Metro vs NE, 1996

On August 14, 1996, the MetroStars beat New England 4:0. The game was memorable for many reasons: it was the debut of Giants Stadium AstroTurf, signaling the beginning of ping-pong soccer, it was the first appearance of Antony "El Pitufo" De Avila, it was the largest home victory in the team's brief history...

It was also the last time that Metro was over .500. That win pushed them to 12-11. They lost the next four games. They've been in the negative since... Until now.

Metro lost their inaugural game to LA, 2:1. then followed with defeats to New England and Columbus. Wins over Tampa Bay, DC, and Colorado (the first two via shootout) crept Metro back to .500. They would dip below, go as far as -4, before a late-summer run pushed them over with that 4:0 victory. Then, the downhill slide started.

1996 ended at -2, 1997's playoff-less campaign at -8. -10 in 1998 was followed by the utter collapse of -28 in 1999. Metro dipped to -31 three times in the early 2000 season, but the club's first winning record saw them push it up to -23.

Water was tread for the next eight years: -20, -24, -23, -24, -21, -23, -22, -23. Then, 2009 repeated the horror of ten years prior, as Metro went to an all-time low of -38 after losing to Salt Lake 2:0. Metro won the next game, the regular season finale, beating Toronto 5:0. That last game ever at Giants Stadium ended the 2009 at -37.

Red Bull Arena opened, as 2010 pushed up to -31, 2011 to -29, 2012 to -22. The Supporters Shield year got Metro to -14, 2014 to -11, and another Shield to -3, the highest number since May 1997. This year's early season swoon pushed Metro back down to -8, followed by a slow but sure climb up. The all-time record now stands at 263-262-134.

So, now, for the first time in 20 years, you're supporting a winner!

(Regular season only. Playoffs are another matter...)