Red Bull New York

History

MetroStars era

The club's original name was Empire Soccer Club, which gave birth to the name of the team's largest supporters' group, Empire Supporters Club. The team's original owners were John Kluge and Stuart Subotnick. The name MetroStars was chosen in reference to Metromedia, the media company founded by Kluge, after Nike's original suggestion "MetroFlash" was rejected. The owners also considered but rejected buying the rights to the name "Cosmos".

Tab Ramos, the first player to sign with MLS, became the first MetroStars player, and was soon joined by 1994 FIFA World Cup teammate Tony Meola and A.C. Milan star midfielder Roberto Donadoni. 1990 World Cup player Peter Vermes was named the first team captain, but it was the previously unknown Venezuelan Giovanni Savarese who became the Metros' first breakthrough star. The team's first coach was Eddie Firmani of New York Cosmos fame.

In 1996, the MetroStars made news when they selected players named Juninho and Túlio in the 1996 MLS Supplemental Draft. This report set off an immediately positive reaction which was quickly crushed after the MetroStars revealed that they had not actually drafted well-known Brazilian players Juninho Paulista and Túlio Costa, as people had assumed. The MetroStars waived both draftees on March 25, 1996. While the identity of "Juninho" was later discovered, the true name and club history of "Tulio" remains unknown. This bizarre episode has entered MetroStars folk lore.

When the league began play in 1996, it was expected that the MetroStars would quickly become the league's dominant team. This expectation never materialized. Despite famous players and a high-profile coach, the team never seemed to click together. The team's first home game against the New England Revolution proved to be a harbinger of things to come. Former Juventus defender Nicola Caricola inadvertently flipped a cross into his own net in the dying minutes to hand New England a 1–0 win in front of 46,000 fans.

The resulting play would later be dubbed the "Curse of Caricola" by fans to explain the team's inability to come through with a domestic trophy in their history. Firmani left after eight games (3–5) and was replaced by former Portugal coach Carlos Queiróz, who did no better than even (12–12) the rest of the season. The team made it into the playoffs, only to lose to eventual champions D.C. United.

Takeover by Red Bull GmbH (2006–2009)

On March 9, 2006, it was announced that Austrian energy drink conglomerate Red Bull GmbH had purchased the club, and as part of their sponsorship, they would also completely re-brand the franchise, changing the name, colors, and logo, a move which drew mixed reactions. The club name was changed to "Red Bull New York", with the team now referred to as the "New York Red Bulls" by the league and the media.

Red Bull had originally approached MLS about creating an expansion club in New York City proper, but concerns over the cost of buying out the MetroStars' territorial rights to the region, along with the expected difficulty in securing a stadium site in the city, led the company to purchase the MetroStars instead and take over their existing stadium project in Harrison, New Jersey. The territorial rights to a second New York area franchise reverted to MLS as part of the sale.

The decision to purchase an MLS team coming from a company like Red Bull was a significant boost to the brand's reputation and publicity. Red Bull is currently known very well in the sports world due to their successful Formula 1 team, Oracle Red Bull Racing. Before Red Bull's takeover of the MetroStars in 2006, Red Bull purchased the Jaguar Racing F1 Team in 2005. This was a boost in brand awareness for Red Bull, and their strategy has turned out to have a large impact on the brand. Before its expansion to larger scale audience sports in the mid 2000's like soccer and Formula 1, Red Bull was involved with niche sporting events in the 1990's; BMX, motocross, and skiing are some examples.

