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{{Infobox football club
| clubname = Sporting Kansas City
| image = [[File:Sportingkansascity.png|175px]]
| fullname = Sporting Kansas City <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.insightkc.com/sportingbrand/index.html |title=Explore The New Brand at Sporting Kansas City Website |publisher=Insightkc.com |date= |accessdate=2011-12-03}}</ref>
| nickname = ''Sporting, Sporting KC, Wizards, The Wiz, SKC<br/>Swope Park Rangers (reserves)''
| founded = 1995 (as ''Kansas City Wiz'')
| dissolved =
| ground = [[Livestrong Sporting Park]]<br>[[Kansas City, Kansas]]
| capacity = 18,467
| chrtitle = Owner
| chairman = [[Sporting Club]]
| mgrtitle = Head Coach
| manager = [[Peter Vermes]]
| league = [[Major League Soccer]]
| season = [[2011 Major League Soccer season|2011]]
| position = Eastern Conference: 1st<br>Overall: 5th<br>Playoffs: Conference Finals
| website = http://www.sportingkc.com/
| American = true
| current = 2012 Sporting Kansas City season
| pattern_la1 = _SPORTING_11h
| pattern_b1 = _SPORTING_11h
| pattern_ra1 = _SPORTING_11h
| pattern_sh1 = _SPORTING_11h
| pattern_so1 = _3_stripes_black
| leftarm1 = FFFFFF
| body1 = FFFFFF
| rightarm1 = FFFFFF
| shorts1 = FFFFFF
| socks1 = 9DBCD9
| pattern_la2 = _SPORTING_11a
| pattern_b2 = _SPORTING_11a
| pattern_ra2 = _SPORTING_11a
| pattern_sh2 = _SPORTING_11a
| pattern_so2 = _3_stripes_sky
| leftarm2 = FFFFFF
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}}
'''Sporting Kansas City''' is an American professional [[Association football|soccer]] club based in [[Kansas City, Kansas]]. The club is a member of the Eastern Conference of [[Major League Soccer]]. The club is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, having competed in the league since its inception.

For the majority of its first 15 years of existence the team was known as the '''Kansas City Wizards'''. The team was renamed in November 2010, coinciding with its move to a new stadium, Livestrong Sporting Park.<ref>{{cite web|author=POSTED: 4:20 pm CST November 17, 2010 |url=http://www.kmbc.com/sports/25830310/detail.html |title=Kansas City Wizards Change Name To Sporting Kansas City |publisher=Kmbc.com |date=2010-11-17 |accessdate=2011-12-03}}</ref> The club won both the [[MLS Cup]] and the [[MLS Supporters' Shield]] in 2000, and the [[Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup]] in 2004 and 2012.

==History==
===The early years: 1996–1999===
[[Lamar Hunt]], who was founder or co-founder of the [[American Football League]], the [[Kansas City Chiefs]], the [[Chicago Bulls]], the [[United Soccer Association]], and [[Major League Soccer]], also founded the team.
The '''Kansas City Wiz''' played their first game on April 13, 1996, defeating the [[Colorado Rapids]] at [[Arrowhead Stadium]]. The Wiz players included [[Preki]] and [[Digital Takawira]], and were coached by [[Ron Newman (footballer)|Ron Newman]]. The team finished 5th with a 17–15 record, qualifying for the [[1996 Major League Soccer season|first ever MLS Playoffs]]. For their conference semi-finals, the Wiz beat the [[Dallas Burn]] in three games, winning the final game in a shootout. They lost the conference final to [[Los Angeles Galaxy]].

The Wiz changed their name to the "Wizards". For the [[1997 Major League Soccer season]], their record was 21–11; they won the Western Conference regular season championship. [[Preki]] was named [[Major League Soccer MVP Award|MLS MVP]]. In the first round of the playoffs, the Wizards lost to the last-seeded [[Colorado Rapids]].

The Wizards had losing records for the [[1998 Major League Soccer season|1998]] and [[1999 Major League Soccer season|1999 seasons]], ending up last place in the Western Conference both years. The Wizards fired Ron Newman in the summer and replaced him with [[Bob Gansler]]. The Wizards would finish the 1999 season with a disastrous record of 8–24, which put them in last place in the Western Conference once again.

===Championship: 2000===
In [[2000 Major League Soccer season|2000]], their first full season under [[Bob Gansler]], the Wizards return to their form from their first two seasons, playing well and having a solid defense. Goalkeeper [[Tony Meola]] would record the longest shutout streak in MLS history at 681 minutes. By the end of the season, the Wizards held a record of 16–7–9, the best in the league. In the playoffs, the Wizards defeated the [[Colorado Rapids]], 7 points to 1 in three games. In the conference final, the Wizards would fall behind 4 points to 1 to the [[Los Angeles Galaxy]] and their season seemed to be coming to an end. [[Miklos Molnar]] scored a penalty kick early in game three to send the series into a tiebreaker, where he scored again to send the Wizards to their first [[2000 MLS Cup|MLS Cup]]. At [[RFK Stadium]] in [[Washington, D.C.]], the Wizards, with the league's best defense, tried to prove that defense wins championships by beating the team with the league's best offense, the [[Chicago Fire Soccer Club|Chicago Fire]]. The Wizards would lead early on an 11th minute goal by [[Miklos Molnar]]. The [[Chicago Fire Soccer Club|Chicago Fire]] would put together an onslaught of scoring opportunities, putting 10 shots on goal, including 3 in the final 10 minutes. But [[Tony Meola]] stopped every one of them and the defense barely held on to the lead as time ran out on the [[Chicago Fire Soccer Club|Chicago Fire]]. A year after not even making double-digits in wins, the Wizards amazingly turned it around and claimed their first MLS Cup Championship.

