TORONTO FC

'Toronto FC' is a Canadian professional soccer (football) club located in Toronto. The club participates in Major League Soccer as the first non-US team in MLS. The club's first regular season match was April 7, 2007 at Home Depot Center in Los Angeles versus Chivas USA. They suffered a 0-2 loss. Their first home match was April 28, 2007 at BMO Field against the Kansas City Wizards. Toronto FC lost to the Kansas City Wizards 0-1, on an 81st minute goal by Eddie Johnson. Danny Dichio scored the first goal ever for Toronto FC on May 12, 2007 in the 24th minute vs. the Chicago Fire in the franchise's first ever win 3-1.

History

The name of the club was officially announced on May 11 2006 by the team's owner, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd. (MLSE). The "FC" in the team's name is the conventional initialism for Football Club, but in official media and documents the team has only been referred to as Toronto FC, never Toronto Football Club. Larry Tannenbaum, chairman of MLSE, stated at the team name's unveiling that "I think the way we spell it is 'futbol'." In a Q&A posted on the MLSnet website, it was made clear that "FC" stood for "Football Club."
The announcement followed an online consultation in which the public was invited to vote on the name during a limited period. The voting options were "Toronto Nationals," "Inter Toronto," "Toronto Reds," "Toronto FC," and "Toronto Northmen." MLSE's strategy in choosing "Toronto FC" following this process was based on two reasons. First, over 40% of the online vote supported this name in the consultation. Second, MLSE hoped that with this fairly generic name the new club would earn a more organic nickname from the Toronto fans rather than have one imposed from above. This has slowly happened over the course of the club's first season, with Toronto FC widely referred to simply by the initials "TFC," or the "Reds" (their home kit colour) including on the MLS website.

Ownership and management

Toronto FC are owned and managed by Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd., who are also the owners and operators of the Toronto Maple Leafs, a National Hockey League team, the Toronto Raptors, a National Basketball Association team, and the Toronto Marlies American Hockey League team. Along with owning professional sports teams, the company is also involved in real estate and property management, owning sports venues such as the Air Canada Centre and the General Motors Centre. Tom Anselmi, the COO and executive vice-president of MLSE, is regarded as the team's "de facto president". The duties of general manager are held by both the coach Mo Johnston and the team's business operations manager Paul Beirne.

Television and radio

Toronto FC's opening match was broadcast on Rogers Sportsnet. On April 11, 2007 the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) announced they had secured the team's broadcast rights. The CBC will show 14 regular-season games in 2007, including the home opener and the MLS debut of David Beckham at BMO Field, August 5. In addition, Rogers Sportsnet and The Score will televise matches. Rogers Sportsnet will use Gerry Dobson and Craig Forrest for the play calling while James Sharman and Paul James will call the games on The Score, with Brian Budd as sideline reporter. Nigel Reed and Craig Forrest will do the play calling on CBC with Mitch Peacock performing the sideline role for the national broadcaster. Peacock however was the play-by-play man along with Forrest in the game against FC Dallas while Reed was on vacation. Brenda Irving was the sideline reporter for that game.
No radio arrangements have been announced to date.

Head coaches

★ Mo Johnston (2006–)

Mo Johnston

Main articles: Mo Johnston

On August 25, 2006 Toronto FC confirmed that former Red Bull New York coach Mo Johnston would serve as the first head coach in team history at a press conference in Toronto. During the press conference, Tom Anselmi said Johnston "represents the next generation of MLS coaches who have extensive playing experience in Europe and North America". Johnston's playing career included stints at Celtic, Rangers, and Everton before ending his career with the Kansas City Wizards of Major League Soccer. At the time of his hiring, Johnston claimed a "wonderful" assistant coach had already been hired while refusing to reveal the person's identity. This person was later revealed to be former U.S. National Team and Kansas City Wizards coach, Bob Gansler.

