 2nd, West Champions Semifinals Not qualifed Started in 2007
2007 2nd, West Champions Round of 16 Semifinals Semifinals

[edit] Year-by-year stats

Season League Record Top Scorer Top Goalkeeper Notes
P W L T F A +/- Pts PPG Player GP G Player GP GA GAA SHO
2006 32 11 8 13 44 40 + 4 46 1.438 Brian Ching 21 11 Pat Onstad 32 40 1.25 5 MLS Cup Champion
2007 30 15 8 7 43 23 +20 52 1.733 Brian Ching 20 7 Pat Onstad 27 22 0.815 11 MLS Cup Champion
Totals 62 26 16 20 87 63 +24 98 1.581 Brian Ching 41 18 Pat Onstad 59 62 1.069 16 2 MLS Cups

Statistics current as of November 18, 2007

[edit] International Competition

Dynamo vs Pachuca Club de Fútbol during the 2007 SuperLiga semifinal
Dynamo vs Pachuca Club de Fútbol during the 2007 SuperLiga semifinal

[edit] All-time record vs. opponents

Opponent First Meeting Last Meeting GP W L T PPG F A +/-
CA Morelia 2007 Superliga, July 2007 1 0 0 1 1.000 1 1 0
Cal Berkeley 2008 Exhibition, February 2008 1 1 0 0 3.000 2 0 + 2
Carolina Dynamo 2006 U.S. Open Cup, August 2006 1 1 0 0 3.000 4 2 + 2
Charleston Battery 2006 U.S. Open Cup, July 2007 3 1 1 1 1.333 2 2 0
Chicago Fire 2006 MLS, May 2008 5 2 2 1 1.400 8 5 + 3
Chivas USA 2006 MLS, May 2008 11 5 2 4 1.727 15 7 + 8
CF America 2007 Superliga, July 2007 1 1 0 0 3.000 1 0 + 1
Colorado Rapids 2006 MLS, May 2008 9 6 2 1 2.111 19 11 + 8
Columbus Crew 2006 MLS, April 2008 5 1 1 3 1.200 5 5 0
CSD Municipal 2008 CONCACAF Champions Cup, March 2008 2 1 0 1 2.000 3 1 + 2
D.C. United 2006 Texas Pro Soccer Festival, March 2008 7 3 2 2 1.571 6 6 0
Deportivo Saprissa 2008 CONCACAF Champions Cup, April 2008 2 0 1 1 0.500 0 3 - 3
FC Dallas 2006 MLS, May 2008 13 7 2 4 1.923 24 13 + 11
Gamba Osaka 2008 Pan-Pacific Championship, February 2008 1 0 1 0 0.000 1 6 - 5
Kansas City Wizards 2006 MLS, April 2008 6 3 1 2 1.833 8 5 + 3
Los Angeles Galaxy 2006 MLS, April 2008 9 3 3 3 1.333 11 11 0
New England Revolution 2006 MLS, March 2008 7 1 2 4 1.000 8 11 - 3
Pachuca CF 2007 Superliga, August 2007 3 1 1 1 1.333 6 7 - 1
Puntarenas FC SAD 2007 CONCACAF Champions Cup, March 2007 2 1 1 0 1.500 2 1 + 1
Real Salt Lake 2006 MLS, October 2007 7 4 2 1 1.857 11 10 + 1
Red Bull New York 2006 MLS, May 2008 7 4 1 2 2.000 12 4 + 8
San Jose Earthquakes 2008 MLS, May 2008 3 1 1 1 1.333 2 2 0
Sydney FC 2008 Pan-Pacific Championship, February 2008 1 1 0 0 3.000 3 0 + 3
Toronto FC 2007 MLS, June 2008 5 3 1 1 2.000 9 5 + 4
112 51 27 34 1.670 163 118 +45

Includes all in-season MLS and Playoffs, Domestic and International Club Competitions, plus pre-season and exhibition matches as of June 8th, 2008. Games decided by penalty shootout are counted as ties.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

[edit] External links

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Sports teams based in greater Houston
Baseball MLB: Houston Astros, CBL: Bay Area Toros
Basketball NBA: Houston Rockets, WNBA: Houston Comets, ABA: Houston Takers
Football NFL: Houston Texans, IFL: Katy Ruff Riders, af2: Texas Copperheads, APFL: Conroe Storm, NAFL: Houston Sharks, Montgomery County Bulls, Bay Area Gamblers, IIFA: Harris County Militia, Galveston Tidalwave, WPFL: Houston Energy
Australian Rules Football USAFL: Houston Lonestars
Soccer MLS: Houston Dynamo, PDL: Houston Leones
Hockey AHL: Houston Aeros
Tennis WTT: Houston Wranglers
College athletics
(NCAA Division I)
Houston CougarsHouston Baptist HuskiesPrairie View A&M PanthersRice OwlsTexas Southern Tigers