===Post-Championship struggles: 2001–2002===
After the loss of [[Preki]] to the [[Miami Fusion]], the team struggled to defend their championship in [[2001 Major League Soccer season|2001]], making the playoffs as the 8th seed with a record of 11–13–3. In the first round, the Wizards' reign as champion ended with a 6 points to 3 loss to [[Preki]] and the [[Miami Fusion]]. Despite getting back [[Preki]], the Wizards sat in last place in the Western Conference in [[2002 Major League Soccer season|2002]]. They made the playoffs with a record of 9–10–9. The last two teams in the East, the [[MetroStars]] and [[D.C. United]] missed the playoffs, which propelled the Wizards into the playoffs. In the first round, the team would fall, 6 points to 3 to eventual champions, [[Los Angeles Galaxy]].

===More success: 2003–2004===
[[File:JimmyConrad 2006 MLS Cup.jpg|right|thumb|[[Jimmy Conrad]] was an integral part of Kansas City's team from 2003 to 2010]]
The Wizards would return to the top half of the West in [[2003 Major League Soccer season|2003]] with a record of 11–10–9. In the first round, the Wizards would defeat the [[Colorado Rapids]] in the aggregate goal series, 3–1. That set up a one-game showdown with the [[San Jose Earthquakes]] the winner would advance to the [[2003 MLS Cup]]. The Wizards would twice take the lead, but twice, the Earthquakes battled back and forced golden goal in overtime by [[Landon Donovan]] in the 117th minute, which sent his team to the [[2003 MLS Cup]] and the Wizards home.

Looking to build on their momentum from the previous year, the Wizards would start out [[2004 Major League Soccer season|2004]] mediocre before turning around in the summer and contending for the conference championship. The Wizards lost only 2 games in September and finished the season on a 6 game unbeaten streak to finish 14–9–9, for the Western Conference regular season championship. The season was not without controversy, though, as goalkeeper [[Tony Meola]], an American soccer goalkeeping legend that had been on the USA national team roster for three World Cups, went down with injury and backup [[Bo Oshoniyi]] would fill as a replacement. Once the playoffs started, Meola had healed, but Oshoniyi was still in goal. In the first round of the playoffs, the Wizards would lose the first game to defending champions [[San Jose Earthquakes]], 2–0, putting in a seemingly impossible situation to score 3 goals and concede none in game 2 of aggregate goal series. However, amazingly, the Wizards did just that by scoring 2 goals in the first half, while little known [[Jack Jewsbury]] scored the deciding goal in second half stoppage time to move KC onto the conference final for the second year in a row. In that game, the Wizards would easily hold off the [[Los Angeles Galaxy]] on two [[Davy Arnaud]] goals to send the Wizards to their second [[2004 MLS Cup|MLS Cup]]. The Wizards provided the stadium area championship feeling as they went up against [[D.C. United]] at the [[Home Depot Center]] in [[Carson, California]] as [[Bo Oshoniyi]] got the starting in goal. The Wizards would get off to a great start as [[Jose Burciaga]] caught United unprepared as he scored a long range goal in the 6th minute. However, DC United's [[Alecko Eskandarian]] scored 2 goals for his squad in the 19th and 23rd minutes respectively. Things would go from bad to worse in the 26th minute for the Wizards as [[Alex Zotinca]] committed an [[own goal]]. KC was given a lifeline in the 58th minute as DC's [[Dema Kovalenko]] was expelled from the match for a handball in the penalty area and [[Josh Wolff]] scored the first penalty kick conversion in MLS Cup history. The Wizards hoped that that would propel them to more goals as they put 10 shots on goal. However it would not be enough as their season ended with a disappointing 3–2 loss at the hands of [[DC United]].

===Move to the East: 2005–2010===
Following expansion, the Wizards moved to the Eastern Conference in [[2005 Major League Soccer season|2005]]. The team won just two of its first seven games. After going through a summer filled with mostly ties and losses, a four game winning streak at the end of August helped get them back in the playoff race. In the end, it was not enough as the Wizards did not win another game to find themselves on the outside of the playoffs looking in with a record of 11–9–12. After the season, the team's veteran leader, [[Preki]] announced his retirement.

Following a [[2006 Major League Soccer season|2006 season]] in which they missed the playoffs, [[Lamar Hunt]] sold the club in August 2006 to [[OnGoal, LLC]], a six-man ownership group led by [[Cerner Corporation]] co-founders [[Neal Patterson]] and [[Cliff Illig]], a local group committed to keeping the Wizards in [[Kansas City, Missouri|Kansas City]]. Despite the good news off the field, and winning four out of five games to start the season, the Wizards just missed out on a playoff berth with a loss to the [[New York Red Bulls]] on the final day, finishing with a 10–14–8 record.

After Hunt died, the club dedicated the [[2007 Major League Soccer season|2007 season]] to him. A good start earned them four wins in the first seven weeks of the season. The club also picked up goalkeeper [[Kevin Hartman]] from [[Los Angeles Galaxy]] as a move to help the club with that position. But after a good start to the season, the Wizards tapered off near the end of the season, winning just four games after the All-Star break and finished fifth in the East at 11–12–7. The club shifted over to the West as a result of a playoff format change, the Wizards played against [[Chivas USA]]. With the Wizards [[Davy Arnaud]]'s goal in the first game to win the series as the defense and [[Kevin Hartman]] did the rest and kept Chivas USA off the scoreboard. In the conference final the Wizards would come up short to the [[Houston Dynamo]], 2–0.

