History of FC Dallas

The FC Dallas is an American professional soccer club that is based in Frisco, Dallas, Texas. They compete as a member of the Western Conference in the Major League Soccer. The team was formed in 1995, and they started playing in 1996, where they were just a charter club of the league. Since 2005, the FC Dallas plays its home game in the soccer-specific Toyota Stadium, which can accommodate up to 20,500 people. The FC Dallas is owned by the Hunt Sports Group, which is led by brothers Dan and Clark Hunt. In this article, we are going to know more about the history of FC Dallas.

The Dallas Burn

In June 1995, Dallas, along with Kansas City and Colorado, was awarded a Major League Soccer franchise. At first, the team was called the Dallas Burn because of the burning in the Texan oil fields, and it’s hot weather. In October that same year, former Mexico international football team player Hugo Sanchez was added to the team as its first player. Initially, the Burn did not attract any investors; that is why they were financed by the league itself.

In April 1996, the Dallas Burn played their first-ever game where they managed to beat the San Jose Clash in a shootout win at the Cotton Bowl Stadium in Dallas, Texas. Just five days after their first game, Jason Kreis managed to score the Burn’s first goal in a 3-0 home win versus the Wiz. The Burn had a record of 17-15. That is why they managed to finish second in the Western Conference. The Burn lost in the best f three playoff semifinals against the Wiz. The first campaign that the Burn was in the U.S Open Cup where they ended with a 2-3 home defeat in the semifinals against the D.C United. During the Burn’s second season, they once again reached the playoffs where they lost to the Colorado Rapids during the conference finals.

In 1997, the Burn won their first United States Open Cup when they defeated the D.C United. In 1999, the Burn’s striker Jason Kreis was voted as the league’s Most Valuable Player for the season, where he became the first player to have 15 goals and 15 assists. In October 2000, the teams head coach, Dave Dir, was fired despite him leading the team to the playoffs for five consecutive times.

In 2001, Dir was replaced by Mike Jeffries, who happened to won the 1998 MLS Cup as well as 2 U.S Open Cups when he was with the Chicago Fire. Jeffries’ first season with the Burn was cut short because of the September 11 attacks. During the 2003 season, the Burn decided to relocate their home games from the Cotton Bowl to the Dragon Stadium, which has a lower capacity. That same year, the team performed poorly, and Mike Jeffries was fired where he was temporarily replaced by his assistant, Colin Clarke. That is why during the 2003 season, the Burn missed the playoffs for the first time.

During the 2004 season, Colin Clarke was hired to be the team’s permanent coach. The Burn returned to the Cotton Bowl stadium for an important campaign. That is why they once again missed the playoffs. In August that same year, club owner Lamar Hun released that the club would be re-branded as the FC Dallas to go with their new soccer-specific stadium that is located in Frisco, Texas.

FC Dallas

In March 2005, FC Dallas decided to add Guatemalan forward Carlos Ruiz to the team, who had managed to score 50 goals in 72 games when he was still a member of the Galaxy. In August that same year, the FC Dallas played their inaugural match at the Pizza Hut Park (which is now known as the Toyota Stadium) where they tied the New York/New Jersey MetroStars, 2-2. For the first time in two seasons, FC Dallas returned to the playoffs, where they lost in the conference semifinals to Colorado.

In 2006, the FC Dallas managed to finish the regular season at the top spot of the Western Conference. However, they once again lost in the playoffs in the conference semifinals. This event led to the dismissal of Colin Clarke, and he was immediately replaced by Steve Morrow.

In 2007, the FC Dallas had its third consecutive playoff appearance, where it ended at the same stage with a 4-2 aggregate to the Houston Dynamo. The next year, the team replaced Steve Morrow with Schellas Hyndman. In 2009, they signed Bryan Leyva to be their first Homegrown Player.

In 2010, the FC Dallas played in the Major League Soccer Cup for the first time, but they lost 2-1 to Colorado. The FC Dallas was the last of the surviving original MLS clubs to join in the MLS Cup final, where they finished as runners-up. The FC Dallas competed in the 2011-12 CONCACAF Champions League, and it was their first time to compete in the leading continental tournament.

In October 2013, Schellas Hyndman resigned as the team’s head coach after the FC Dallas did not make it to the playoffs for two consecutive years. Three months after his resignation, he was replaced by former Dallas player and assistant coach, Oscar Pareja. He led the FC Dallas back to the playoffs in 2014, and the following year, the team finished in first place in the Western Conference.