Assistant coaches

; Bob Gansler
:Previously, Gansler coached the Kansas City Wizards, winning the club's first MLS Cup in 2000 and the US Open Cup in 2004. He also coached the Milwaukee Rampage to the A-League title in 1997 and coached the United States national team to an appearance in the 1990 World Cup. He stepped down from his coaching position with the Wizards on July 19, 2006.
; Mike Matkovich
:Matkovich joins Toronto FC from the Chicago Magic Soccer Club of the Super Y League where he has been a part of the organization since starting the club in 1998 as the Director of Coaching. The Super Y League is the highest form of American and Canadian youth soccer and consists of over 100 teams, many of which are operated by clubs from MLS.
; Carmine Issaco
:Isacco was an all-American at Maryland and has represented Canada. Has been involved with youth soccer for many years and played at various levels of the professional and semi-pro level as well as stints in the NPSL and A-League. He is the goalkeeper coach for Toronto FC.

Current roster

''(Captain)''

In accordance with MLS policies, Toronto FC is restricted to an 18 man senior roster and a 10 man developmental roster. Like its American counterparts, the squad consists of both domestic and foreign players (though these domestic players are Canadian rather than American). The club is allowed the MLS-standard four senior foreign players (including Americans) as well as five younger foreign players. They are also allowed three additional foreign senior players who must be American. Thus the team is required to field fewer domestic players than its American counterparts.
Despite coach Johnston's claims he would "put all Canadians on the field" if he could, one club official stated that of the 18 man squad between 7 and 11 players will be Canadian. Canadian international Jim Brennan became the first player in club history on September 8, 2006. In addition, there are plans to develop a team-run youth academy where the team can develop local players and promote them to the senior team as is common in other countries. The team participated in the 2006 MLS Expansion Draft on November 17, 2006. The first player to be traded in team history was Canadian MF Adrian Serioux to FC Dallas for Irishman Ronnie O'Brien. Mo Johnston kept with the theme by also dealing Jason Kreis back to Real Salt Lake for an allocation and Will Hesmer and Danny O'Rourke to the Columbus Crew for another allocation. On Friday, January 12, 2007, Toronto used its first ever draft pick to select Maryland midfielder Maurice Edu No.1 overall at the 2007 MLS Super Draft, in Indianapolis.

Stadium

Main articles: BMO Field

Before the 2007 season started, construction was completed on a new stadium at Exhibition Place in Toronto called BMO Field where Toronto FC currently play. The stadium holds 20,195 people and is the largest soccer-specific stadium in Canada. It served as a major venue for the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup. The stadium is owned by the City of Toronto, while MLSE, the team's owner, operates it. The cost of the stadium is estimated at $62.5 million. MLS Commissioner Don Garber has stated that the 2008 MLS All-Star Game will take place at BMO Field, as will an MLS Cup by the year 2012.
On September 20, 2006, the official MLS website announced that BMO Financial Group had officially purchased the naming rights for the new stadium.

Toronto FC fans

Richard Peddie, CEO of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd. has stated that he and the ownership would be content with between 13,000-15,000 fans per game at Toronto FC home games, however, this range has been exceeded. The club capped their season tickets sales at 14,000 on March 15, 2007, setting a league record.
The fans have been called enthusiastic, but sometimes rowdy by North American standards. Toronto FC sent an email to season ticket holders asking fans to refrain from throwing objects on the field, or running onto the field. This was in response to the celebrations seen during the first victory against Chicago.
Toronto FC currently has many supporters groups throughout the stadium. Four groups are recognized by the club on their official website. These are known as U-Sector, the Red Patch Boys, the Northend Elite, and the Tribal Rhythm Nation.

U-Sector

Fans celebrate at a Toronto FC match

The U-Sector sits in section 113 of BMO Field. The group was created in 2000 as a supporters group for the Toronto Lynx. Originally known as the Toronto Ultras, the U-Sector got its name because the group was always in Section 'U' at the old Varsity Stadium during Lynx matches. The group also provides travelling support for the team to nearby MLS cities such as Boston, Chicago, New York and Columbus. It also made its presence felt at a friendly match between the U20 teams of Canada and the United States at Rogers Centre on July 7, 2006.

The Red Patch Boys

The Red Patch Boys are a fan-based organization based in sections 111 and 112 of BMO Field which they have termed the "The Bunker." The mandate of the Red Patch Boys (RPBs) is to support and promote Toronto FC throughout Canada and to help contribute to the atmosphere at all TFC home games, in addition to away games including Columbus, Chicago and many others. The group's name is based on the Canadian Maple Leaf and is derived from "Red Patch Devils", a nickname for the 1st Canadian Infantry Division mobilized at the outbreak of World War II. The name was modified because of fears that "Red Devils" was too closely associated with English club Manchester United to be suitable for a multi-cultural fan group.