The Wizards played their home games at [[CommunityAmerica Ballpark]] in Kansas in [[2008 Major League Soccer season|2008]], and ended a four year playoff drought by posting an 11–10–9 record, which was good enough for fourth place in the Eastern Conference. Facing the [[Columbus Crew]] who captured the MLS Supporter's Shield for the best record in the MLS, the Wizards had a strong showing, earning a 1–1 tie in Game 1 of the first round series. However, with a 2–0 loss in Game 2 the Wizards lost the aggregate series 3–1. In the [[2009 Major League Soccer season|2009 season]], the Wizards remained at CommunityAmerica Ballpark, but struggled offensively. They went 427 minutes without scoring a goal (the longest streak of offensive impotence of the season). The most telling stat of all though for the Wizards was their record at home, which was the worst in the league. Plus, they were 0–13–3 when giving up the first goal. By the end of season, they were third to last in the league standings. Top players were [[Claudio López (footballer)|Claudio López]] (8 goals & 7 assists) and [[Josh Wolff]] (11 goals) who sparked the Wizards offense.

In [[2010 Kansas City Wizards season|2010]], a rebuilding year, the Wizards finished third in the Eastern Conference and narrowly missed qualifying for the playoffs.

===Rebranding: 2011–present===
With the rebranding, the team follows a recent tradition in MLS of adopting European-style names. Other teams with such names include [[Toronto FC]], [[D.C. United]] and [[Real Salt Lake]]. The "Sporting" moniker implies that the soccer club will be part of a larger sports umbrella, in similarity to clubs in Europe. At the rebrand announcement, the team's president announced plans to add a rugby club and lacrosse club.{{Citation needed|date=January 2011}} The re-branding was met with both excitement and disdain. The name "Wizards" is still used as an informal nickname for the club. With the opening of the new [[Livestrong Sporting Park]] in Kansas City, Kansas, Sporting Kansas City became the first major-league team to have played in stadiums on both sides of the state line in Kansas City, and may continue to use [[Arrowhead Stadium]] for special-occasion games, such as those against well-known international teams. An example of this practice was the Wizards' 2010 game (and victory) against [[Manchester United]] at Arrowhead Stadium, which was also the first professional sporting match held at the venue after its renovations.

Because Livestrong Sporting Park was not ready for the beginning of the [[2011 Major League Soccer season|2011 season]], Sporting Kansas City played its first ten games on the road, only winning one game. Once the road trip was over, the team found more success and ended the regular season with the most points of any Eastern Conference team. After defeating the [[Colorado Rapids]] on a 4–0 aggregate in the Eastern Conference semifinals, Sporting lost to the [[Houston Dynamo]] by a score of 2–0 in the Eastern Conference finals. At the beginning of the [[2012 Major League Soccer season|2012 season]] Sporting started a perfect 7–0–0, and with the new addition of players such as [[Bobby Convey]] the team has remained on top of the league, setting an MLS record for most minutes played without allowing a shot on goal. [[Kei Kamara]], [[Graham Zusi]], and [[C. J. Sapong]] have all had great seasons so far. <ref>{{cite web|url=http://content.usatoday.com/sportsdata/soccer/mls/game/SportingKansasCity_DC/2011/10/22#game-story |title=Saturday, October 22, 2011 Sporting Kansas City - D.C. United Box Scores, Game Results & Summary - USATODAY.com |publisher=Content.usatoday.com |date=2011-10-22 |accessdate=2011-12-03}}</ref>

==Colors and badge==
[[File:Aurélien Collin cropped.jpg|left|thumb|160px|[[Aurélien Collin]] wearing Sporting's primary kit.]]
[[File:Teal Bunbury.jpg|upright|thumb|160px|[[Teal Bunbury]] wearing Sporting's secondary kit.]]
Sporting Kansas City's official colors are dark indigo and "Sporting" blue. The primary logo is composed of a teardrop-shaped shield containing a stylized representation of the Kansas-Missouri state line with "Sporting" blue stripes on the "Kansas" side and an interlocking "SC" on the "Missouri" side. The shield's contour alludes to the team's former logo while under the "Kansas City Wizards" appellation. The stateline represents Sporting's fanbase in both of the [[Kansas]] and [[Missouri]] metropolitan areas called "Kansas City." The eleven individual lines comprising the stateline are a nod to the number of players a team places on the field during a [[Laws of the Game (association football)|soccer match]]. The "SC" (for ''Sporting Club'') is inspired by [[Asclepius]]' rod representing health and fitness, a Greek statue called the ''[[Winged Victory of Samothrace]]'' – alluding to strength and movement, and to the [[Spanish architecture]] of Kansas City's [[Country Club Plaza]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.insightkc.com/sportingbrand/index.html |title=Sporting Kansas City: Explore Our Brand |publisher=Insightkc.com |date= |accessdate=2011-12-03}}</ref>

<gallery>
File:Kansas City Wiz logo.svg|Kansas City Wiz logo (1996)
File:Kansas City Wizards logo.svg|Kansas City Wizards logo (1997–2006)
File:Kansascitywizards.svg|Kansas City Wizards logo (2007–2010)
File:Sportingkansascity.png|Sporting Kansas City logo (2010—)</gallery>

