6 February 1996 - The Wizard Of Kansas City

On 6 February 1996, Kansas City acquired the rights to former Everton and Portsmouth winger Preki, who went on to become the club's career leader in goals and assists.

The 32-year old Yugoslav-born American international, whose full name is Predrag Radosavljević, had played for a number of different clubs, including Red Star Belgrade and three different American indoor soccer teams, before joining Kansas City for the first MLS season. Despite a mid-table finish, they managed to reach the conference finals in the playoffs, while Preki shined as their star, scoring a team-high 18 goals that year.

He was the league MVP the following year, leading Kansas City to the top of the Western Conference table while individually finishing as the league's scoring champion (based on a combination of goals and assists in which the former were worth two points and the latter one). In 2000, the team finished with the best regular-season record and won the the MLS Cup.

After spending the 2001 season with Miami, he returned to Kansas City in 2002 and the next year was again the scoring champion and league MVP. (He rejoined Kansas City in a supplemental draft after Miami folded, but only after every other team in the league declined to sign him).

He retired from playing after the 2005 season, but moved quickly into management, joining Chivas USA as an assistant in 2006 and taking full rein of the club in 2007. Chivas won the conference that year, leading to Preki being named the MLS Coach of the Year. By 2009, however, the club was struggling, which led to his departure and a brief but unsuccessful spell in charge of Toronto in 2010, the same year he was inducted into the US Soccer Hall of Fame.

13 December 2006 - The Passing Of An American Pioneer

On 13 December 2006, American soccer pioneer Lamar Hunt passed away in Dallas. He was 74 years old.

Heir to an oil fortune, Hunt was an enthusiastic supporter of both both soccer and American football. In 1959, after being turned down for a National Football League franchise, he helped found the rival American Football League and formed his own team, the Dallas Texans. He later moved the team to Kansas City, renaming them as the Chiefs, and they eventually joined the NFL when the two leagues merged in 1970. 

His interest in soccer was sparked by a 1962 trip to Ireland, where he took in a Shamrock Rovers match. Five years later, he helped establish the North American Soccer League and founded the Dallas Tornado, who went on to win the league title in 1971.

After the demise of the NASL, Hunt continued to promote the sport in the US. He was one of the driving forces behind the creation of Major League Soccer, which debuted in 1996 with two Hunt-owned teams, the Columbus Crew and the Kansas City Wizards. In 2003, he acquired a third team, FC Dallas and owned all three until his death.

He received several honors and awards over the course of his life, including induction into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1992 and the placement of his statute outside the Columbus Crew Stadium. In 1999, the U.S. Soccer Federation renamed the U.S. Open Cup in his honor. Now known as the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, it is the country's longest-running soccer competition.

13 December 2006 - The Passing Of An American Pioneer

On 13 December 2006, American soccer pioneer Lamar Hunt passed away in Dallas. He was 74 years old.

Heir to an oil fortune, Hunt was an enthusiastic supporter of both both soccer and American football. In 1959, after being turned down for a National Football League franchise, he helped found the rival American Football League and formed his own team, the Dallas Texans. He later moved the team to Kansas City, renaming them as the Chiefs, and they eventually joined the NFL when the two leagues merged in 1970. 

His interest in soccer was sparked by a 1962 trip to Ireland, where he took in a Shamrock Rovers match. Five years later, he helped establish the North American Soccer League and founded the Dallas Tornado, who went on to win the league title in 1971.

After the demise of the NASL, Hunt continued to promote the sport in the US. He was one of the driving forces behind the creation of Major League Soccer, which debuted in 1996 with two Hunt-owned teams, the Columbus Crew and the Kansas City Wizards. In 2003, he acquired a third team, FC Dallas and owned all three until his death.

He received several honors and awards over the course of his life, including induction into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1992 and the placement of his statute outside the Columbus Crew Stadium. In 1999, the U.S. Soccer Federation renamed the U.S. Open Cup in his honor. Now known as the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, it is the country's longest-running soccer competition.

15 October 2000 - There's A Saying About Defense And Championships

On 15 October 2000, Kansas City won the MLS Cup over Chicago in a battle of the league's stingiest defense against its most powerful offense.

The two teams ended the season level on points at the top of the table, with Kansas City conceding a league-low 29 goals and Chicago scoring a league-high 67. Kansas City claimed the top spot, however, with a goal differential of +18 to Chicago's +16.

They met at RFK Stadium in Washington for the MLS Cup Final, where Kansas City took an early 1-0 lead with an eleventh-minute goal from Danish striker Miklos Molnar, who had joined them from Sevilla earlier that year and was making his last appearance before retiring. Chicago, led by the season's top scorer Ante Razov, pressed forward in search of an equalizer, but were constantly stymied by the Kansas City defense and goalkeeper Tony Meola, who had kept an MLS-best twenty clean sheets through the season, including four in the MLS Cup playoffs.

Despite a flurry of Chicago chances in the last ten minutes, Kansas City held firm to notch their twenty-first shutout of the year. Meola, who had already won the league's most valuable player, best goalkeeper, and comeback player of the year awards, was named the MLS Cup MVP as well.

17 September 2005 - Never Too Old To Lend A Hand (Or Foot)

On 17 September 2005, Preki simultaneously became MLS's oldest assist provider and Kansas City's all-time assist leader when he helped them earn a 2-2 draw with Los Angeles.