During the 2006 season, Red Bull fired Johnston and hired Bruce Arena, a Brooklyn native who had recently left the head coaching role with the United States national team. The team soon after signed national team captain Claudio Reyna as a designated player along with Colombian star Juan Pablo Angel, while teenage striker Jozy Altidore emerged as one of the league's brightest young talents. That summer the Red Bulls defeated German club Bayern Munich 4–2 in a friendly at Giants Stadium and lost a friendly against Barcelona 4–1 in front of a sold-out crowd in East Rutherford. On August 18, 2007, the Red Bulls hosted the LA Galaxy for the league debut of David Beckham, drawing 66,238 fans. Arena guided the Red Bulls to the 2007 MLS playoffs, but they were eliminated in the first round by the New England Revolution. Two days later, on November 5, 2007, Arena resigned as coach of the Red Bulls. Red Bull then acquired Colombian coach Juan Carlos Osorio from Chicago Fire during the off-season.

The Backe era and new stadium (2010–2012)

The 2010 season brought about a new stadium, a new sporting director and coaching staff, and a new group of players to the Red Bulls, who hoped to dramatically improve from their disappointing 2009 season. On January 7, 2010, the Red Bulls confirmed the hiring of veteran Swedish manager Hans Backe as head coach. Not long after Backe was confirmed as coach, he started to release many players signed by Osorio including Jorge Rojas, Danny Cepero, Carlos Johnson, and Walter García, while midfielder Matthew Mbuta's contract was not picked up for the 2010 season. Under the direction of Backe and newly hired Norwegian sporting director Erik Solér, the club began a new approach of signing veteran European players (mainly from Scandinavia and Britain) instead of the South American and Central American players that are usually sought after in MLS. With Backe as head coach, the Red Bulls went undefeated in the 2010 preseason, including the first ever match at Red Bull Arena against Santos of Brazil, which the Red Bulls won 3–1. In this preseason game, newly signed Estonian international midfielder Joel Lindpere became the first player to score a goal in Red Bull Arena. The Red Bulls carried this form into the first MLS match at Red Bull Arena against the Chicago Fire by winning 1–0 with the lone goal coming from Joel Lindpere. A week later, the Red Bulls defeated Seattle Sounders FC 1–0 at Qwest Field in Seattle, breaking a 27-game road winless streak.

The club signed legendary French forward Thierry Henry as a designated player in July 2010. A month later on August 2, the Red Bulls signed their third designated player, Mexican international defender Rafael Márquez. The signing of Márquez established the Red Bulls as the first MLS team to have three designated players. With these new additions, the Red Bulls improved further and clinched first place in the Eastern Conference for the first time since 2000. New York also set an MLS record for best one-season improvement, finishing with 51 points after having just 21 points the previous year. Despite the impressive turnaround, the season again ended in disappointment for the Red Bulls. The Eastern Conference semi-finals saw the Red Bulls fall to the San Jose Earthquakes. Joel Lindpere was named the season's Most Valuable Player.

Prior to the 2011 season Backe brought in a number of new European signings including Luke Rodgers, Jan Gunnar Solli, and Teemu Tainio, and announced that Thierry Henry would be the captain for the 2011 season. However the season also began with a cloud of controversy after the club fired longtime assistant coaches Richie Williams and Des McAleenan for undisclosed contract violations during training camp.

The Petke era and first trophy (2013–2014)

In the 2012–2013 off-season, a large structural overhaul occurred within the organization. In addition to Backe they parted ways with sporting director Erik Soler and brought in two people to split his former responsibilities; Andy Roxburgh was named sporting director and given responsibility for all technical and soccer operations, while Jerome de Bontin was named general manager, with an emphasis placed on corporate operations.

With these changes at the top levels in place, several key players including designated player Rafael Márquez, Joel Lindpere, Kenny Cooper and Wilman Conde were either sold or traded. In an effort to revitalize the team, New York brought in players with a history of success, such as Brazilian World Cup veteran Juninho Pernambucano and former MLS Cup Champions such as Fabián Espíndola, Jámison Olave, and Kosuke Kimura.

On January 24, it was announced that Mike Petke would remain in place as the permanent head coach, removing his interim status. This marked the first time in club history the team would be coached by a former MetroStars/Red Bulls player. Petke's first season in charge began with a 3–3 draw on March 3, 2013, away to the Portland Timbers.