==Stadiums==
[[File:Kansas City Arrowhead Stadium.jpg|right|thumb|Arrowhead Stadium, the Wizards' home for over a decade.]]
*[[Arrowhead Stadium]]; [[Kansas City, Missouri]] (1996–2007)
*[[Blue Valley Sports Complex]]; [[Overland Park, Kansas]] (2001, 2004, 2006, 2011) 6 games in US Open Cup
*[[Julian Field]]; [[Parkville, Missouri]] (2005) 2 games in US Open Cup
*[[CommunityAmerica Ballpark]]; [[Kansas City, Kansas]] (2008–2010)
*[[Hermann Stadium]]; [[St. Louis, Missouri]] (2009) 1 game in North American SuperLiga
*[[Stanley H. Durwood Stadium]]; [[Kansas City, Missouri]] (2010) 1 game in US Open Cup
*[[Livestrong Sporting Park]]; [[Kansas City, Kansas]] (2011–present)

From 1996 to 2007, the Wizards played home games in [[Arrowhead Stadium]], the [[American football]] stadium mainly used by the [[Kansas City Chiefs]]. Wizards management kept the west end of Arrowhead tarped off for the first 10 years of play, limiting seating near the field. In 2006, fans could sit all the way around the field, but in 2007 seating was only available along the [[sidelines]]. After the 2007 final season at Arrowhead, the Wizards continued to use the stadium for select large events. In 2008, the club played a regular season home game against the [[Los Angeles Galaxy]] at the stadium to accommodate the large crowd expected for [[David Beckham]]'s Galaxy debut. Again in 2010, the Wizards played a [[Friendly match|friendly]] here against English club [[Manchester United]], winning 2–1.

The Wizards entered an agreement with the [[Kansas City T-Bones]] to use their home stadium, [[CommunityAmerica Ballpark]], during the 2008 and 2009 seasons. The deal was later extended to include 2010. The stadium, located across the state line in Kansas City, Kansas, built a new bleacher section financed by the Wizards to increase its capacity to 10,385. This move made the Wizards the third MLS team to share their home ground with a [[baseball]] team. [[D.C. United]] had been sharing [[Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium|RFK Stadium]] with [[Major League Baseball]]'s [[Washington Nationals]] in [[Washington, D.C.]], before the latter's move into [[Nationals Park]]. The [[San Jose Earthquakes]] used [[Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum]] in [[Oakland]], home of the [[Oakland A's]] (and [[Oakland Raiders]]), for certain games during the 2008 and 2009 seasons.

[[File:Livestrong Sporting Park - Sporting KC v New England Revolution.jpg|right|thumb|Livestrong Sporting Park, 2011.]]
The Wizards originally planned to return to Kansas City, Missouri, and build a new stadium there – tentatively called [[Trails Stadium]] – as part of a major [[The Trails|mixed-use development]]. The team had received all required approvals and was awaiting site demolition; however, the 2008–09 financial crisis ultimately led to the scrapping of the Trails Stadium project. The developer then sought a new site, quickly settling on a similar development in Kansas City, Kansas, known as [[Village West]], near [[CommunityAmerica Ballpark]] and [[Kansas Speedway]].

In September 2009, the developer asked [[Wyandotte County, Kansas|Wyandotte County]] and [[Kansas]] state officials for permission to use revenues from existing [[tax increment financing]] in the [[Village West]] area to help finance the soccer complex.<ref name="legends_stadium">[http://www.kansascity.com/sports/wizards/story/1619544.html Kansas adjusts offer aimed at spurring Cerner, Wizards development near speedway], The Kansas City Star, December 08, 2009.</ref> On December 17, Wizards president [[Robb Heineman]] provided an update on the stadium situation published on team official website and blog,<ref name="RHUpdate1">[http://kc.wizards.mlsnet.com/news/team_news.jsp?ymd=20091217&content_id=7825974&vkey=pr_kcw&fext=.jsp&team=t105 Heineman provides stadium update], KC Wizards Official Website.</ref><ref name="RHUpdate2">[http://www.hillcrestroadblog.com/2009/12/rh-stadium-update.html Hillcrest Road – RH Stadium Update], OnGoal CEO/Wizards President Robb Heineman gives an update on the progress of the stadium project.</ref> basically identifying the Kansas City, Kansas, location as final, pending the signature of the final agreements. On December 21, construction machinery was already on the Legends site waiting to break ground.<ref name="CAt1">[http://www.hillcrestroadblog.com/2009/12/yellow-machines-on-site.html Hillcrest Road – Yellow Machines on Site], Equipment from Clarkson Construction showed up at the future site of the stadium in KCK.</ref><ref name="CAt2">[http://kansascity.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2009/12/21/daily35.html Work starts on Kansas City Wizards stadium], Kansas City Business Journal – by Rob Roberts.</ref> On January 19, 2010, Wyandotte County approved the bonds to help finance the stadium,<ref name="RHGB1">[http://kc.wizards.mlsnet.com/news/team_news.jsp?ymd=20100119&content_id=7938772&vkey=pr_kcw&fext=.jsp&team=t105 Stadium Approval News], KC Wizards Official Website.</ref> and on January 20 the groundbreaking ceremony was made, with Wizards CEO Robb Heineman using heavy machinery to move dirt on the construction site.<ref name="RHGB2">[http://www.hillcrestroadblog.com/2010/01/dirt-has-moved.html Stadium Ground Breaking], Wizards Official Blog.</ref>

==Club culture==
===Supporters===
The main [[supporters group]] of Sporting Kansas City cheers in the Member's Stand on the North side of Livestrong Park and is known as "The [[Cauldron]]".<ref name="supporters">{{cite web|title=Sporting Kansas City Supporters|url=http://www.sportingkc.com/members/supporters|publisher=Sporting Kansas City Official Website}}</ref> The name is derived from the large metal pots used for boiling potions, due to the teams former name Wizards. Since the rebranding in 2010, Sporting have seen dramatic growth in their fan section, with several fan groups adding their voice to The Cauldron culture and atmosphere.<ref name="supporters"/>

Historically, the largest supporters group was known as "Hillcrest Syndicate".{{Citation needed|date=November 2010}} The group derives its name from Hillcrest Road which is the road on which the [[Trails Stadium]] would have been built if the project had not fallen through and then shifted to Kansas. Other groups – such as La Barra KC, Southern Voodoo, King City Yardbirds, The BSE, James Gang SKC, Mass Street Mob, KC Futbol Misfits, Sporting Militia – are also currently a part of The Cauldron.<ref>{{cite web|title=Sporting Kansas City Supporters|url=http://www.sportingkc.com/members/supporters |title=Supporters – Sporting Kansas City |publisher=Sporting Kansas City Official Website}}</ref> After a strong presence in 2007 and 2008, the Sudakas have largely faded from the section, although some chants remain in use.

