Minnesota United FC is an American professional soccer club based in
Saint Paul, Minnesota that plays in the
Western Conference of
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...
. The club began play in
2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
as the league's 22nd club, and replaced the
North American Soccer League (NASL) franchise of the
same name.
The club played its home games at
TCF Bank Stadium, on the campus of the
University of Minnesota in
Minneapolis, for its first two seasons in MLS play. The club began playing in
Saint Paul
Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
(becoming the city's fourth professional sports team, joining the
Minnesota Wild, the
St. Paul Saints
The St. Paul Saints are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and have played their home games at CHS Field since 2015. They prev ...
, and
Minnesota Whitecaps), at
Allianz Field in the Midway neighborhood starting in the spring of 2019.
Minnesota United FC's ownership is led by
Bill McGuire, former CEO of
UnitedHealth Group, and includes other Minnesota sports owners: the Pohlad family, owners of the
Twins; former
Timberwolves owner
Glen Taylor; former
Wild investor Glen Nelson, and his daughter Wendy Carlson Nelson of the
Carlson hospitality company.
History
On March 25, 2015, Major League Soccer commissioner
Don Garber announced Minnesota United as the league's 23rd club and awarded the franchise to a group led by McGuire. The ownership group includes other Minneapolis-St. Paul sports owners, Twins owner Jim Pohlad, Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor, and Wild investor Glen Nelson. They beat out a competing bid by
Minnesota Vikings owners
Mark and
Zygi Wilf (both of whom would later become minority owners of MLS expansion franchise
Nashville SC).
Garber said Minnesota would begin play in 2017 or 2018 – if
Los Angeles FC
Los Angeles Football Club, commonly referred to as LAFC, is an American professional Association football team based in Los Angeles. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The club ...
was not ready to play in 2017, Minnesota would take its place.
The
Twin Cities were previously represented by the
Minnesota Kicks in the top-level
North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1976 to 1981, and later the
Minnesota Strikers in 1984. The Kicks played their home games at Bloomington's
Metropolitan Stadium, while the Strikers played at the
Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome.
The
Minnesota Legislature
The Minnesota Legislature is the bicameral legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota consisting of two houses: the Senate and the House of Representatives. Senators are elected from 67 single-member districts. In order to account for decennia ...
had passed a bill in May 2012 for a
new NFL stadium projected to open by fall 2016 and gave a provision allowing for the Vikings to pursue an MLS franchise, including a five-year exclusive window to host MLS games in the new stadium.
The Wilfs' bid also had the support of Minneapolis Mayor
Betsy Hodges, and Minnesota Senator
Tom Bakk called Major League Soccer to inform them that the state legislature would not be providing financing for a
soccer-specific stadium.
However, Commissioner Garber said that whenever possible, the league preferred a stadium that would be an "outdoor, soccer-specific stadium, 20,000 seats, playing on grass" as opposed to larger, covered venues with artificial turf like U.S. Bank Stadium,
and McGuire had the support of
Hennepin County Commissioner
Mike Opat and at least three members of the
Minneapolis City Council
The Minneapolis City Council is the lawmaking body of Minneapolis. It consists of 13 members, elected from separate wards to four-year terms, via a ranked-choice method. The council structure has been in place since the 1950s. In recent elections ...
.
2017 season
The team played their inaugural Major League Soccer match on March 3, 2017, a 5–1 away defeat to the
Portland Timbers
The Portland Timbers are an American professional men's soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The Timbers have played their home games at P ...
at
Providence Park
Providence Park (formerly Jeld-Wen Field; PGE Park; Civic Stadium; originally Multnomah Stadium; and from 1893 until the stadium was built, Multnomah Field) is an outdoor soccer venue located in the Goose Hollow neighborhood of Portland, Oregon. ...
. The result represented the heaviest defeat by an expansion side making their debut. Previously no MLS expansion team had lost by more than two goals in their first game.