Petke showed a knack for making adjustments when he countered a slow 0–2–2 start by switching the formation from a 4–2–3–1 formation to a 4–4–2 – placing more emphasis on playing a strong defensive game, and playing up through the midfield. The rookie manager sought to turn the club around, and gain his first win by the end of the month. On March 30, 2013, he did just that against the Philadelphia Union, by the score of 2–1.

Petke sought to instill a more aggressive mindset into the team to make up for the relative lack of time the team had spent playing together. Some have called the team "mentally weak" due to how the team has fluctuated between scrappy play and impressive displays of form and moments of "playing down to" inferior teams. However, after putting on impressive displays, the team went on a two-month undefeated streak and won the 2013 Supporters' Shield as the team with the best regular-season record.

This win also secured the top seed and home-field advantage in the MLS Cup post-season tournament.

Jesse Marsch, Ali Curtis and "Energy Drink Soccer" (2015–2018)

On December 23, 2014, former MLS player and league office executive Ali Curtis replaced the retiring Andy Roxburgh as Sporting Director. In a surprise announcement two weeks later on January 7, 2015, Petke was released as head coach and replaced with former Montreal Impact coach Jesse Marsch. Tension between the fans and the front office came to a head at a hectic town hall featuring Curtis, Marsch, goalkeeper Luis Robles and emcee and sportswriter Frank Isola.

The target was to implement, on the pitch, a high pressing style used by the other Red Bull Global teams under Ralf Rangnick, all the way down to the academy. Marsch once said the team would play like "an energy drink," which was derided but "Energy Drink Soccer" became a way for the fanbase to describe the way in which they preferred the club play.

In his first season with Red Bulls, Marsch implemented a high-pressure tactical system built around the talents of recently signed players such as Sacha Kljestan, Mike Grella, Felipe Martins and a returning Bradley Wright-Phillips, while academy product Matt Miazga emerged as a key defender, eventually being signed by English club Chelsea following the season. The Red Bulls won their second Supporter's Shield, qualifying for the 2015 MLS playoffs and reaching the Eastern Conference Final where they were ultimately defeated by the Columbus Crew.

On May 21, 2016, the team tied an MLS record for largest victory margin, winning 7–0 at New York City FC. Marsch signed a multi-year extension in June 2016. At the end of July, Wright-Phillips became the club's all-time leading goal scorer, passing Henry on his way to a total he'd eventually double in New York. On September 27, 2016, the Red Bulls qualified for their first ever CONCACAF Champions League knockout stage with a 0–0 draw at Guatemalan club Antigua GFC. The playoffs were a disappointment, however, as the top-seeded Red Bulls fell in the conference semifinals to Montreal.

Prior to the 2017 season, Curtis left the club under confusing circumstances, with the club saying that he and the rest of management failed "to work through differing views" and was replaced by Denis Hamlett. Earlier in the transfer window, the team had sold captain and longest-tenured player Dax McCarty to the Chicago Fire for allocation money. with McCarty saying of Curtis that "it's clear for everyone to see that he's no longer a part of the decision-making process going on at the Red Bulls."

The third Supporters Shield and the Armas era (2018–2020)

Initially, Armas continued to steer the ship well, as the Red Bulls won their third Supporters' Shield in the 2018 after winning their last five games to overtake Atlanta United in a tight race on the season's final day, while setting what was then a record for points in a season and securing qualification for the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League. Atlanta got revenge on New York in the Eastern Conference Finals, which they won 3–1 over two legs after a controversial offside call that denied Wright-Phillips an away goal in the first leg.

Wright-Phillips became the fastest player to 100 MLS goals in the history of the league after scoring against DC United on July 25, 2018, all 100 scored with New York. The Englishman finished the season with 20 goals in the league, becoming the first player in MLS history to achieve the feat three times.