In late 2011, a new independent supporter group South Stand SC formed to represent the opposite stand from the Cauldron. Similar to the Cauldron, there are multiple sub-groups within the South Stand SC including the Wedge, Boulevard Battery and Ad Astra SKC.{{Citation needed|date=February 2012}}

With Sportings rise in popularity in the Kansas City area following the 2011 MLS season, several new supporters groups started up in 2012. The Ladies of SKC, Northland Noise SG, Omaha Boys and others have gained many supporters and have been officially recognized by Sporting KC. ''See'' Sporting KC http://www.sportingkc.com/members/supporters

==Broadcasting==
Matches are broadcast in [[HDTV|high definition]] on [[KSMO-TV]] (except for nationally broadcast matches). The play-by-play announcer is former [[BBC Radio]] commentator [[Callum Williams]] who began broadcasting with the 2011 season. Former Wizard/Sporting Kansas City player [[Sasha Victorine]] provided color commentary in the beginning of 2011 but stepped down to spend more time with family. Color commentary is currently being covered by [[Jake Yadrich]].

There is currently no regular local [[radio]] coverage in English except for occasional broadcasts on [[WHB]] 810AM when television broadcasts of MLS games on KSMO-TV is not available. Spanish broadcasting can be found on [[KDTD]] 1340AM.

==Players and staff==
=== Current roster ===
=== Current roster ===
<!----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<!----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Line 163: Line 36:
{{Fs player2 sort |no=20 |nat=ESP |pos=MF |first= |last=Uri|dab=Oriol Rosell}}
{{Fs player2 sort |no=20 |nat=ESP |pos=MF |first= |last=Uri|dab=Oriol Rosell}}
{{Fs player2 sort |no=21 |nat=USA |pos=GK |first=Jon |last=Kempin |other=[[Home Grown Player|HGP]]}}
{{Fs player2 sort |no=21 |nat=USA |pos=GK |first=Jon |last=Kempin |other=[[Home Grown Player|HGP]]}}
{{Fs player2 sort |no=22 |nat=USA |pos=FW |first=Soony |last=Saad}}
{{Fs player2 sort |no=22 |nat=LIB |pos=FW |first=Soony |last=Saad}}
{{Fs player2 sort |no=23 |nat=SLE |pos=FW |first=Kei |last=Kamara}}
{{Fs player2 sort |no=23 |nat=SLE |pos=FW |first=Kei |last=Kamara}}
{{Fs player2 sort |no=24 |nat=CMR |pos=DF |first=Cyprian |last=Hedrick}}
{{Fs player2 sort |no=24 |nat=CMR |pos=DF |first=Cyprian |last=Hedrick}}
Line 173: Line 46:
{{Fs player2 sort |no=88 |nat=USA |pos=MF |first=Michael |last=Thomas|dab=Michael Thomas (American soccer)}}
{{Fs player2 sort |no=88 |nat=USA |pos=MF |first=Michael |last=Thomas|dab=Michael Thomas (American soccer)}}
|}
|}

===Notable former players===
''This list of former players includes those who received international caps while playing for the team, made significant contributions to the team in terms of appearances or goals while playing for the team, or who made significant contributions to the sport either before they played for the team, or after they left. It is clearly not yet complete and all inclusive, and additions and refinements will continue to be made over time.''

{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Davy Arnaud]] (2002–2011)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[José Burciaga, Jr.]] (2001–2007)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Mark Chung]] (1996–1998)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Jimmy Conrad]] (2003–2010)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Nick Garcia]] (2000–2007)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Herculez Gomez]] (2008–2009)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Diego Gutiérrez (soccer)|Diego Gutiérrez]] (1996–1997), (2002–2005)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Kevin Hartman]] (2006–2010)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Chris Henderson]] (1998–2000)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Jack Jewsbury]] (2003–2010)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Eddie Johnson (American soccer)|Eddie Johnson]] (2006–2007)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Chris Klein (soccer)|Chris Klein]] (1998–2005)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Frank Klopas]] (1996–1997)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Alexi Lalas]] (1999)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Tony Meola]] (1999–2004)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Preki]] (1996–2000), (2002–2005)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Mike Sorber]] (1996)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Peter Vermes]] (2000–2002)
{{col-2}}
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Sasha Victorine]] (2005–2008)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Josh Wolff]] (2003–2006), (2008–2010)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Kerry Zavagnin]] (2000–2008)
*{{flagicon|ARG}} [[Claudio López (footballer)|Claudio López]] (2008–2010)
*{{flagicon|BRA}} [[Jéferson Rodrigues Gonçalves|Jéferson]] (2011)
*{{flagicon|DEN}} [[Miklos Molnar]] (2000)
*{{flagicon|ENG}} [[Paul Rideout]] (1998)
*{{flagicon|IND}} [[Sunil Chhetri]] (2010–2011)
*{{flagicon|JAM}} [[Shavar Thomas]] (2004–2006), (2010–2011)
*{{flagicon|MEX}} [[Omar Bravo]] (2011)
*{{flagicon|NGR}} [[Uche Okafor]] (1996–2000)
*{{flagicon|RUS}} [[Igor Simutenkov]] (2002–2004)
*{{flagicon|SCO}} [[Richard Gough]] (1997)
*{{flagicon|SCO}} [[Mo Johnston]] (1996–2001)
*{{flagicon|SER}} [[Vuk Rašović]] (2004)
*{{flagicon|TRI}} [[Gary Glasgow]] (2000–2002)
*{{flagicon|TRI}} [[Scott Sealy]] (2005–2008)
*{{flagicon|YUG}} [[Refik Šabanadžović]] (1998–1999)
*{{flagicon|ZIM}} [[Vitalis Takawira]] (1996–1999)
{{col-end}}
* ''See also [[All-time Sporting Kansas City roster]]''