Christian Ramirez scored the team's first MLS goal. The following weekend they played their home opener against fellow expansion team
Atlanta United FC in a snowstorm with an MLS record-low kickoff temperature of . They lost the game 6–1, handing Minnesota more unwanted records including the record defeat of any expansion side and becoming the only team in MLS history to concede five or more in consecutive games. Following a 2–2 draw at the
Colorado Rapids and a 5–2 loss at
New England Revolution, United had conceded 18 goals in their first four games, which is an MLS record through the first six games of a season. The team got its first win in MLS with a 4–2 home victory over
Real Salt Lake on April 1. As the season progressed, so had the team. In the mid-season, Minnesota had acquired Duluth native
Ethan Finlay from
Columbus Crew SC and made other signings to improve on the field. United finished its inaugural MLS season in ninth place in the
Western Conference.
2018 season
MNUFC lost two key players - midfielders
Kevin Molino and
Ethan Finlay - to season-ending knee injuries early in the 2018 season. Shortly before Finlay's injury, the team signed its first
Designated Player;
Darwin Quintero
Carlos Darwin Quintero Villalba (born 19 September 1987) is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Categoría Primera A club América de Cali. Quintero is also known by his nickname of ''El Científico del G ...
joined Minnesota United from Liga MX's
Club América
Club de Fútbol América S.A. de C.V., commonly known as Club América or simply América, is a professional football club based in Mexico City. Nicknamed ''Las Águilas'' (The Eagles), it competes in Liga MX, the top tier of Mexican football ...
. Despite joining the team after five matches had already been played, Quintero led the team for 2018 in both goals (11) and assists (15). On July 4, 2018, Quintero scored a hat trick in a home match versus Toronto FC, the first in Minnesota United's history. Colombian forward
Ángelo Rodríguez joined the club as its second
Designated Player later in the season. MNUFC averaged nearly 24,000 fans per match during its second year at TCF Bank Stadium, including a crowd of 52,242 at the final match in their temporary home. The team managed 10 wins at home, but struggled on the road with only one victory.
2019 season
MNUFC made substantial roster additions prior to the 2019 season, including its third
Designated Player, midfielder
Ján Greguš
Ján Greguš (born 29 January 1991) is a Slovak professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for the Slovakia national team.
Club career
Greguš began playing football at the hometown club Nitra. On 20 May 2009, he made his senior debut in ...
from
F.C. Copenhagen; 2017 MLS Defender of the Year
Ike Opara
Ikenna Martin "Ike" Opara (;born February 21, 1989) is an American former soccer player who is currently an assistant coach for Sporting Kansas City II in MLS Next Pro.
Career
College and amateur
Opara played college soccer at Wake Forest Uni ...
, traded from
Sporting KC; longtime
Seattle Sounders defensive midfielder
Osvaldo Alonso; Ligue 2 defender
Romain Métanire
Romain Métanire (born 28 March 1990) is a professional footballer who plays as a defender. He has previously played in France for FC Metz and Stade de Reims, with whom he won Ligue 2 in 2017–18, as well as in Belgium with KV Kortrijk. Born i ...
; and goalkeeper
Vito Mannone, loaned from
Reading F.C.
After beginning the 2019 season with five matches on the road, MNUFC played their first match at the new
Allianz Field on April 13, earning a 3–3 draw versus New York City FC. The team went on to post 10 wins, 6 draws and 2 losses at home. MNUFC's performance on the road was vastly improved in 2019, posting 5 wins and 2 draws including a 2-0 statement win at
LAFC
Los Angeles Football Club, commonly referred to as LAFC, is an American professional Association football team based in Los Angeles. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The club ...
on September 1.
The club made a very successful run in the
2019 U.S. Open Cup
The 2019 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup was the 106th edition of the U.S. Open Cup, a knockout cup competition in American soccer. It is the oldest ongoing competition in the United States, and was contested by 84 teams from leagues in the U.S. syste ...
. On August 27, the club traveled to Mercedes Benz Stadium to take on Atlanta United in the Cup final, Minnesota's first final appearance since joining MLS. The match resulted in a 2–1 Atlanta victory.
MNUFC finished fourth in the
Western Conference, after placing as high as second late in the regular season. As a result, the club was awarded a spot in the 2020
Leagues Cup. MNUFC played in its first MLS playoff match, hosting the
LA Galaxy
LA Galaxy, also known as the Los Angeles Galaxy, are an American professional soccer club based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Galaxy competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), as a member of the Western Conference. The club began pl ...
on October 20; the result was a 2–1 defeat.
Two players received league-wide honors at the conclusion of the season.
