Who are they?
Colorado Rapids. One of the League’s original ten teams. They’ve rebranded twice in that time, and changed their colors from green, to black and blue, to the burgundy and blue you see today. They play at Dicks Sporting Goods Park, an 18,000 seat soccer stadium with an iconic roofline.
What have they won?
The Rapids won the MLS Cup in 2010. They made a US Open Cup Final in 1999, but were famously beaten by the Rochester Rhinos (#MagicOfTheCup)
What about the Disney Pro Soccer Classic.
You would think a team based in Denver might fancy some pre-season Florida sunshine, but they’ve never entered the competition.
Last year...
They started well, with Pablo Mastroeni taking over the reigns as Head Coach, but the second half of the campaign was fairly disastrous, exacerbated by a number of injuries to key personnel. They finished with twelve defeats and no wins in the last 14 games, conceding 64 goals, the most in the league for 2014.
Have things got better?
A quick look at the league table suggests otherwise. Despite bringing in some experienced players to mesh with their young talent, they currently sit bottom of the Western Conference, having only scored more than a single goal on one occasion.
Any Designated Players?
Garbriel Torres, the Panamanian forward, was the club's first ever DP signing in 2013, and he's the leading scorer this season with four. They added Juan Ramirez at the beginning of the season as a young DP, and Kevin Doyle is set to join from English Championship team Wolves at the end of the month.
One to Watch...
Dillon Powers. The 24 year old creative midfielder has five assists to his name. It's his third season in MLS, and he'll be one of the key players if the Rapids are to move themselves from the foot of the Western Conference.
Who’s the boss?
Pablo Mastroeni. A Colorado Rapids man through and through, he made 225 appearances for the club before taking over as Coach at the beginning of 2014.
What about…
...the moustache. Yes. It would be remiss of us not to mention it.
It made the headlines when it was premiered at the SuperDraft, and prompted some excellent moustache based tomfoolery from the Rapids fans.
Fantastic facial shrubbery
We agree, unfortunately, it’s been recently removed.
What about their supporters?
Their three largest supporter groups merged in 2013 to form Centennial 38, a reference to Colorado becoming the 38th State 100 years after the Declaration of Independence. Attendances have, for the past few years, averaged around the 15,000 mark.
Previous Meetings
This won't be the first time the two clubs have met. City dispatched the Rapids at the Citrus Bowl in the club's 2013 U.S. Open Cup run that saw the Lion's make it to the quarterfinals. The Rapids returned the favor the following year, putting Orlando out of the Open Cup in a comprehensive victory in Colorado.