Tyler Adams was sold to RB Leipzig in January 2019 for a sum of $3,000,000 and 33% of any future transfer earnings.

New York stumbled through a middling 2019 season, with Wright-Phillips spending most of it injured. In his place, 20 different Red Bulls registered at least a goal, a club record when counting Wright-Phillips as 21. After easing past Atlético Pantoja, their run in the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League was abruptly ended by Santos Laguna in the quarterfinals. New York finished 6th in the East and despite holding a 3–1 lead at halftime, fell in the first round of the 2019 MLS Cup Playoffs to Philadelphia Union in extra time 4–3.

Luis Robles, the player who'd played the most times for the club in their history and Bradley Wright-Phillips, the player who'd scored the most goals in their history, departed in the offseason.

Sean Davis became the club's first academy product to be named captain ahead of the 2020 season, the fifth native of New Jersey to wear the armband.

Armas, having had a rough start to the COVID-19-impacted 2020 campaign – including a crashing out at the group stage of the MLS is Back Tournament – was formally released from his contract, along with assistant CJ Brown on September 4, 2020, via statement released from Kevin Thelwell, RBNY's Head of Sport who had come over in early 2020 from Wolverhampton Wanderers. Bradley Carnell was named as interim manager the day after.

Gerhard Struber era (2020–2023)

Kevin Thelwell hired former Barnsley manager (and former Red Bull Salzburg player and youth coach) Gerhard Struber as the club's new manager on October 6, 2020. Due to delays driven largely by the COVID-19 pandemic, Struber was unable to make his debut until the Red Bulls, under Carnell's direction, made the 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs, where Struber oversaw a 3–2 away loss to Columbus. Carnell left the club altogether ahead of the 2022 season to become head coach of expansion St. Louis City SC.

Thelwell and Struber largely rebuilt the roster for the 2021 MLS season, signing 12 new players from a mix of European and South American clubs, as well as an academy product, Bento Estrela, who became the club's youngest-ever signing the day before his 15th birthday. New York also used two loan players from Red Bull Salzburg – including goalkeeper Carlos Miguel Coronel – and signed former Celtic forward Patryk Klimala as a designated player.

New York struggled for a good portion of the 2021 season with injuries including a ruptured achilles from US international Aaron Long, but put together a 7–1–4 finish to the season to qualify for their 12th consecutive playoffs. The Red Bulls were defeated in the opening round by the Philadelphia Union, 1–0 on a goal in the 123rd minute.

In the offseason, former Salzburg loanee Coronel, considered by most to be the team's best player in 2021, was brought back on a permanent contract. The club also bought Lewis Morgan from Inter Miami CF for $1.2 million in targeted allocation money. Davis departed on a free agent contract to Nashville SC.

On the day before the beginning of the 2022 season, Thelwell departed to take over as director of football at Everton. His final transfer window saw Brazilian Luquinhas brought in from Legia Warsaw and Englishman Ashley Fletcher on loan from Watford. Clark and defender Tom Edwards also returned on loan deals.

With Long returning from injury and made captain following Davis' departure, New York began the 2022 season tying an MLS record set by the 1998 Los Angeles Galaxy, winning their first five league games on the road. In addition, Red Bulls went six matches undefeated away in the league and eight in all competitions to start 2022. Conversely, the club was winless in their first six home matches in 2022, before an Open Cup victory over Charlotte FC on May 25.

Sandro Schwarz era (2024–2025)

New York named former 1. FSV Mainz 05, FC Dynamo Moscow and Hertha BSC manager Sandro Schwarz the 20th head coach in club history on December 14, 2023. Two days later, on December 16, the Red Bulls signed RB Leipzig midfielder and Sweden international Emil Forsberg as a designated player. Former Canadian international Julian de Guzman was named sporting director on February 2.