Ike Opara
Ikenna Martin "Ike" Opara (;born February 21, 1989) is an American former soccer player who is currently an assistant coach for Sporting Kansas City II in MLS Next Pro.
Career
College and amateur
Opara played college soccer at Wake Forest Uni ...
was named 2019
MLS Defender of the Year, winning the award for the second time.
Vito Mannone, who earned 11 cleansheets and conceded only 43 goals, was named 2019
MLS Goalkeeper of the Year.
2020 season
After the 2019 season, Minnesota United traded
Darwin Quintero
Carlos Darwin Quintero Villalba (born 19 September 1987) is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Categoría Primera A club América de Cali. Quintero is also known by his nickname of ''El Científico del G ...
to the
Houston Dynamo
Houston Dynamo FC (formerly officially, but still commonly, called the Houston Dynamo) is an American professional soccer club based in Houston. The Dynamo compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Establi ...
for midfielder
Marlon Hairston and $600,000 in allocation money. Upon the end of goalkeeper Vito Mannone's loan, Minnesota United brought in
Tyler Miller (soccer) via trade with
Los Angeles FC
Los Angeles Football Club, commonly referred to as LAFC, is an American professional Association football team based in Los Angeles. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The club ...
to take the starting job. Prior to the season, MNUFC added a number of players including striker
Luis Amarilla
Luis Antonio Amarilla Lencina (born 25 August 1995) is a Paraguayan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Liga MX club Mazatlán.
International career
He made his debut for the Paraguay national football team on 2 September 2021 i ...
via loan from
Club Atlético Vélez Sarsfield.
The Loons got off to an excellent start for 2020 with two convincing road wins at the
Portland Timbers
The Portland Timbers are an American professional men's soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The Timbers have played their home games at P ...
and
San Jose Earthquakes
The San Jose Earthquakes are an American professional soccer team based in San Jose, California. The Earthquakes compete as a member club of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). Originally as the San Jose Clash, the franchise ...
in March, before
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...
suspended its season due to the COVID-19 epidemic, first for 30 days and then indefinitely as the severity of the epidemic became clearer.
The 2020 season restarted in July with the league's
MLS is Back Tournament, held in Orlando, Florida and including 24 of the league's 26 teams. The month-long tournament included a group stage, counted as part of the regular season standings; and a knockout stage. The Loons finished second in Group D, with one win and two draws. In the knockout stage, MNUFC defeated the
Columbus Crew 1–1 on penalty kicks and the
San Jose Earthquakes
The San Jose Earthquakes are an American professional soccer team based in San Jose, California. The Earthquakes compete as a member club of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). Originally as the San Jose Clash, the franchise ...
4–1, before losing to
Orlando City SC
Orlando City SC is an American professional soccer club in Orlando, Florida, that competes as a member of the Eastern Conference in Major League Soccer (MLS). Orlando City SC began play in 2015 as the 21st franchise in MLS, succeeding the USL ...
in the tournament semifinal.
Following the tournament, the 2020 season resumed normal match play, with a planned schedule of 18 matches ending on November 8. The Loons continued to add players, with midfielder
Emanuel Reynoso joining the club from
Boca Juniors
Club Atlético Boca Juniors () is an Argentine sports club headquartered in La Boca, a neighbourhood of Buenos Aires. The club is mostly known for its professional football team which, since its promotion in 1913, has always played in the A ...
as a Designated Player, and veteran forward
Kei Kamara joining via trade from the
Colorado Rapids.
MNUFC finished the regular season in fourth place in the MLS Western Conference. They hosted their second playoff match in franchise history, defeating the
Colorado Rapids 3–0 at Allianz Field, then went on to defeat No. 1 seeded
Sporting Kansas City
Sporting Kansas City, often shortened to Sporting KC, is an American men's professional Association football, soccer club based in the Kansas City metropolitan area. The administrative offices are located in Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, and t ...
3–0 on the road. The Loons then traveled to Seattle for the Western Conference final match against the
Sounders. Despite leading 2-0 at the 75th minute, Seattle scored three straight late goals, including the winner in stoppage time to end Minnesota's historic run.