The 42-year old striker was in his ninth season with Kansas City. He first joined them in 1996, then left in 2001 for a season with Miami before returning to the Wizards in 2002. During his time there, he won the MLS Cup in 2000 and the US Open Cup in 2003, and was twice named the league's MVP, in 1997 and 2003. To date, he remains the only player to win that award more than once.

In 2005, however, the team was struggling and by September looked unlikely to make the MLS playoffs. The Galaxy were still hopeful of reaching the postseason and took a substantial step toward that goal by going up 0-2 against Kansas City at Arrowhead Stadium with goals from Chris Albright (26') and Hercules Gomez (36').

The margin held until the 81st minute, when Davy Arnaud headed home from a corner kick. Five minutes later, Preki provided his record-setting assist to Josh Wolff, who equalized with another header. Preki's precise age was 42 years and 85 days, which remains an MLS record. It was also his 98th career assist for Kansas City, a club record.

Unfortunately for Kansas City, the draw did not help them reach the playoffs. Los Angeles did make it, though, and went on to win the MLS Cup over New England, 1-0.

6 February 1996 - The Wizard Of Kansas City

On 6 February 1996, Kansas City acquired the rights to former Everton and Portsmouth winger Preki, who went on to become the club's career leader in goals and assists.

The 32-year old Yugoslav-born American international, whose full name is Predrag Radosavljević, had played for a number of different clubs, including Red Star Belgrade and three different American indoor soccer teams, before joining Kansas City for the first MLS season. Despite a mid-table finish, they managed to reach the conference finals in the playoffs, while Preki shined as their star, scoring a team-high 18 goals that year.

He was the league MVP the following year, leading Kansas City to the top of the Western Conference table while individually finishing as the league's scoring champion (based on a combination of goals and assists in which the former were worth two points and the latter one). In 2000, the team finished with the best regular-season record and won the the MLS Cup.

After spending the 2001 season with Miami, he returned to Kansas City in 2002 and the next year was again the scoring champion and league MVP. (He rejoined Kansas City in a supplemental draft after Miami folded, but only after every other team in the league declined to sign him).

He retired from playing after the 2005 season, but moved quickly into management, joining Chivas USA as an assistant in 2006 and taking full rein of the club in 2007. Chivas won the conference that year, leading to Preki being named the MLS Coach of the Year. By 2009, however, the club was struggling, which led to his departure and a brief but unsuccessful spell in charge of Toronto in 2010, the same year he was inducted into the US Soccer Hall of Fame.

13 December 2006 - The Passing Of An American Pioneer

On 13 December 2006, American soccer pioneer Lamar Hunt passed away in Dallas. He was 74 years old.

Heir to an oil fortune, Hunt was an enthusiastic supporter of both both soccer and American football. In 1959, after being turned down for a National Football League franchise, he helped found the rival American Football League and formed his own team, the Dallas Texans. He later moved the team to Kansas City, renaming them as the Chiefs, and they eventually joined the NFL when the two leagues merged in 1970.

His interest in soccer was sparked by a 1962 trip to Ireland, where he took in a Shamrock Rovers match. Five years later, he helped establish the North American Soccer League and founded the Dallas Tornado, who went on to win the league title in 1971.

After the demise of the NASL, Hunt continued to promote the sport in the US. He was one of the driving forces behind the creation of Major League Soccer, which debuted in 1996 with two Hunt-owned teams, the Columbus Crew and the Kansas City Wizards. In 2003, he acquired a third team, FC Dallas and owned all three until his death.

He received several honors and awards over the course of his life, including induction into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1992 and the placement of his statute outside the Columbus Crew Stadium. In 1999, the U.S. Soccer Federation renamed the U.S. Open Cup in his honor. Now known as the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, it is the country's longest-running soccer competition.

27 July 1994 - The Second Coming Of Barbarossa

On 27 July 1994, defender Alexi Lalas signed with Serie A side Padova, becoming the first American in the modern era to play in Italy's top flight.

Lalas rose to national prominence while playing for Rutgers University, leading them to the NCAA Championship Game in 1990. In 1991, he was named a First Team All American and also won both the Hermann Trophy and the Missouri Athletic Club Player of the Year award.

After graduating from Rutgers in 1991, Lalas did not sign with a club and played exclusively for the United States national team. Between 1991 and 1998, he earned 96 caps and scored 9 goals for the national side.

A charismatic and colorful character, with his trademark long red hair and a beard, Lalas achieved near-celebrity status during the 1994 World Cup. He started and played every minute in the US's four matches, until they were eliminated by eventual winners Brazil in the first knockout round.

Lalas' performance in the World Cup drew the attention of Padova, who had just been promoted to Serie A for the 1994-95 season. Padova finished at the bottom of the table in 1995, but won a relegation playoff to remain in the top flight. At the end of that season, Lalas signed a contract with MLS to play in the new league's inaugural season, but MLS had to delay its start until 1996, so it loaned Lalas back to Padova for the 1995-96 season.

In 1996, Lalas signed for the New England Revolution, where he played until December 1997 (including a brief period on loan with Ecuadorian side Emelec). He spent the next several years with various MLS clubs, including the NY/NJ Metrostars, Kansas City Wizards, and Los Angeles Galaxy.

After his playing career ended, Lalas spent time as a broadcaster as well as serving as the general manager of the San Jose Earthquakes, Metrostars/Red Bulls, and the Galaxy.