The Northend Elite

The Northend Elite was created with the intent of bringing the south end of BMO Field atmosphere to the north end of the stadium. They are a passionate group who believe that regardless of what the score line indicates, their job is to cheer and support the team from the first minute to the last. They originated, and most of their members are in section 127, but some of their members can also be found at sections 126 & 226 and throughout the Northend of the stadium.

Tribal Rhythm Nation

This movement was created to bring a multi-cultural presence to Toronto FC games. The TRN represent African, Caribbean and Latin communities in the GTA. Their stated goal is to help create an energetic atmosphere at Toronto FC games through the use of drums and chanting.

GoTFC

GoTFC is a volunteer coordinated website of Toronto FC fans, not affiliated with any supporters group. On February 11, 2007, GoTFC donated a trophy to the winners of the inaugural Toronto FC Supporters' Cup tournament.

Season-by-season record

	Regular season							Playoffs
Season	W	L	T	PTS	GF	GA	GD	G	W	L	T	GF	GA	Result
2007	5	12	5	20	18	35	-17
MLS totals	5	12	5	20	18	35	-17

Recent facts

★ Danny Dichio scored the club's first goal in the 24th minute of their fifth game versus the Chicago Fire. Dichio, however, was red-carded later in the game in the 44th minute. This ended the second longest opening scoreless streak for a new club in Major League Soccer after Real Salt Lake. Toronto won the game 3-1, with additional goals by Maurice Edu and Kevin Goldthwaite. Game play was delayed several minutes as many fans threw seat cushions onto the field in celebration. The cushions had been a free give-away that day to commemorate the club's official opening weekend. Now, Toronto FC fans proudly sing Dichio's name in the 24th minute of every match.

★ Dichio's strike against Chicago won the voting for MLSnet.com's Sierra Mist Goal of the Week.

★ Jimmy Brennan's goal against Columbus was the first goal by a Canadian for Toronto FC, and won the voting for MLSnet.com's Sierra Mist Goal of the Week.

★ At the 6th minute of Toronto FC's loss to DC United on August 26th, Toronto FC broke the all time record of minutes without a goal at 558 minutes. The record was previously held by Real Salt Lake.

References

★ Toronto FC to join MLS lineup

Footnotes

# Toronto FC to join MLS fold in 2007
# Execs put on hot seat
# Toronto FC: Your questions answered
# Execs put on hot seat
# Toronto FC skipper understands pressure
# CBC signs broadcast deal with Toronto FC
# Mo Johnston named Toronto FC head coach
# Toronto FC names former Scottish standout Mo Johnston head coach
# MLS announces 2007 competition calendar and key dates
# Mo Johnston to coach Toronto
# Toronto FC names former Scottish standout Mo Johnston head coach
# Toronto FC signs Jim Brennan
# MLSnet.com Live Chat: Mo Johnston
# Toronto FC to add 10 players Nov. 17
# Trade flurry follows Toronto FC draft
# Construction Updates
# 'BMO Field' to be home of Toronto FC
# Major League Soccer paves the way for an expansion team in Toronto
# Toronto FC sold out on season seats
# Toronto FC makes it two wins in a row
# Fans & Affiliates
# U-Sector: A History
# USA Defeats Canada in U20 Friendly
# 55th Anniversary of the Italian Campaign
# 2007 Supporters' Cup - Results
# The Official Site of major League Soccer
# The Official Site of major League Soccer

External links

★ Official website

★ Official website of MLS

★ Supporters Photographs

★ Supporters Song Page

★ Go TFC - TFC news, opinions and rumors.

Supporters groups and forums

★ U-Sector, Supporters of Toronto FC

★ Red Patch Boys - Toronto FC Supporters Association

★ Toronto FC forum on BigSoccer

★ GoTFC

★ The North End Elite - Toronto FC Supporter Group

★ ULTRAS Toronto - TFC Support Unit

★ Tribal Rhythm Nation - Supporters club

Video

★ Press conference announcing the hiring of Mo Johnston (Click on "350k)"

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