===Head coaches===
[[File:Peter-vermes.jpg|right|thumb|Peter Vermes, Sporting's head coach since 2009, is also a former player for the club who was named [[MLS Defender of the Year Award|MLS Defender of the Year]] in 2000.]]
*{{flagicon|ENG}} [[Ron Newman (footballer)|Ron Newman]] (1996–99)
*{{flagicon|ENG}} [[Ken Fogarty]] (1999), ''(Interim)''
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Bob Gansler]] (April 1999–July 06)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Brian Bliss]] (June 2006–Dec 06), ''(Interim)''
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Curt Onalfo]] (Nov 2006–Aug 09)
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Peter Vermes]] (Aug 2009–Nov 09), ''(Interim)''
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Peter Vermes]] (Nov 2009–present)

===General managers===
* [[Tim Latta]] (1996)
* [[Doug Newman]] (1997–1999)
* [[Curt Johnson (soccer)|Curt Johnson]] (1999–2006)
* [[Peter Vermes]] (2006—present) Technical Director and Head Coach
* [[Greg Cotton]] (2006—present) Director of Business Operations

===Presidents===
* [[Robb Heineman]] (2006—present) [http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/sports/15792227.htm]

==Achievements==
*'''[[MLS Cup]]'''
**'''Winners''' (1): [[MLS Cup 2000|2000]]
**'''Runners-up''' (1): [[MLS Cup 2004|2004]]

*'''[[MLS Supporters' Shield]]'''
**'''Winners''' (1): [[2000 Major League Soccer season|2000]]
**'''Runners-up''' (2): [[MLS Supporters' Shield#Winners|1997]], [[MLS Supporters' Shield#Winners|2004]]

*'''[[Western Conference (MLS)|MLS Western Conference]]'''
**'''Winners (Regular Season)''' (3): 1997, 2000, 2004
**'''Winners (Playoff)''' (1): 2004

*'''[[Eastern Conference (MLS)|MLS Eastern Conference]]'''
**'''Winners (Regular Season)''' (1): 2011

*'''[[Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup]]'''
**'''Winners''' (2): [[2004 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup|2004]], [[2012 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup|2012]]

==Record==
===Year-by-year===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Year
!MLS Reg. Season
!MLS Cup Playoffs
!Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup
!CONCACAF<br />Champions' Cup/Champions League
|-
|[[1996 Kansas City Wiz season|1996]]
|3rd, West
|Semi-Finals
|Quarter-Finals
|''Did not qualify''
|-
|[[1997 Kansas City Wizards season|1997]]
| style="background:gold;"|1st, West
|Quarter-Finals
|Round of 16
|''Did not qualify''
|-
|[[1998 Kansas City Wizards season|1998]]
|6th, West
|''Did not qualify''
|Round of 16
|''Did not qualify''
|-
|[[1999 Kansas City Wizards season|1999]]
|6th, West
|''Did not qualify''
|''Did not qualify''
|''Did not qualify''
|-
|[[2000 Kansas City Wizards season|2000]]
| style="background:gold;"|1st, West*
| style="background:gold;"|Champions
|Round of 32
|''Did not qualify''
|-
|[[2001 Kansas City Wizards season|2001]]
|3rd, West
|Quarter-Finals
|Round of 16
|''Not held''
|-
|[[2002 Kansas City Wizards season|2002]]
|5th, West
|Quarter-Finals
|Semi-Finals
|Semi-Finals
|-
|[[2003 Kansas City Wizards season|2003]]
|2nd, West
|Semi-Finals
|Round of 16
|''Did not qualify''
|-
|[[2004 Kansas City Wizards season|2004]]
| style="background:gold;"|1st, West
| style="background:silver;"|Runners-up
| style="background:gold;"|Champions
|''Did not qualify''
|-
|[[2005 Kansas City Wizards season|2005]]
|5th, East
|''Did not qualify''
|Quarter-Finals
|Quarter-Finals
|-
|[[2006 Kansas City Wizards season|2006]]
|5th, East
|''Did not qualify''
|Round of 16
|''Did not qualify''
|-
|[[2007 Kansas City Wizards season|2007]]
|5th, East
|Semi-Finals**
|''Did not qualify''
|''Did not qualify''
|-
|[[2008 Kansas City Wizards season|2008]]
|4th, East
|Quarter-Finals
|Quarter-Finals
|''Did not qualify''
|-
|[[2009 Kansas City Wizards season|2009]]
|6th, East
|''Did not qualify''
|Quarter-Finals
|''Did not qualify''
|-
|[[2010 Kansas City Wizards season|2010]]
|3rd, East
|''Did not qualify''
|''Did not qualify''
|''Did not qualify''
|-
|[[2011 Sporting Kansas City season|2011]]
| style="background:gold;"|1st, East
|Semi-Finals
|Quarter-Finals
|''Did not qualify''
|-
|[[2012 Sporting Kansas City season|2012]]
| ''In progress''
| ''TBD''
| style="background:gold;"|Champions
| ''Did not qualify''
|-
| [[2013 Sporting Kansas City season|2013]]
| ''TBD''
| ''TBD''
| ''Qualified for third round''
| ''Qualified for Group Stage (13–14)''
|}

