The sporting landscape in New York is one that like the city in rush hour suffers from huge amounts of congestion. Be it the Mets or the Yankees in Baseball, or the Nets or the Knicks in Basketball there is competition in terms of attracting and more importantly keeping a fanbase.
Of course, the task is arguably even tougher when it comes to Ice Hockey as there are the Islanders, Rangers and also the New Jersey Devils vying for your attention, while at the same time one should not forget the battle lines that have now been drawn in the world of Soccer.
New York Red Bull: the pioneers
In the Red corner you have the New York Red Bulls. A franchise that started off in the genesis of the MLS as the NY/NJ Metrostars and one it is fair to say failed to really catch the imagination of what is undoubtedly a rabid city when it comes to Sports.
That all changed though when the Energy Drink behemoth that is Red Bull decided to purchase the club back in 2006. It must be said that the change at first did not go down to well, but at the same the Austrian owners have certainly improved the team’s fortunes.
Although try as they might a first MLS Cup still eludes them after 12 years of ownership. 2008 was almost the year in which they delivered, however they were the bridesmaid rather than the bride after a defeat in the Final to Columbus Crew.
While in the Blue Corner, there is New York City FC. In comparison they are the younger siblings of Soccer in this region. Born in just 2015, they were granted access to the MLS as the competition’s twentieth overall team after another round of expansion.
They may not have been in existence for long, but they are not waiting around either. This is because they are backed by the might of the same Dubai based owners that are in charge of their parent club Manchester City.
A nascent rivalry: the Hudson River Derby
The birth of the franchise came from City wanting a foothold in American Soccer while also adding to the network of the teams that they had around the world, as their creation meant they joined their Melbourne based A-League counterparts in adding to the plan of global Soccer domination.
These two New York MLS entities do actually have a number of similarities, they both has almost infinite riches in their pursuit of glory, but at the same time neither have managed to rule the roost in MLS.
Although you could argue that NYCFC being in existence for a much shorter period is quite a weighty caveat in terms of not delivering trophies and more importantly they are perhaps in a better shape to actually deliver on that promise.
Specialized betting websites such as Sugarhouse now offer special odds for this derby, proving that this game is becoming more important every year for the fans. If the first encounter was just three years ago, the rivalry is now clear between the teams and their two franchise player: David Villa Bradley Wright-Phillips.
With the Red Bulls now having over a decade of drought in terms of the MLS then perhaps it is time to shift your attention to the relative upstarts. With the might and the brains of a successful Manchester City operation behind them, then surely it is only a matter of time before they become not just kings of New York but kings of America. The battle to be wrowned “King of America” exists in every sports, as you can see in Football if you click here.