Four national championships, one Champions League title and three cup wins: D.C. United’s list of honours is pretty impressive considering the club’s young age. That said, it is nine years since Bayern’s first opponents on the Audi Summer Tour 2022 (Wednesday 20 July, 1:30 CEST) last lifted silverware. fcbayern.com has compiled everything you need to know about the first opponents of the 2022/23 pre-season.
Capital city club
Black and red are the club colours of D.C. United. The bald eagle called Talon, which also adorns the crest, is the mascot. The franchise was founded in 1995, and the name refers to Washington, D.C., the capital of the USA. The home jerseys are red, like those of the German record champions, while the team play in white on the road. The three stripes on the shoulder of the shirts symbolise the largest administrative units in the Washington Metropolitan Area: District of Columbia, Virginia and Maryland. The capital club play their home games at Audi Field, a football-only stadium in Washington with a capacity of 20,000, which replaced Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium (RFK Stadium) as the venue from the 2018 season. The first match at Audi Field was won by D.C. United 3-1 against Vancouver Whitecaps in 2018 - the goal for the visitors was scored by a certain Alphonso Davies.
Rooney tasked with turning around faltering campaign
Unlike European leagues, Major League Soccer (MLS) is played from March to December, meaning D.C. United are currently midway through their regular season. After 19 out of 34 fixtures, the capital club are bottom of the Eastern Conference with 18 points. Although they have two matches in hand, they’re a long way off a playoff place. England’s record appearance maker Wayne Rooney has now been given the job of turning things around, the former D.C. United player being announced as the club’s new coach last week following a 7-0 defeat at Philadelphia Union. However, it remains to be seen when the 36-year-old will take his place in the dugout for the first time as he is still waiting for his work visa. Interim boss Chad Ashton will continue to manage the side until then.
Successful history
D.C. United are a relatively young club compared to FC Bayern, but their history is also littered with success. In the inaugural MLS season in 1996, United claimed the league and cup double. One year later, the capital club again won the championship, and they remain the only team to have defended the MLS title. Just three years after the club was founded, the Black-and-Red became the first US club to win the CONCACAF Champions Cup - the American equivalent of the UEFA Champions League - courtesy of a 1-0 win over Mexican side Toluca. But after that highly successful period around the turn of the century, fans have now been waiting nine years for a trophy. United’s last major success came in 2013 when they lifted the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, the domestic cup competition. Despite the recent drought, D.C. United are the second-most successful team in MLS history behind LA Galaxy.
European frontline with Munich connections
Bayern will have to pay particular attention to the Black-and-Reds’ attack. The team’s top two goalscorers this season both hail from Europe: Greek international Taxiarchis Fountas has bagged 10 goals in just 12 MLS appearances, while Ola Kamara from Norway has registered seven. Taxiarchis’ former clubs include RB Salzburg and Rapid Vienna in Austria as well as SG Sonnenhof Großaspach in Germany. His strike partner made 10 appearances (no goals) in Bundesliga 2 for TSV 1860 Munich in 2013.
A piece of sporting history
United made headlines on 18 November 2003 when the club signed 14-year-old Freddy Adu. Around five months later, Adu, still 14, made his MLS debut as a substitute and remains one of the youngest sportsmen to have ever signed a professional contract in the US. The former United States international (17 games/2 goals) went on to play for clubs in Europe such as Benfica and AS Monaco.
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