

In late October of 1996 Major League Soccer was reaching the climax of its first season. A league in its infancy, the inception of MLS came after the 1994 World Cup bidding committee promised to setup a domestic league if they were successful. Holding just 10 teams, divided by two conferences, it had managed to survive the perils and pitfalls of its debut campaign and now stood one step from completing an entire season by awarding the first ever MLS Cup, to either D.C. United or the Los Angeles Galaxy.

“The game was in doubt actually because there was heavy rain and there was power lines that were down,” recalls L.A. Galaxy’s Jorge Salcedo.

Talk of hurricane-like conditions in Foxborough, Massachusetts, where the game would be held were not an exaggeration. The pitch at Foxboro Stadium had been subject to a barrage of rain in the days leading up to the match, with some journalists even describing it as a ‘muddy bog’ in their reports.

“The weather was incredible,” then D.C. United head coach Bruce Arena says. “I’ve never been part of a game where it has rained so much. The field was partially flooded and we played on what was an NFL field. Given the weather, the quality of the game was outstanding. It didn’t have the build-up to MLS Cup finals we have today, but it was on par with any MLS Cup final we’ve had since.”

In fact the conditions were so bad that postponing the game became a real possibility. “I just convinced myself this game was going to go ahead,” D.C. United defender Eddie Pope recalls, as news filtered through that game was on, then off, then back on again. “Once we showed up to the stadium, the stands were packed and people still attended.”

Playing in the presence of just over 34,000 fans, drenched to the bone, the focus quickly shifted to how the teams would adapt to the conditions. “It wasn’t about style or possession it was more about how do we not take the high risk in our own end,” FC Cincinnati head coach and former D.C. United midfielder John Harkes explains. “A game like that was always going to be a massive challenge and for us it was about being efficient.”

As the match started, a frenetic pace ensued with the pitch an added obstacle. Then four minutes in, disaster for D.C. United. A deep cross from the right hand side by Mauricio Cienfuegos floated over the DCU defence and on to the head of Eduardo ‘El Tanque’ Hurtado - 1-0 to the Galaxy. “The first thing you think is, there’s plenty of time,” Pope says. “We can claw our way back into this thing, just don’t give up another one.”

Still feeling confident, D.C. United had good reason to trust themselves after recovering from a poor start to the season to make the final. “I remember after 11 games we were like three wins and eight losses,” Harkes explains. “There was always that kind of confidence about us that it was going to come together eventually if we kept at it. We had good players, good coaching and a good environment and so having that adversity in the beginning of the season helps you in the final.”

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Knowing they would have to contest with Mother Nature’s influence, D.C. United tried to get back into the game through Bolivian playmaker Marco Etcheverry. A classic number 10, many had expected him to shine at the World Cup in the United States just two years prior. Instead he would be remembered for lashing out at Germany’s Lothar Matthäus moments after entering the field as a substitute; his last contribution to the tournament.

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