NEW YORK – They came in their tens, and their hundreds; in their thousands, then tens of thousands, they massed outside Yankee Stadium.
In the end, the first home crowd in New York City FC history numbered 43,507 and they made their presence felt with visceral force; they embodied everything that comes to mind when you think of a New York City sports fan. After scoring a goal, New York City FC's Patrick Mullins felt moved enough by the vehemence of this support to kiss the club’s badge.
These are New York City fans. Who are they? How did they come to support a brand-new team so fervently? I spoke with some of them before, during, and after Sunday’s game to find out. They each tell a story of how they came to be New York City fans.
My journey began in Astoria, Queens as I boarded the N train to head towards Yankee Stadium. That’s where I ran into Kyle Andrukiewicz, donning the team’s obsidian away jersey.
“I’d been a US men’s national team fan, then I became an English soccer fan – Everton, because of [US goalkeeper] Tim Howard,” Andrukiewicz said. “When New York City got their own team, I’d kind of been testing the waters with MLS. It’s cool to get in on the ground floor."
I asked who his favorite player was. He named two.
“Khiry Shelton, because he came out so strong in that first game [vs. Orlando City] in the second half; we wouldn't have scored without him coming out there," Andrukiewicz said. "[Goalkeeper] Josh Saunders, because he's a man among men now ... He just kept playing with this giant lump growing out of his head [after colliding with the goal post]. As soon as he did that, I was like, 'I found my new Tim Howard!'. That was a defining moment in the team's first game, that toughness.”
Andrukiewicz was accompanied by friends. We arrived at the Lexington Avenue-59th Street subway stop, where we were joined by more New York City fans traveling to the Bronx. There, I ran into Nicholas DiRoma.
“It's been a long wait, but it's finally here," DiRoma said. "Couldn't be more excited. I'm an optimist, so I'm looking at a 2-1 win, but I'm just happy to get this first game over with and behind us; this is a big moment for New York City soccer.”
I asked DiRoma why he’d never signed on with the Red Bulls. He quickly corrected me.
“I was a Red Bulls fan for the past few years," he said. "Once this team was announced – I mean, I'm not a Man City supporter, but once I saw their mission to bring a team in the city, I was on board. I'm a humongous Yankees fan, so playing in Yankee Stadium, while not ideal, it's good for me, because I spend a lot of time in the summer there anyway – so this is a perfect choice.”
DiRoma was accompanied by his friend, William Ferguson and I asked him to give me an elevator pitch to potential New York City fans.
“Good team on the pitch, an ownership group that cares, and you got a crazy fanbase here that's been waiting for this," he said. "I've been waiting anxiously since they announced it, but really I've been waiting for a team like this for five or six years, you know?”
As we all arrived at Yankee Stadium, we parted ways. Even two hours before the game, fans were gathering in expectation outside the snow-white walls of the stadium New York City FC will call home for the foreseeable future. I peeked inside the Yankees’ team store, where New York City merchandise was literally getting snapped up by fans as quickly as the store staff could put it on the shelves.
Inside the colosseum, New York City FC fans weren’t the only ones there; the visiting New England Revolution had a considerable number of supporters at Sunday’s game as well. Jamie Rees was one of them.
A fan for nearly 15 years from Lexington, Massachusetts, Rees' faith in the club was rewarded when the Revs made the MLS Cup Final last season. I asked her if she had any advice for the nascent New York City fans.
“Just stick with it. That’s what I’d say. I was a season ticket holder, for the first time when we were last in the league, and that was tough – but it was fun to go see some soccer. So if you like your team, eventually they'll come through for you.”
That message was directed at the likes of Laura Dvorkin. She's a new NYCFC supporter, but she and her husband aren’t new to the sport.
“I feel like its great that New York has a team now! We don't really follow [American] football, so soccer is our thing," Dvorkin said. "We occasionally watch the European leagues, like the [English] Premier League; we travel a lot, and wherever we go, we try to go and see a soccer game. We went to the World Cup for our honeymoon; we went to Rio, Salvador, and Belo Horizonte.”
I asked Dvorkin how exactly she and her husband became New York City FC fans.
“My husband was the one who came home and was like, 'We gotta do this!’. I was like, 'OK, amazing!' He was like, 'What kind of tickets do you want?' And I said, if we're doing it, we're going to be in the supporters' section.”
- The latest City headlines from NYCFC.com
That’s where they headed, where they were joined by hundreds of other members of the Third Rail, one of several New York City supporters’ groups.
The game began. It see-sawed back and forth until the 19th minute when team captain
David Villa
scored a gorgeous goal, dancing through a forest of New England defenders with deceptive simplicity
(WATCH IT HERE)
. The fans roared with pleasure. The second half saw New York City dominate New England, with Mullins scoring in the 84th minute to clinch the win
(WATCH IT HERE)
.
After the game, I ran into Andres Tedesco, flushed with the joy of victory.
“I personally feel really proud, and I feel identified with this team," he said. "I was just waiting for this to happen, I've liked soccer all my life.”
He continued: “Every single emotion you've had in your life, you come to the stadium, and you suffer for your team, you're happy for your team, and you cry for your team. It's just an amazing feeling to come to the field, and actually experience the game.”
Smiling broadly, Tedesco left with the rest of his merry band of fans, singing "olés" all the way down. Outside, the the Bronx streets resounded with shouts of elation and jubilation serenading the team within.
That’s who the NYCFC supporters are: real New Yorkers, whether native to the boroughs or not, utterly comfortable with demanding and expecting the best. In Villa, they have a star worthy of their praise; in New York City FC, they may just have a team worthy of their attention.