The offseason saw several departures, as Luquinhas was sold to Fortaleza Esporte Clube, Tom Barlow and Dru Yearwood were sold to Chicago Fire FC and Nashville SC, respectively, while Omir Fernandez left as a free agent.

The club signed Swedish U-21 international Noah Eile, Norwegian youth international Dennis Gjengaar, as well as homegrown Roald Mitchell, while re-signing Dylan Nealis and Daniel Edelman to new contracts and exercising a purchase option to bring back Kyle Duncan.

Forsberg was named the club captain ahead of the season, demoting Sean Nealis to vice-captain. Goalkeeper Carlos Coronel was named as a second vice-captain. Schwarz's first victory for the club came on March 2 away at Houston Dynamo. Academy product Julian Hall became the club's youngest-ever goal scorer and the league's second youngest on June 19, 2024, getting an equalizer against CF Montréal 16 years and 87 days old.

Despite poor form in the second half of the 2024 season and in the 2024 Leagues Cup, the Red Bulls qualified for the playoffs, extending their record consecutive postseasons streak to 15 years.

New York upset defending MLS Cup champions Columbus Crew in the first round of the 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs, considered by some to be the biggest upset in the league's post-season history. The Red Bulls won Game 2 of their series in a penalty shootout at Red Bull Arena after several saves by Coronel and a decisive winner from academy graduate Daniel Edelman.

In the Eastern Conference Semifinal, New York defeated New York City in the first ever post-season derby between the clubs. Summer DP signing Felipe Carballo and Vanzier both scored. In the Eastern Conference Final, New York traveled to face Orlando City SC, where they defeated the Lions 1–0 on a goal by Andres Reyes, sending the club to its second-ever MLS Cup Final against LA Galaxy. They would fall to the Galaxy, 2–1, with Sean Nealis providing their only goal.

Michael Bradley era (2026–present)

New York announced that New Jersey native, former MetroStar and ex-United States captain Michael Bradley would become the team's new head coach in December 2025, having spent the second half of the 2025 season guiding the club's second team to an MLS Next Pro championship.

Nicknames, colors and badge

The club is colloquially referred to as RBNY (short for Red Bull New York) and by fans, particularly those in Empire Supporters Club, as Metro, in honor of the original MetroStars name. The club itself often markets the team as playing "for the Metro".

The team's original crest was a stylized "M" in front of a city skyline. For the 2003 season, a new crest was introduced featuring the MetroStars wordmark in front of a "three-sided shield" intended to represent the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. After Red Bull purchased and renamed the team, the badge was switched to the familiar Red Bull logo.

During the team's first seasons, the MetroStars had solid black or solid white jerseys, before switching to a home jerseys featuring red and black vertical stripes (similar to those worn by A.C. Milan). Since the Red Bull takeover, the team has almost invariably worn white shirts with red shorts at home while using a combination of navy blue and yellow for road kits, each with a prominent Red Bull logo across the chest. Prior to the 2018 season, the club unveiled a new entirely red shirt, replacing the traditional blue-yellow secondary kit.

In 2024, for the first time since the MetroStars era, the club debuted a kit that somewhat resembled the red and black stripes known as the 'Legacy Kit.'

Stadium

The team is headquartered and plays their home matches at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey, which opened for the 2010 MLS season. The stadium has a seating capacity of 25,189. On March 20, 2010, the Red Bull team played an exhibition game against Santos FC in a 3–1 inaugural win. The first MLS league game took place in the new venue on March 27, 2010, with a 1–0 win over the Chicago Fire, the lone goal coming from Estonian international Joel Lindpere. Since opening in 2010, the Red Bulls have been dominant at Sports Illustrated Stadium with the most wins and points at home for the best home record in MLS. The performance of the team at home has given the stadium the nickname of "The Fortress".

In 2019, 2022 and 2023, the club sporadically used MSU Soccer Park, home of New York Red Bulls II, for U.S. Open Cup matches when Red Bull Arena was unavailable.

