By BILL REESE

Staff Writer

On Saturday, the New York Red Bulls will play a regular season match against Crew SC at Mapfre Stadium in Columbus. It will likely be an inconsequential match during a long and brutal regular season in an ever-tightening Eastern Conference.

From another angle, however, it will be a unique milestone for the 19-year-old MLS franchise. On Saturday, the franchise will play its 352nd match as the New York Red Bulls (or Red Bull New York)—the same total number of matches the franchise played while known as the MetroStars.

In 10 seasons from 1996–2005, the MetroStars (NY/NJ or otherwise) played in 352 matches in the MLS regular season, playoffs, Open Cup, and continental competitions—I count the Copa Mecronorte and CONCACAF Champions League. I do not count the La Manga Cup, international friendlies, or preseason matches.

The Metros amassed a record of 146 wins, 167 losses, and 39 draws. Sure you could say that 11 of those wins came in the shootout and overtime eras of MLS, but a win is a win is a win.

All Time Records

TOTAL REG.

SEASON PLAYOFFS OPEN CUP CONT’L WIN LOSS DRAW WIN LOSS DRAW WIN LOSS DRAW WIN LOSS WIN LOSS DRAW MetroStars 146 167 39 125 146 35 6 12 1 12 9 3 0 3 Red Bulls 129 123 99 113 102 89 5 10 7 10 9 1 2 3

Counting Wednesday night’s Open Cup win, the Red Bulls have 129 wins, 123 losses, and 99 draws. Viewed another way, the MetroStars won 37% of all available points in their 352 matches wearing red and black. The Bulls have won 46% of all available points in their 352 matches wearing red and white.

Of course, those statistics are a bit misleading, if only because of the way that the MLS standings (and point distribution) evolved from the birth of the league to the present day. Assuming all games from 1996–2003 ended in a draw after 90 minutes with no extracurriculars to decide the winner, the Metros would have won 135, lost 158 and drew 59, good for 44% of all available points.

The MetroStars history is all but ancient at this point, and after Saturday, it will be the minority of history for the franchise. Many look upon the Metro era as lackluster, but now that Red Bull has equaled the number of matches played, the Austrian ownership can’t really say that they have vastly improved the club they re-branded overnight in 2006, at least in wins, losses, and draws.

Both incarnations of the club reached one cup final—The MetroStars’ 2003 Open Cup loss and the Red Bulls’ 2008 MLS Cup loss. The Red Bulls have the franchise’s only major trophy, the 2013 Supporters Shield, which—while sacrosanct to the long time die-hards—has to be viewed through the prism of a complete late-season collapse of the 2013 Sounders.

Red Bull built the best stadium for the sport in this country, but have had trouble filling it despite fielding five consecutive playoff-bound sides. For all the investment Dietrich Mateschitz has put into the club, earning 46% of available points and 1 out of 29 possible trophies is not a good enough return on investment.

Now that the histories are even, one can take a few steps back and objectively view the two franchises evenly. The two histories are not all that dissimilar. Both are disproportionately inept considering their resources. Both have squandered every opportunity and advantage provided to them. Both failed to capture the widespread adoration of the local sports landscape.

The only difference is that, for the time being at least, Red Bull is the only monicker that can add to its history — something the MetroStars no longer can.

History, as the old adage goes, is written by the victors—a status that this franchise has all-too-frequently fallen short of.