View Full Version : In Theory: Who would Philly MLS's ultimate rival be?
SoccerPrime
02 Apr 2006, 03:36 PM
Since fiery rivalry is a tradition of both soccer and of course Philly, what MLS team would be Philly's natural rival?
Would they follow NFL's lead and be NY, DC or even Dallas?
Perhaps MLB's hatred of the Braves and Mets.
NHL's NY Rangers, Pitt Pens and of course the NJ Devils?
So would it be:
DC United?
Red Bull New York?
New England Revolution?
Chicago Fire?
FC Dallas?
Toronto MLS?
NYC MLS?
Other?
Let the ideas flow.
Looper121
02 Apr 2006, 03:44 PM
I say RBNY, same state,(same stadium town name, perhaps) different city association. Already a dislike of NY teams on Phila's behalf. I think it's already in place...although you never know...
dfb547490
02 Apr 2006, 05:54 PM
NY (both NY-area teams if a second one comes) and to a lesser extent DC
n4100
02 Apr 2006, 09:52 PM
Since fiery rivalry is a tradition of both soccer and of course Philly, what MLS team would be Philly's natural rival?
Would they follow NFL's lead and be NY, DC or even Dallas?
Perhaps MLB's hatred of the Braves and Mets.
NHL's NY Rangers, Pitt Pens and of course the NJ Devils?
So would it be:
DC United?
Red Bull New York?
New England Revolution?
Chicago Fire?
FC Dallas?
Toronto MLS?
NYC MLS?
Other?
Let the ideas flow.
Ok, so you've got to think that if the team is located in Glassboro, the major rival would be with RBNY, if only because they will both be located in the same state. If the team is called Philadelphia, it will probably still be RBNY because again, its NY and we've got a natural dislike for them. These scenarios would also qualify as the Rangers/Devils + the Giants/Mets arguments.
We wouldn't like DC either, but I couldn't see it being as heated.
As for the Revs, that would take a Sixers v Celtics type rivalry where we both are really good and that stirs the rivalry, because for the most part I couldn't care less about Boston or New England teams.
Chicago? Too far away, no relationship whatsoever.
Pittsburgh would require a team, and it would require us playing each other. That could be a good development if the team were actually located in PA, but if its in NJ, it might not be AS big a deal as RBNY would be.
Biggest rivals could wind up being between Supporter groups if the team is over in NJ. I could see one set up for those from PA, and one for those from NJ.
Adam Zebrowski
03 Apr 2006, 02:33 PM
the big rival will get defined in the early years based on what happens on the pitch...
new england...dc...new york...could be one, could be all
SoccerPrime
03 Apr 2006, 02:39 PM
Supporters club rivalries are rather less effective. I rather have them being rivals with OTHER teams. Seriously... :rolleyes:
I can't imagine it not being one of 3 other Eastern teams near Philly, namely NE, DC and NY.
Although I would admit that Chivas and RSL rather seem to hate each other, so a fellow expansion side, say Toronto might pick up the baton.
Sundevil9
03 Apr 2006, 02:50 PM
Although I would admit that Chivas and RSL rather seem to hate each other
I see that more of a rivalry to not be #12 in a 12 team league :D
But any good Philadelphian has an instant repulsion to any and all things New York.
Rivalries that are created on the field would come from New England, DC, and Columbus.....but count on DC because that'll almost always have a heavy travelling contingent of fans, and that helps fuel this kind of thing.
n4100
03 Apr 2006, 05:03 PM
Supporters club rivalries are rather less effective. I rather have them being rivals with OTHER teams. Seriously... :rolleyes:
I didn't say I was for it, I was just saying that I could see them occuring.
skyscraper
03 Apr 2006, 08:24 PM
If we get a team, and if they play in glassboro, there would be a rivalry between our team and the red bulls, but it wouldn't have the samek kind of intensity that a Flyers/Rangers matchup would. It would be more of a New Jersey civil war, each backed by the respective city that dominates the region, regardless of the fact that the bulls changed their name to New York; that doesn't change the fact that they play in jersey.
If we got a team and they played in the city, I'd have to think that there would be more of a rivlary with dc; United has a pretty good history with MLS cups, so we's like to knock them down a peg or two. Eagles/Redskins games are pretty good matchups too. It's not ALL about New York with Philadelphians.
Maybe we'd even start something with FC Dallas (bleccccch), finding another battleground for Eagles/Cowboys.
MasterShake29
03 Apr 2006, 10:39 PM
Only in MLS could the New Jersey (Harrison?) derby be between New York and Philadelphia.
MasterShake29
03 Apr 2006, 10:41 PM
The Philly/Dallas NFL rivalry is because they were in the same division. It doesn't happen in other sports, it won't happen in MLS.
Sundevil9
03 Apr 2006, 10:53 PM
The Philly/Dallas NFL rivalry is because they were in the same division. It doesn't happen in other sports, it won't happen in MLS.
Yeah. I don't see much Flyers/Stars hate. The only bitter rivalry between those two towns deals with that stupid blue star, due to silly NFL divsion alignments, and both teams being good around the same time.
There's a big DC/Dallas football rivalry, too. But FC Dallas fans only hate United because Ronnie O'Brien got his ankle broken at RFK, in an attack that they seem to think was planned for years. Oh, and United got Freddy Adu with Dallas' first pick in typical MLS shenanigans. It has nothing to do with historical sporting rivalry.
The Philly/NY thing goes deeper though. It's more than about the sports teams, it's about Philadelphia always being the second biggest east coast city and it's only a couple of hours down the road.
Sundevil9
03 Apr 2006, 10:54 PM
Only in MLS could the New Jersey (Harrison?) derby be between New York and Philadelphia.
Of course, it's not like the State University likes to call itself NJ State.
PhillyMLS
03 Apr 2006, 11:52 PM
Only in MLS could the New Jersey (Harrison?) derby be between New York and Philadelphia.
Yeah, but only in the NFL could an all New York matchup not even be played in NY.
n4100
04 Apr 2006, 02:18 AM
Yeah, but only in the NFL could an all New York matchup not even be played in NY.
Unless it was the Bills versus the Jets at Rich Stadium!
PhillyMLS
04 Apr 2006, 02:55 AM
Unless it was the Bills versus the Jets at Rich Stadium!
Buffalo still has a football team? Isn't that too small of a market? What is the NFL thinking!
Anyway I was refering to NYC but was too lazy to put the city. But thanks for reminding me how little I care about the NFL :D
Sundevil9
04 Apr 2006, 07:28 AM
Yeah, but only in the NFL could an all New York matchup not even be played in NY.
Or all that often! You'd think they could make it a regular event.....
MasterShake29
04 Apr 2006, 08:21 AM
Of course, it's not like the State University likes to call itself NJ State.
It does actually. The official name is "Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey". And it's not like no schools have New Jersey in their name, it's just that none play D1 sports. That will change next year, as New Jersey Insitute of Technology will play D1 men's basketball.
MasterShake29
04 Apr 2006, 08:22 AM
Or all that often! You'd think they could make it a regular event.....
The Jets and Giants do play every year in the pre-season. They don't have much of a rivalry really. I'm a Jets fan, but I don't hate the Giants.
SoccerPrime
04 Apr 2006, 09:13 AM
So far, it seems that RBNY would be more a "natural" rival for Philly MLS but DC United's fans seem to follow their team a little more hardcore, so that might tip the scales in their "favor".
Of course this is all idle speculation, at least until Philly has an actual team.