They were known as the Dallas Burn for their first decade in existence and played at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. Since 2004, they have been known as FC Dallas and the team moved into Toyota Park, a soccer-specific stadium in the Dallas suburb of Frisco, in 2005.
Players like Jason Kreis, Maxi Urruti, Kellyn Acosta, Denilson, Eddie Johnson, Dax McCarty, Brek Shea and Walker Zimmerman have all featured for the team. FC Dallas have also successfully developed players and sold them to European teams, including Weston McKennie, Chris Richards, Reggie Cannon, Rogelio Funes Mori and Jose Ramiro Funes Mori.
While not in the initial announcement of original teams, Dallas was awarded an MLS franchise on June 6, 1995, along with Kansas City and Colorado. The team name was the Burn to reflect the hot weather in Texas as well as the burning oil fields. Former Mexico international Hugo Sanchez was signed as the first player and Dave Dir was hired as the first manager.
The Burn debuted on April 14, 1996, in front of 27,779 fans at the Cotton Bowl and won in a penalty shootout over San Jose. Jason Kreis scored their first goal on April 19 in a 3-0 win over Kansas City. The Burn won 17 games in their first season, finishing in second place in the Western Conference. In the best-of-three play-off series, they fell to Kansas City in three games with a shootout loss in the final match. Dallas scored two goals in each game of the series but didn't advance. Kreis led the team with 13 goals and Mark Dodd was named MLS Goalkeeper of the Year.
In 1997, the Burn finished third in the Western Conference in the regular season. They won their first play-off series, sweeping LA Galaxy in the first round as they won a shootout in California before winning 3-0 at home. In the Western Conference finals, they lost to Colorado Rapids 1-0 and 2-1, thus being eliminated. Alain Sutter was the MLS Player of the Month in May and Dante Washington led the Burn with 11 goals over the season.
Dallas also earned their first title in 1997, claiming the US Open Cup. They beat the New York/New Jersey MetroStars 2-1 in the semi-finals with a goal from Jorge Flores in the 103rd minute. In the final, the game against D.C. United was goalless after 120 minutes and Jorge Rodriguez converted the winning penalty kick for a 5-3 triumph.
Dallas nearly finished at the top of the Western Conference in 1999 as they amassed 51 points, just three fewer than LA Galaxy. In the first round of the play-offs, they played a fantastic series against Chicago Fire. Dallas won the first game at home 2-1 before losing 4-0 in Chicago. In the deciding game, Dallas conceded two goals in the first three minutes in front of a stunned home crowd. Chad Deering then scored in the 55th minute and Dallas tied the game with a penalty kick in the 84th minute. Two minutes later, Ariel Graziani won the game and the series with his second goal. The Burn and LA Galaxy split the first two games of the Western Conference finals as Graziani scored in both games. However, the Galaxy then won the deciding game 3-1 to end the Burn's season. Kries tied for the MLS lead with 18 goals over the course of the campaign and was named MLS MVP.
The 2006 MLS regular season was a success, with 16 wins and 52 points from 32 games. The Toros finished first in the West for the first time but again couldn't get past the Colorado Rapids.
They bounced back in 2010 with a fantastic season that included hosting a friendly against Inter Milan in August. From June 5 through September 4, they won a team-record six straight home games and overall played an MLS-record 19 straight unbeaten from May 27 through October 9. They also set an MLS record of 13 straight away games unbeaten.
The Toros finished second to the Galaxy in the West and qualified for the 2011/12 CONCACAF Champions League. In the MLS Cup play-offs, they beat Real Salt Lake 3-2 on aggregate in the first round and upset LA Galaxy 3-0 in the Western Conference finals. In their first-ever MLS Cup final, FC Dallas faced their play-off nemesis, the Colorado Rapids, in Toronto. David Ferreira (pictured) put the Toros on top in the 35th minute, but the Colorado Rapids tied the game in the 57th minute. A devastating own goal in the 108th minute by George John cost Dallas the title in a 2-1 defeat.
David Ferreira, of Dallas, in action during the 2010 MLS Cup final against Colorado Rapids
Ferreira returned to Brazil before the 2011 season. FC Dallas beat Alianza FC from El Salvador in the CONCACAF Champions League preliminary round to make it to the group stage. Marvin Chavez scored to beat UNAM in the group stage, making FC Dallas the first MLS team to win in Mexico in the Champions League. They finished third in the group and didn't advance thanks to a 3-0 home loss to Toronto FC. In MLS play, the Toros finished fourth in the West and lost in the first play-off game to New York Red Bulls 2-0.
FC Dallas tempted former player Oscar Pareja away from Colorado Rapids to be their new manager. He led the Toros back into the play-offs with a fourth-place finish in the West in 2014. In the Wild Card round, they beat Vancouver Whitecaps 2-1 at home with goals from Tesho Akindele and Michel. In the conference semi-finals, they drew 1-1 and 0-0 against Seattle Sounders, losing on away goals.
Academy director Luchi Gonzalez (pictured) took over as manager for the 2019 season. Among the players guided by Gonzalez in the academy were Weston McKennie and Reggie Cannon. They added Bryan Acosta as a Designated Player before the 2019 season began and made the play-offs with a seventh-place finish in the West. Acosta scored twice in the first-round game, but FC Dallas lost at Seattle 4-3 through a goal in the 113th minute.
Luchi Gonzalez took charge ahead of the 2019 MLS season
FC Dallas have not had many major USMNT or international stars.
Weston McKennie, now of Juventus, once played for FC Dallas
Planet Sport’s Wednesday acca covers Serie A, La Liga, and the Dutch Eredivisie and concludes in the MLS just past midnight.
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A rare point for Inter Miami relieves pressure on Phil Neville, while a shock win for FC Dallas and a 5-0 thumping at New York shakes up the standings.