2021 season
Although they had been minutes from advancing to the MLS Cup final in 2020, the 2021 season got off to a disappointing start, with four straight losses. In mid May, the Loons began to quickly climb from the bottom of the table, losing only two of their next seventeen games. Key players returned from injury and the squad signed Argentinian
Franco Fragapane
Franco Rodrigo Fragapane (born 6 February 1993) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a winger for Major League Soccer club Minnesota United.
Club career
Born in Las Heras, Mendoza, Fragapane joined Boca Juniors' youth setup in 2 ...
and Frenchman
Adrien Hunou
Adrien Hunou (born 19 January 1994) is a French professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder and forward for club Angers. He has represented France at youth level, having played for the under-18, under-19, and under-20 teams. ...
. They ended the regular season in fifth place, earning an opening round playoff berth on the road against the
Portland Timbers
The Portland Timbers are an American professional men's soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The Timbers have played their home games at P ...
, but their season was ended with a 3-1 Portland victory.
2022 season
2022 saw the breakout of goalkeeper
Dayne St. Clair
Dayne Tristan St. Clair (born May 9, 1997) is a Canadian professional association football, soccer player who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for Major League Soccer club Minnesota United FC, Minnesota United and the Ca ...
who anchored an impressive 8-save shutout against the
New York Red Bulls in his week 3 debut. The Loons had a solid first half of the season going 8-6-3 in the first 17 games. In the
2022 U.S. Open Cup Minnesota fell to
USL League One side
Union Omaha 2-1 in a notable upset. Midfield
DP Emanuel Reynoso joined St. Clair in the
2022 MLS All-Star Game
The 2022 Major League Soccer All-Star Game was the 26th annual Major League Soccer All-Star Game, an exhibition soccer match in the United States. The game, featuring all-star teams from Major League Soccer (MLS) and Liga MX, took place on Augus ...
which was hosted at Allianz Field.
The second half of the season saw Minnesota struggle to find their footing with a 6-game winless streak going into the final 2 games of the season. Minnesota finally won a make-or-break game against the
Vancouver Whitecaps decision day to clinch the 6th seed in the
2022 MLS Cup Playoffs, making them the only team in the western conference to qualify for the playoffs 4 years in a row. After finishing 120 minutes tied 1-1, MNUFC was knocked out of the playoffs in a (5)-(4) shootout against
FC Dallas.
Colors and badge
The badge features a stylized
loon
Loons (North American English) or divers (British / Irish English) are a group of aquatic birds found in much of North America and northern Eurasia. All living species of loons are members of the genus ''Gavia'', family Gaviidae and order Gavi ...
, which is the
state bird A state bird is the insignia of a nation or a state (sub-national entity).
For lists of these animals, see:
* List of national birds, national birds on country level
* List of Australian bird emblems, for the Australian states
* List of Brazilian ...
of
Minnesota, with eleven spread feathers, one for each of the players on the field. The team's colors are gray, sky blue, and black, with a red accent. The blue line across the logo represents the Mississippi River. The two sides of the blue represent the cities of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. The gray color represents the Iron Range of Minnesota. The upward pointing crest and the North Star were inspired by ''L'Etoile du Nord'' which is the state motto.
Zeus Jones created the designs.
Kit suppliers and shirt sponsors
Club culture
Minnesota United's mascot is PK, a
loon
Loons (North American English) or divers (British / Irish English) are a group of aquatic birds found in much of North America and northern Eurasia. All living species of loons are members of the genus ''Gavia'', family Gaviidae and order Gavi ...
. PK has been the club mascot since mid-2014. The two main supporter groups of Minnesota United FC are Dark Clouds and True North Elite, although the overarching organization "MNWonderwall" includes affiliated groups the Red Loons and Dark Glitterati as well. In early 2019, Wonderwall founded "THUNDERWALL", a coalition drumline permanently affixed in Allianz Field that provides percussion to support chants in the Wonderwall section during match days.
Fans of Minnesota United sing the
Oasis
In ecology, an oasis (; ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment'ksar''with its surrounding feeding source, the palm grove, within a relational and circulatory nomadic system.”
The location of oases has been of critical imp ...
song "
Wonderwall" after all home victories.
Stadium
McGuire stated a desire to build an 18,500-seat, outdoor soccer-specific stadium next to the Minneapolis Farmers Market in downtown Minneapolis.
