Colorado Rapids

The Colorado Rapids is a professional soccer club based in Denver, Colorado that participates in Major League Soccer. The club was founded in 1995. The team colors are blue and black, with the home jerseys having blue and black vertical stripes. The away jerseys are white with green and black trim. They played their home matches at Mile High Stadium from 1996–2001 and moved into INVESCO Field at Mile High in 2002. They plan to move to a new soccer-specific stadium in the town of Commerce City for the 2007 season.

The Rapids made two finals in their history: the 1997 MLS Cup, and in the 1999 US Open Cup—losing both times.

History

The Colorado Rapids were one of the ten founding clubs of Major League Soccer. The inaugural 1996 season was a forgettable one for Colorado. Despite fielding experienced players like Shaun Bartlett, Chris Woods, and Marcelo Balboa, the team finished dead last in the Western Conference and with the worst record in the league.

The complexion of the team changed dramatically for the following season with new head coach Glenn "Mooch" Myernick. Mooch brought new faces to the squad including Paul Bravo, Wolde Harris, and Ross Paule. The team struggled early on, but rallied to grab a postseason spot. The Rapids pulled off two major upsets and advanced to the MLS Cup final. Chris Henderson scored one of the greatest goals in club history, hitting a mid-air volly past Dallas keeper Mark Dodd in the 87th minute in the Western Conference final. The thrilling finish ensured Colorado's place in the MLS Cup final beyond any doubt. Despite losing 2-1 in the final against D.C. United, it was one of the clubs greatest achievements.

Colorado continued on a rollercoaster of success and disappointment. Mooch brought in more new players including Anders Limpar and Marcus Hahnemann. The club made it to the 1999 US Open Cup final, only to be upset 2-0 by the Rochester Raging Rhinos.

The 2000 season boasted two of the more memorable moments in Rapids history. The first was Marcelo Balboa's famous bicycle kick. Limpar swung in a cross from the right flank towards Balboa near the top of the 18-yard box. Marcelo's strike spectacularly sent the ball rocketing past the helpless Columbus Crew keeper. The finish earned Goal of the Year and is arguably the greatest goal in MLS history. The second was the final game of the season. Colorado had battled the Los Angeles Galaxy to a 0-0 score line at the end of full time. The team needed to secure a win to clinch a spot in the playoffs. Under old rules, extra time would be played if the score were tied at the end of ninety minutes. In the 97th minute Paul Bravo scored in spectacular fashion to steal the win. A crowd of 18,570 was on hand at Mile High Stadium to witness the Rapids secure their place in the post season.

In 2001 Tim Hankinson took the reins as Colorado's new head coach. Scottish striker John Spencer also joined the club that year. Hankinson proved to be a controversial coach due to his defensive style of play and questionable player acquisitions. While he did bring effective players like Mark Chung, Carlos Valderrama, and Joe Cannon to the squad, Hankinson also signed a number of players that proved to be duds including ZiZi Roberts and Darryl Powell. After several years of mediocrity, Tim Hankinson was relieved of his position at the end of the 2004 season.

Kroenke Sports Enterprises had purchased the club the year before and made sweeping changes before the 2005 season. KSE cleaned house in the front office and appointed Fernando Clavijo as the new head coach. Clavijo brought in many new additions to the squad including Jeff Cunningham, Terry Cooke, and David "Dedi" Ben Dayan. The team saw steady improvement over the course of the season. The season's success was highlighted by a dramatic playoff victory over FC Dallas in a penalty shootout.

Honors

MLS Cup:
- Runners-up (1): 1997
US Open Cup:
- Runners-up (1): 1999

The Rocky Mountain Cup

With Major League Soccer's expansion in 2005, Real Salt Lake became the second team in the Rocky Mountain region and the Rapids' closest neighbor. The supporters of the two clubs created a competition between the two sides to foster and memorialize this budding rivalry. Colorado won the Rocky Mountain Cup in its inaugural year, 9 points to 3.

Current roster

As of April 21, 2006

Source: http://www.mlsnet.com/MLS/players/roster.jsp?club=cor

Notable players

Marcelo Balboa (1996–2001)
Shaun Bartlett (1996–1997)
Paul Bravo (1997–2001)
Joe Cannon (2003—)
Mark Chung (2002–2005)
Robin Fraser (2001–2003)
Marcus Hahnemann (1997–1999)
Chris Henderson (1996–1998; 2002–2005)
Aitor Karanka (2006—)
Anders Limpar (1999–2000)
Pablo Mastroeni (2002—)
Clint Mathis (2005—)
John Spencer (2001–2004)
Steve Trittschuh (1996–1999)
Carlos Valderrama (2001–2002)

Head coaches

Bobby Houghton (1996)
Roy Wegerle (1996, interim)
Glenn Myernick (1997–2000)
Tim Hankinson (2001–2004)
Fernando Clavijo (2005—)

Team records

Games: Chris Henderson, 178
Goals: Paul Bravo, 39
Assists: Chris Henderson, 53
Shutouts: Joe Cannon, 18

MLS regular season only, through 2005

Home stadiums

Mile High Stadium (1996–2001)
INVESCO Field at Mile High (2002—2006)
Rapids Stadium (Being Built for 2007)

Year-by-year

Year	Reg. Season	Playoffs	Open Cup
1996	5th, West	Did not qualify	Semifinals
1997	4th, West	Final	Round of 16
1998	3rd, West	Quarterfinals	Did not enter
1999	4th, West	Quarterfinals	Final
2000	3rd, West	Quarterfinals	Round of 32
2001	4th, West	Did not qualify	Round of 32
2002	4th, West	Semifinals	Quarterfinals
2003	3rd, West	Quarterfinals	Quarterfinals
2004	3rd, West	Quarterfinals	Round of 16
2005	3rd, West	Semifinals	Round of 16

Average attendance

regular season/playoffs

1996: 10,213
1997: 11,835
1998: 14,812
1999: 14,029
2000: 12,580
2001: 16,481
2002: 20,687
2003: 16,772/6,434
2004: 14,195/8,028
2005: 13,638/9,625
All-Time: 14,662

Trivia

The Colorado Rapids underwent an image change before the 2003 season. The club changed their kit colors from the old green to the black and blue that is used today. The current uniforms closely resemble those of the Italian Serie A club Inter Milan. The fans received the change with mixed reactions. There has been recent speculation that the club might switch back to green kits when their new stadium opens in 2007, and in fact the 2006 away kits have incorporated a thin green stripe.
The Rapids have inducted two players into the club's Hall of Fame: Marcelo Balboa and Paul Bravo.

External links

Colorado Rapids | United States soccer clubs

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