===International tournaments===
*'''[[Copa Merconorte 2001|2001 Copa Merconorte]]
::Group Stage v. {{flagicon|PER}} [[Sporting Cristal]] – 1:2
::Group Stage v. {{flagicon|MEX}} [[Club Santos Laguna|Santos Laguna]] – 2:4
::Group Stage v. {{flagicon|ECU}} [[Barcelona SC|Barcelona]] – 3:2
::Group Stage v. {{flagicon|PER}} [[Sporting Cristal]] – 1:2
::Group Stage v. {{flagicon|ECU}} [[Barcelona SC|Barcelona]] – 1:1
::Group Stage v. {{flagicon|MEX}} [[Club Santos Laguna|Santos Laguna]] – 0:1

*'''[[CONCACAF Champions' Cup 2002|2002 CONCACAF Champions Cup]]'''
::First Round v. {{flagicon|TRI}} [[W Connection]] – 1:0, 2:0 (Wizards win 3:0 on aggregate)
::Quarter-Finals v. {{flagicon|MEX}} [[Santos Laguna]] – 1:2, 2:0 (Wizards win 3:2 on aggregate)
::Semi-Finals v. {{flagicon|MEX}} [[Monarcas Morelia]] – 1:6, 1:1 (Morelia advances 7:2 on aggregate)

*'''[[CONCACAF Champions' Cup 2005|2005 CONCACAF Champions Cup]]'''
::First Round v. {{flagicon|CRC}} [[Deportivo Saprissa]] – 0:0, 1:2 (Saprissa advances 2:1 on aggregate after [[extra time|added extra time]])

*'''[[2009 North American SuperLiga]]'''
::Group Stage v. {{flagicon|MEX}} [[Club Atlas|Atlas]] – 0:0
::Group Stage v. {{flagicon|USA}} [[New England Revolution]] – 1:1
::Group Stage v. {{flagicon|MEX}} [[Club Santos Laguna|Santos Laguna]] – 1:3

===Team records===
*'''Games:''' {{flagicon|USA}} [[Davy Arnaud]] (241)
*'''Goals:''' {{flagicon|USA}} [[Preki]] (71)
*'''Assists:''' {{flagicon|USA}} [[Preki]] (98)
*'''Shutouts:''' {{flagicon|USA}} [[Tony Meola]] (37)
''MLS regular season only''<ref>{{cite web|title=All-Time Records Sporting Kansas City|url=http://www.sportingkc.com/content/all-time-records|publisher=Major League Soccer|accessdate=May 2, 2012}}</ref>

*All-Time regular season record: 201–200–100 (''Through May 2, 2012'')

===Average attendance===

As of June 19, 2012: <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sportingkc.com/stats/all/team_total/attendance |title=Club Attendance Report |publisher=Sportingkc.com |date= |accessdate=2011-12-03}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Year
!Reg. Season
!Playoffs
|-
|[[1996 Kansas City Wiz season|1996]]
|12,878
|7,754
|-
|[[1997 Kansas City Wizards season|1997]]
|9,058
|10,174
|-
|[[1998 Kansas City Wizards season|1998]]
|8,073
|DNQ
|-
|[[1999 Kansas City Wizards season|1999]]
|8,183
|DNQ
|-
|[[2000 Kansas City Wizards season|2000]]
|9,112
|8,243
|-
|[[2001 Kansas City Wizards season|2001]]
|10,954
|5,803
|-
|[[2002 Kansas City Wizards season|2002]]
|12,255
|9,484
|-
|[[2003 Kansas City Wizards season|2003]]
|15,573
|10,712
|-
|[[2004 Kansas City Wizards season|2004]]
|14,816
|11,077
|-
|[[2005 Kansas City Wizards season|2005]]
|9,691
|DNQ
|-
|[[2006 Kansas City Wizards season|2006]]
|11,083
|DNQ
|-
|[[2007 Kansas City Wizards season|2007]]
|11,586
|12,442
|-
|[[2008 Kansas City Wizards season|2008]]
|10,686
|10,385
|-
|[[2009 Kansas City Wizards season|2009]]
|10,053
|DNQ
|-
|[[2010 Kansas City Wizards season|2010]]
|10,287
|DNQ
|-
|[[2011 Sporting Kansas City season|2011]]
|17,810
|19,702
|-
|[[2012 Sporting Kansas City season|2012]]
|19,364
|TBD
|}