At the time of the club's launch, the league did not give any timeline for the stadium plan, but said it was working on finalizing a plan by July 1, 2015, the deadline set by the league.
Minnesota Governor
Mark Dayton said he would oppose a publicly financed stadium, but said he would not oppose ancillary support for infrastructure reinforcements.
In a plan released in April 2015, the ownership showed a projected cost for the stadium of $250 million: $100 million for MLS expansion fee, $30 million for land acquisition, and $120 million for construction.
The ownership group met with Governor Dayton and other state political leaders to share the plan. The group asked the politicians for a sales tax exemption of up to $3 million on construction materials, as well as breaks or caps on city and county property taxes for the stadium site. The tax relief could potentially add up to around $50 million.
The day after the meeting, Mayor Hodges said she opposed the sales tax and property tax exemption because unlike other stadiums in Minneapolis that have received similar breaks, Minnesota United's stadium would be privately owned. The following week, the
Minnesota Senate voted 61–4 to prevent any state funds or tax expenditures from being used for the stadium, although the vote was termed "largely symbolic" as McGuire had not asked for state funds and the bill would not prevent the team from seeking city or county funds. McGuire later said that he would be open to signing the property over to
Minneapolis,
Hennepin County, or another public entity if that would make property tax exemption possible.
Although the July 1 deadline passed without a stadium deal, and the plan for a Downtown Minneapolis stadium was the primary reason for choosing McGuire's group, league deputy commissioner Mark Abbott said Minnesota was still considered an expansion site, partly because of interest from the neighboring
St. Paul. Later that month, St. Paul mayor
Chris Coleman spoke to Abbott proposed building on a city-owned vacant lot that formerly housed the
Metro Transit bus barn near
Interstate 94
Interstate 94 (I-94) is an east–west Interstate Highway connecting the Great Lakes and northern Great Plains regions of the United States. Its western terminus is just east of Billings, Montana, at a junction with I-90; its eastern ter ...
.
On August 31, 2015, the team's deal for an exclusive right to purchase industrial land near the Farmer's Market expired with no public statement about any extension of the deal.
On September 8, 2015, the
Ramsey County Board of Commissioners passed a non-binding resolution to support the stadium's construction on the St. Paul bus barn site, provided the design and construction are paid for by private funds.
On October 23, 2015, it was announced that Minnesota United would build a stadium on the 35-acre St. Paul Bus Barn site. The proposed stadium will seat approximately 20,000 and will be privately financed.
On November 25, 2015, Minnesota United FC hired
Populous to design the stadium.
On December 9, 2015, the team hired Mortenson Construction as part of the stadium construction along with Populous.
On February 24, 2016, the team revealed design plans for their 21,500-seat soccer-specific stadium, set to be built by 2018 and financed privately by the team.
On July 25, 2017, the stadium's name was announced as Allianz Field,
which opened in March 2019.
On August 19, 2016, it was announced that Minnesota United would play in the
2017 Major League Soccer season
The 2017 Major League Soccer season was the 22nd season of Major League Soccer, top division of soccer in the United States and Canada. The regular season began on March 3, 2017 and concluded on October 22, 2017. The MLS Cup Playoffs began on O ...
, with home matches at
TCF Bank Stadium.
The stadium had been home to the club for 2017–2018 while their soccer-specific stadium was in construction.
Players and staff
Roster
Management
Coaching staff
*
Adrian Heath – head coach
*
Ian Fuller
Ian Fuller (born August 31, 1979) is a former American soccer player who currently serves as an assistant coach for Minnesota United FC.
Career
Youth and college
Fuller grew up in Tualatin, Oregon, and attended Tualatin High School where he ...
– assistant coach
*
Sean McAuley
Sean McAuley (born 23 June 1972) is an English football manager and former player who serves as the interim manager for Major League Soccer club Minnesota United FC. Born in England, he made one appearance for the Scotland U21 national team. ...
– assistant coach
*
Stewart Kerr
James Stewart Robert Kerr (born 13 November 1974) is a Scottish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper for Celtic, Swindon Town, Brighton and Wigan Athletic. Kerr was forced into early retirement at the age of 27 due to a back ...