The team played at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, from 1996 until the end of the 2009 season.

Training facility

In 2021, the club announced plans to build a new, 80-acre (32 ha), privately funded training facility in Morris Township. The RWJBarnabas Health Red Bulls Performance Center broke ground in December 2023 and opened ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in April 2026 with the Brazil national football team using it as its home base and training facility during the tournament.

The $100 million facility, designed by Gensler, is one of the largest in North America and features eight full sized training pitches, with five heated fields and one turf field, and space for the first team, second team and academy all under one roof. Additional features include an innovation lab, a 4,635 sq ft (430.6 m2) weight room with windows that overlook the training pitch, a lounge for first-team players, academic spaces for academy players and a dining hall serving food from professional chefs.

In the past, the Red Bulls led a nomadic existence, making use of several other training grounds before finishing construction of their first purpose-built facility:

Kean University East Campus (1996–2002)

Saint Benedict's Preparatory School (2002)

Giants Stadium (2003–2007)

Montclair State University (2007–2013)

The club's prior training facility was located in Hanover Township, New Jersey, and opened in June 2013. The $6 million facility covers about 15 acres of the 73 acre property and includes four fields, three grass and one turf, each the size of the one at Sports Illustrated Stadium. The middle field, which has a grass surface, is heated, while one turf field has lights.

The complex opened with four buildings, with the main one housing separate locker rooms for the senior team, academy teams and coaching staff, film analysis room, offices, a therapy room, a gym, a fitness/wellness area, a hot/cold tub room and a players' lounge, which includes a cafeteria that serves breakfast and lunch. In April 2015, the team opened a new 4,000 sq ft (370 m2) training building, which includes two team locker rooms, a multipurpose weight and cardio area, a treatment room, exam room, coach and staff lockers, lavatories for both men and women and other miscellaneous areas. In 2017, the team opened a 3,500 sq ft (330 m2) extension of the 2015 training building for the academy team and the third grass field.

Club culture

Supporters

A variety of supporters clubs and groups have grown around the team since its inaugural year. The first of these was formed in 1995, prior to the inception of the team itself, as the Empire Supporters Club. In early 2005, MetroNation was formed and became the club's second officially recognized supporter's group. 2005 also saw the creation of the New Jersey–based Garden State Supporters, eventually known as the Garden State Ultras (GSU). The 2010 season's influx of personnel with a Scandinavian background led to the creation of the Viking Army Supporters Club. In 2021, after GSU had received a stadium ban, a new supporters group named Torcida 96 was formed.

The Red Bulls have designated some sections of Sports Illustrated Stadium as supporter specific. These included sections 101 for the Empire Supporters Club, 102 for the Viking Army, and 133 for Torcida 96. Sections 133, 101, and 102 are collectively known as the "South Ward". In 2019, the club remodeled the South Ward as 'safe-standing' sections.

The groups organize away trips to every match, often chartering buses to games in New England, Philadelphia and Washington, as well as special subway trips to derbies at New York City. ESC also holds multiple watch parties for each away games at bars in Manhattan and New Jersey. Both ESC and Viking Army traditionally hold a tailgate in the parking lot outside Sports Illustrated Stadium before every home match, while Torcida meet at The Greenroom in Harrison, with all three combining in the parking lot to complete the march to the match.

Red Bull GmbH became the target of a supporter campaign after Petke's dismissal, highlighted by a billboard alongside Interstate 280 near the stadium that showed Petke lifting the Supporters' Shield above the slogans "#RedBullOut" and "Our Legend, Our Club".

