MLS
The lowest-ranked team to ever make an MLS Cup appearance
A stunning postseason run has left the New York Red Bulls just one game away from a first-ever championship against LA Galaxy on Saturday.
When the New York Red Bulls stumbled to a seventh-placed finish in the Eastern Conference, winning just three of their final 20 games in all competitions, did anyone have them making it to MLS Cup?
The Red Bulls are one of MLS’ perennial underachievers, still waiting to win their first championship in their 29th season in the league. They were inconsistent in the league and struggled for goals at times, but they came into the playoffs with genuine ambitions.
Their lowly ranking ensured that they would face the mighty Columbus Crew - the reigning champions and 2024 Leagues Cup winners - in the first round. But ahead of the game NYRB captain Emil Forsberg had a message of defiance.
“OK, we’re playing Columbus. It’s a good team, but f**k it, we can win. Why can’t we?” Forsberg said. “We have a fantastic team, fantastic coaches. We just have to believe. There is nothing before or after.”
That idea - ‘Why can’t we?' - has become an aphorism for the Red Bulls throughout this incredible postseason run. They have beaten Columbus, won the first-ever postseason Hudson River Derby, and overcome an in-form Orlando City. Whatever Saturday’s result, they have already made history.
New York Red Bulls enjoy record-breaking run
In making it to MLS Cup, the Red Bulls become the first No. 7 seed to win a Conference Final and reach the championship game. They will become the lowest-ranked team to ever compete in MLS Cup.
However in terms of points per game there have been bigger outsiders who have gone on to lift the trophy. The 2009 Real Salt Lake side finished the regular season with 11 wins, seven draws and 12 losses, a losing record. They snuck into the postseason on goal difference and beat Columbus Crew and Chicago Fire to reach MLS Cup.
In a positive omen for the 2024 Red Bulls, that Real Salt Lake team met a heavily-fancied LA Galaxy side in MLS Cup and stunned the favourites, winning their first-ever championship. NYRB will be hoping for a repeat this weekend when they travel to Dignity Health Sports Park.
In playoff competition the best team doesn’t always come out on top, it’s about producing something special at the crucial moment. Speaking after the Eastern Conference Final win, Red Bulls head coach Sandro Schwarz said he was relishing the chance to compete for silverware.
“We had some very, very good moments during the regular season,” he explained. “Some games were not so good. At the end, the energy level is very good, very good mentality, and for sure, I’m very proud now to be here and that we have the chance all together, this big opportunity, to play in the final."
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