– goalkeeping coach
Technical staff
*
Manny Lagos – chief soccer officer
*
Mark Watson – technical director
* Stacey Hardin – senior director of player health and performance
*
Amos Magee – director of player personnel
Front office
* Dr.
Bill McGuire – managing director
* Shari Ballard – chief executive officer
* Bryant Pfieffer – executive vice president, chief revenue officer
* Maureen Smith – executive vice president, chief operating officer
* Sara Daggett – executive vice president, general counsel
* John Guagliano – senior vice president, marketing and communications
* Maureen Smith – senior vice president, corporate partnership sales and activation
* Justin Borrell – general manager, Allianz field
Team records
List of seasons
For the full season-by-season history, see
List of Minnesota United FC seasons Minnesota United FC refers to two iterations of a club based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The club originally began play as NSC Minnesota Stars in 2010 and rebranded as Minnesota United FC (2010–2016) in 2013. The team played its first year in the ...
.
1. Avg. Attendance include statistics from league matches only.
2. Top Goalscorer(s) includes all goals scored in League, Playoffs, U.S. Open Cup
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, commonly known as the U.S. Open Cup (USOC), is a Single-elimination tournament, knockout cup competition in men's Soccer in the United States, soccer in the United States of America. It is the oldest ongoing nati ...
, MLS is Back Tournament, CONCACAF Champions League
The CONCACAF Champions League, known officially as the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons, is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONCACAF. The tournament is contested by clubs from North Ameri ...
, FIFA Club World Cup
The FIFA Club World Cup is an international men's association football competition organised by the ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The competition was first contested in 200 ...
, and other competitive continental matches.
Record vs. international opponents
Honors
*
US Open Cup
**Runners-up (1):
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
Broadcasting
All non-nationally broadcast Minnesota United games were broadcast locally on
WFTC for the
2017 Major League Soccer season
The 2017 Major League Soccer season was the 22nd season of Major League Soccer, top division of soccer in the United States and Canada. The regular season began on March 3, 2017 and concluded on October 22, 2017. The MLS Cup Playoffs began on O ...
, then moved to
Bally Sports North and
Bally Sports Wisconsin
Bally Sports Wisconsin (BSWI) is an American regional sports network owned by Diamond Sports Group, and operates as an affiliate of Bally Sports. Operating as the "Wisconsin" sub-feed of Fox Sports North until 2007, the channel was known as Fox S ...
in the 2018 season (which were then named at the time as Fox Sports North and Fox Sports Wisconsin respectively). For the
2021 Major League Soccer season
The 2021 Major League Soccer season was the 26th season of Major League Soccer (MLS), the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. The 2021 season included the addition of Austin FC as an expansion club, which took the ...
,
WUCW became the over-the-air home of Minnesota United, airing 16 matches as simulcasts from Bally Sports North.
KSTP serves as the team's radio partner.
Minnesota United's commentary team features Callum Williams as the play-by-play commentator. Williams had previously worked for
Sporting Kansas City
Sporting Kansas City, often shortened to Sporting KC, is an American men's professional Association football, soccer club based in the Kansas City metropolitan area. The administrative offices are located in Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, and t ...
when they were known as the Kansas City Wizards and during their rebrand as Sporting Kansas City. He has also worked in his native UK for notable broadcasters including the
BBC and
Sky Sports. Williams is joined in the commentary box by
Kyndra de St. Aubin
Kyndra de St. Aubin (née Hesse) is an American sports broadcaster who is the color commentary announcer for broadcasts of Major League Soccer on Apple TV. Previously she worked as a color commentator for Minnesota United, where she was the firs ...
who provides color commentary. De St. Aubin, a
Stillwater native, is the only female color commentator currently covering
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...
. Prior to joining Minnesota United's broadcast team, she worked across the country covering many men's and women's soccer games at college and professional levels. She also covered the
2015 FIFA Women's World Cup
The 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup was the seventh FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international soccer championship contested by the women's national teams of the member associations of FIFA. The tournament was hosted by Canada for the ...
as part of the five broadcast teams that covered that tournament.
References
External links
*
{{Portal bar, Association football, United States
Sports in Blaine, Minnesota
Soccer clubs in Minneapolis–Saint Paul
Association football clubs established in 2015
2015 establishments in Minnesota
Major League Soccer teams
Sports in Saint Paul, Minnesota