MLS 101: Houston Dynamo Edition

It must be fun to be a Houston Dynamo fan. The team has only been around for three years, yet they already have two MLS Cups (2006, 2007). Most expansion teams struggle right of the bat, but the Dynamo did not. But, that’s probably because they were not really an expansion team. They were the transplanted San Jose Earthquakes.

Quakes fans probably hate Houston fans too. SJE’s back-to-back titles ended up being hoisted thousands of miles away in Robertson Stadium. But, what’s done is done and the San Jose fans at least now have their own team to cheer on once again. The only problem is that the New Quakes really are an expansion team, so they are quite bad.

So, the Dynamo have a short, but successful, history. They recently lost offensive maestro Dwayne De Rosario to Toronto, but they still have most of the core of their Cup winning sides, including Brian Ching, Pat Onstad, and youngster Stuart Holden. All signs indicate that they will continue to be a dominant force in the Western Conference.

Houston’s MLS side was initially known as Houston 1836, which paid tribute to Texas’s independence from Mexico. Hispanic organizations disliked the name though and called for a boycott, so Dynamo was selected instead. It’s good they didn’t upset Mexican Americans either, otherwise boxer Oscar De La Hoya may have never bought the team.