Rivalries

The Red Bulls' oldest rival is D.C. United, against whom they compete for the Atlantic Cup. The New England Revolution too are another fierce rival the Red Bulls have a derby with called the I-95 derby. The Red Bulls had not defeated the Revolution at the latter's home venue Gillette Stadium for 12 years, until a 2–0 win on June 8, 2014, intensifying the rivalry. That same year, the two met in the Eastern Conference Championship, where New England eliminated New York to advance. These rivalries arise out of geographic proximity and as a reflection of longstanding rivalries between New York-area teams and other teams in Washington, D.C., Boston, and Philadelphia. During the late 2000s and early 2010s, battles between New York and the Los Angeles Galaxy were called the '1% Derby' given the teams' extravagant spending compared to the rest of the league.

The rivalry between the New York Red Bulls and D.C. United came to a head on April 22nd, 2006. D.C. United player Alecko Eskandarian, after scoring a goal, ran to his bench, drank a Red Bull, and spit it out. Fans of the New York Red Bulls were outraged, adding to the already heated rivalry between the two teams.

In 2015 the Hudson River Derby was born when the Red Bulls faced off against another team from the New York metropolitan area in MLS league play for the first time, when New York City FC entered MLS. Although initially regarded as a manufactured rivalry with little of the traditional banter apparent between long-time local rivals, the first meetings between the teams displayed an increasing level of animosity between the two sides. The Red Bulls won the first ever encounter between the two, a league game on May 10, 2015, at Sports Illustrated Stadium. Matches between the two teams were marred by a series of brawls between their supporters.

Although the rivalry with NYCFC was built to be the major one for the Red Bulls, this was not the first time that they played against teams from the New York area, as they played matches in the U.S. Open Cup in both 2011 (against F.C. New York, who have since folded) and 2014 (against the New York Cosmos). The Red Bulls also played against the Cosmos in the 2015 U.S. Open Cup, to a 4–1 victory.

The rivalry between the New York Red Bulls and New York City FC, although assumed to be entertaining and high-pressure, was a very one-sided rivalry in its early years. In the early stages of this rivalry the New York Red Bulls were very dominant, which meant that this hypothetical battle for New York City was not much of a rivalry and more of a one-sided battle. After the Red Bulls' significant 7–0 win over New York City FC in 2016, the Red Bulls had won all four matchups between the two teams, outscoring New York City FC by a whopping twelve goals. In 2015, the Red Bulls finished at 18–10–6 with the best record in the Eastern Conference, while New York City FC finished eighth in the conference with a 10–17–7 record. Along with the Red Bulls winning the first four matchups, the Red Bulls went on to win 6 of the first 7 matchups, which lasted until mid-2017, when NYCFC started picking up some more wins. Although the Red Bulls had dominated the rivalry early on, as time goes on New York City FC continues growth and the playing field between the two clubs starts trending towards being even. The overall record between the two teams' 32 matchups includes the New York Red Bulls with 16 wins, New York City FC with 12 wins, and 4 draws. This shows that since the first four games which were dominated by the Red Bulls, it has been perfectly even with 12 wins for each club.

Mascot

The New York Red Bulls debuted their mascot REDD during a home match against FC Cincinnati on July 20, 2024. REDD is a youthful and energetic red bull who entertains the fans during the games and around the tri-state area. He usually wears sunglasses and a hat, and skateboards around the stadium during game days. REDD can be found outside at the Bullevard, a pregame kickoff event with activations, and can be seen in the sections during the game.

Broadcasting

From its inception as the MetroStars in 1996, Red Bulls matches were televised by MSG and MSG Plus. Joe Tolleson (play-by-play) and Tommy Smyth (analyst) were the original announcers. Derek Rae and JP Dellacamera followed as play-by-play announcers. From 2012 to 2022, Steve Cangialosi (play-by-play) and Shep Messing (analyst) were the MSG/MSG Plus announcers.

In 2015, the Red Bulls launched streaming audio game broadcasts from the club's official site, with play-by-play man Matt Harmon and former MetroStar and Red Bull Steve Jolley on the English-language call, and Ernesto Motta in Spanish. Late in 2015, the club launched a streaming internet station with TuneIn, becoming the first MLS club to provide 24-hour streaming content to its fan base. Stefano Fusaro replaced Motta in 2021 but departed ahead of the 2023 season.