==Notable friendlies==

{{footballbox collapsible
|team1=Kansas City Wizards
|date=July 25, 2010
|time=5:00PM
|score= 2–1
|report= [http://www.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter-recap/10-man-kansas-city-hold-defeat-manchester-united report]
|team2= [[Manchester United F.C.|Manchester United]]
|goals1= [[Davy Arnaud|Arnaud]] {{goal|11}} <br/> [[Jimmy Conrad|Conrad]] {{sent off|0|39}} <br/> [[Kei Kamara|Kamara]] {{goal|42}}{{yel|43}}
|goals2= [[Ryan Giggs|Giggs]] {{yel|33}} <br/> [[Dimitar Berbatov|Berbatov]] {{goal|41|pen.}} <br/> [[Darron Gibson|Gibson]] {{yel|63}}
|stadium=[[Arrowhead Stadium]]
|location=[[Kansas City, Missouri]]
|attendance= 52,424
|referee= Terry Vaughn
|result= W
| stack=y
}}
{{footballbox collapsible
|date = July 20, 2011
|time = 19:30 [[Central Time Zone|CDT]]
|team1=Sporting Kansas City
|score =0–0
|report =[http://www.sportingkc.com/news/2011/07/release-kc-newcastle-settle-0-0-tie Report]
|team2 = [[Newcastle United F.C.|Newcastle United]]
|goals1 =
|goals2 =
|stadium = [[Livestrong Sporting Park]]
|location = [[Kansas City, Kansas]]
|attendance =16,131
|referee =
|result =D
|stack = yes
}}
{{footballbox collapsible
|team1=Sporting Kansas City
|date=October 12, 2011
|time=19:30 [[Central Time Zone|CDT]]
|score= 2–2
|report=[http://www.sportingkc.com/news/2011/10/recap-skc-draws-2-2-cd-guadalajara-friendly Report]
|team2= [[C.D. Guadalajara]]
|goals1= [[Soony Saad|Saad]] {{goal|75}}<br> [[Kevin Ellis (American soccer)|Ellis]] {{goal|86}}
|goals2= [[Marco Fabian|Fabian]] {{goal|20}} <small>([[Penalty kick|pen.]])</small> <br> [[Erick Torres|Torres]] {{goal|88}}
|stadium=[[Livestrong Sporting Park]]
|location=[[Kansas City, Kansas]]
|attendance =17,142
|result=D
|stack = yes
}}
{{footballbox collapsible
|team1=Sporting Kansas City
|date=July 24, 2012
|time = 19:30 [[Central Time Zone|CDT]]
|score= 0-3
|report= [http://www.sportingkc.com/news/2012/07/montpellier-herault-sc-earns-3-0-victory-international-friendly-lsp Report]
|team2=[[Montpellier HSC]]
|goals1=
|goals2=
|stadium=[[Livestrong Sporting Park]]
|location=[[Kansas City, Kansas]]
|result=L
|attendance =14,769
}}
{{footballbox collapsible
|team1=Sporting Kansas City
|date=August 1, 2012
|time = 19:30 [[Central Time Zone|CDT]]
|score= 1-1
|report=[http://www.sportingkc.com/news/2012/08/recap-miller-gives-skc-wild-1-1-tie-stoke-friendly Report]
|team2=[[Stoke City F.C.]]
|goals1= [[Kyle Miller|Miller]] {{goal|92+}}
|goals2= [[Michael Tonge|Tonge]] {{goal|84}} <small>([[Penalty kick|pen.]])</small>
|stadium=[[Livestrong Sporting Park]]
|location=[[Kansas City, Kansas]]
|result=D
|attendance =16,197
}}

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Sporting Kansas City}}
* {{Official website|http://www.sportingkc.com/}}


{{Sporting Kansas City}}
{{Major League Soccer}}
{{USSoccer}}
{{Kansas Sports}}

[[Category:Sporting Kansas City| ]]

[[Category:Soccer clubs in the United States]]
[[Category:Association football clubs established in 1995]]
[[Category:Soccer clubs in Kansas City, Missouri|W]]
[[Category:Kansas soccer clubs]]
[[Category:Missouri soccer clubs]]

[[ar:سبورتينغ كانساس سيتي]]
[[bg:Спортинг Канзас Сити]]
[[ca:Sporting Kansas City]]
[[cs:Sporting Kansas City]]
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[[es:Sporting Kansas City]]
[[eo:Sporting Kansas City]]
[[fa:کانزاس سیتی ویزاردز]]
[[fr:Sporting de Kansas City]]
[[ko:스포팅 캔자스시티]]
[[hr:Sporting Kansas City]]
[[it:Sporting Kansas City]]
[[he:ספורטינג קנזס סיטי]]
[[nl:Sporting Kansas City]]
[[ja:スポルティング・カンザスシティ]]
[[no:Sporting Kansas City]]
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[[ro:Kansas City Wizards]]
[[ru:Спортинг Канзас-Сити]]
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[[zh:堪薩斯城體育會]]

Revision as of 14:59, 23 October 2012

Current roster

No. Position Player Nation
1 GK Jimmy Nielsen (Captain)  Denmark
2 DF Michael Harrington  United States
3 DF Korede Aiyegbusi  England
4 DF Kevin Ellis (HGP)  United States
5 DF Matt Besler  United States
6 MF Paulo Nagamura  Brazil
7 DF Chance Myers  United States
8 MF Graham Zusi  United States
9 FW Teal Bunbury  United States
11 MF Bobby Convey  United States
12 MF Konrad Warzycha  Poland
13 MF Lawrence Olum  Kenya
14 FW Dom Dwyer (GA)  England
15 MF Roger Espinoza  Honduras
16 DF Seth Sinovic  United States
17 FW C. J. Sapong  United States
18 GK Eric Kronberg  United States
19 MF Peterson Joseph  Haiti
20 MF Uri  Spain
21 GK Jon Kempin (HGP)  United States
22 FW Soony Saad  Lebanon
23 FW Kei Kamara  Sierra Leone
24 DF Cyprian Hedrick  Cameroon
25 DF Neven Marković  Bosnia and Herzegovina
27 DF Kyle Miller  United States
37 MF Jacob Peterson  United States
55 DF Júlio César  Brazil
78 DF Aurélien Collin  France
88 MF Michael Thomas  United States
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