CHAPTER 1 SPORTING TAKES THE CROWN On an icy December afternoon in 2013 Sporting KC did what was once unthinkable It helped confirm that its hometown where American football had long been king had become a true soccer hotbed The 2013 Major League Soccer MLS season had already been a big one for the club In July Kansas City had hosted the league’s All-Star game in its two-year-old stadium built specifically for soccer Now the team was trying to win its second league championship The team had come a long way from just a few seasons earlier Known first as the Wiz and then as the Wizards the club had success in MLS early years The Wizards even won a league title in 2000 But those glory days felt long ago Sporting KC fans bundled up for the cold as they cheered for their team in the 2013 MLS Cup 4
The club had often played before some of the smallest crowds in the league first at a cavernous football stadium and then at a minor league baseball park But with a move into a brand-new soccer-specific stadium in 2011 things began to change The club newly renamed Sporting KC often abbreviated as Sporting or SKC made the first of eight straight playoff appearances that year By 2013 the team was back among the league’s elite Fans packed into the team’s new stadium as Kansas City went 17 10 7 to reach the playoffs for the third year in a row Then it made a run all the way to the MLS Cup On a day featuring rugged weather more suited to American football Sporting hosted the MLS Cup final against Real Salt Lake Fans bundled up and players struggled through 20-degree temperatures during one of the coldest MLS games ever played A full stadium stood sang and cheered despite the cold But time began to run out on Sporting KC’s championship dreams After a scoreless first half Real Salt Lake took the lead in the 52nd minute on a goal by Álvaro Saborío SKC then fought off attack after attack to prevent the deficit from growing Two Salt Lake shots bounded off the post both 6
Real Salt Lake midfielder Ned Grabavoy left and Sporting Kansas City midfielder Benny Feilhaber display the intensity of the MLS Cup action nearly putting the title out of reach But Sporting led by US national team players Graham Zusi and Matt Besler held on Then with less than 15 minutes left in the game SKC found new life The team earned a corner kick It would be taken right 7