From 2023, every Red Bulls match is available via MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app. The service features contributions from Cangialosi, Fusaro and Messing, as well as former New York players Sacha Kljestan, Bradley Wright-Phillips, Dax McCarty, Lloyd Sam and Heath Pearce. Harmon and Jolley can be listened to on the Apple TV broadcast for every home match and often host weekly features previewing and recapping matches on the service.

Players and staff

Roster

As of September 2, 2026

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Retired numbers

99 – Bradley Wright-Phillips (forward, 2013–2019, 2022)

Legends Row

Luis Robles

Bradley Wright-Phillips

Technical staff

As of November 26, 2025

Administrative officials

As of February 22, 2025

Player development

New York Red Bulls II

New York Red Bulls II was established in 2015. It is a reserve team that competes in the USL Championship, the second tier of the American soccer pyramid. The team plays its home matches at MSU Soccer Park at Pittser Field in Montclair, New Jersey.

The fully professional team completed its inaugural USL season with a 12–10–6 record in fourth place of the Eastern Conference. The team won its first playoff game against Pittsburgh Riverhounds and advanced as far as the Eastern Conference semifinals in the 2015 USL Playoffs.

A New York Red Bulls team mostly composed of NYRB II players defeated Chelsea F.C. in a 2015 friendly.

In 2016, New York Red Bulls II defeated the Swope Park Rangers 5–1 in the 2016 United Soccer League Final winning their first United Soccer League Championship and became the first Major League Soccer-owned team to win the United Soccer League title.

The team was coached by former Red Bull and New York native John Wolyniec from its founding until the end of the 2021 season. He was replaced by former Seattle Sounders FC academy director Gary Lewis, with a plan to transition the reserve side into the newly created MLS Next Pro in 2023. Lewis failed to last half a season, with former Red Bulls player and long-time second-team assistant Ibrahim Sekagya taking over on an interim basis before being given the job permanently ahead of the 2023 season.

Sekgaya was promoted to become an assistant coach for the first team and remain head coach of the second team in 2024. However, in 2025, Sekgaya was given the assistant role with the first team full-time and replaced by ex-MetroStar and US international Michael Bradley.

Academy

The New York Red Bulls Academy is the multi-layered youth system of the New York Red Bulls. It is the first cost-free program in MLS that provides a professional soccer training environment for youth players in the New York metropolitan area. The soccer programs are operated as part of a global approach to player development. The club has produced seven players from its academy (Sean Davis, Connor Lade, Kyle Duncan, John Tolkin, Alex Muyl, Omir Fernandez and Daniel Edelman) to play at least 100 matches in all competitions for the MLS side. In 2022, Tyler Adams became the club's first academy product to represent the United States at a World Cup.

Honors

Minor trophies

Atlantic Cup: 2003, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025

Hudson River Derby Cup: 2023

International Tournaments

Club records and statistics

Most wins in a regular season: 22 (2018)

Most points in a regular season: 71 (2018)

Most home wins in a regular season: 14 (2018)

Most home points in a regular season: 43 (2018)

Scored the fastest goal in Major League Soccer history (Mike Grella, 7 seconds into the game vs Philadelphia Union on October 18, 2015, at Red Bull Arena)

Best home record in MLS

Most away wins in a row from the start of a season: 5 (2022)

Player records

MLS regular season only, through March 9, 2019

As of December 31, 2024 (all competitive matches)

Bold signifies current Red Bulls player

Key

Key to competitions

Seasons

^1. Avg. attendance include statistics from league matches only.

^2. Top goalscorer(s) includes all goals scored in League, MLS Cup Playoffs, U.S. Open Cup, MLS is Back Tournament, CONCACAF Champions League, FIFA Club World Cup, and other competitive continental matches.

Average attendance

As of May 13, 2025

Historical staff