The LA Galaxy didn’t know what to expect when they arrived to the Rose Bowl for their first ever game on April 13, 1996.
Players and staff were told that around 20,000 tickets were sold ahead of their first Major League Soccer home game against the New York/New Jersey MetroStars. Walk-up ticket buyers were expected to bring the attendance to around 30,000, roughly one-third the stadium’s capacity.
When the team bus approached the stadium, the players fell silent.
They knew it was a historic day for the club, the league, and the sport. Little did they know they’d be playing in front of 69,255 fans in Pasadena, the largest non-World Cup and non-Olympic crowd in Los Angeles history at the time.
“There was no space,” Dan Calichman, the team’s captain and current assistant coach, told LAGalaxy.com. “People shouting. As we entered the Rose Bowl, we were in disbelief. We were so excited. From that moment on the bus and seeing crowds of people, to hitting the locker room, to walking out onto the field — just an amazing experience. This thing is for real.”
When the players warmed up, security and fans began to rip the beige-colored tarps off sections that were now needed to seat the fans in the 90,000-plus capacity stadium. The Los Angeles Times reported that tickets were still being sold up to “three minutes before the final whistle” as Pasadena Police had to close off the freeway and turn away fans trying to get to the game after kickoff.
“The buzz that they created getting into the game, getting into the season was much bigger than they could have imagined,” Joe Tutino, long-time voice of the LA Galaxy and Public Address Announcer at the game, told LAGalaxy.com. “It was not just 69,255 for that game. The Galaxy drew well that whole season.”
A lot was at stake. The new league was building hype off the back of the 1994 FIFA World Cup. All stakeholders wanted the league to succeed and outlast previous attempts for professional soccer in the U.S.
Despite the potential pressure of performing in front of the large crowd with even more pressure of debuting the new league for the Los Angeles fan base, the players found ways to keep things loose.
“We joked around,” Calichman said. “Back at the Rose Bowl, there were soccer tennis tournaments happening inside the locker rooms pregame. Guys were confident and light. We looked around and thought we had a good group. We weren’t 100 percent sure, but we thought we had a good group, and guys kept it pretty light and focused on what their jobs were.”
The Galaxy didn’t leave the fans disappointed, securing a 2-1 victory over the MetroStars.
Cobi Jones scored the first-ever goal in Galaxy history, assisted by Ecuadorian forward Edward “El Tanque” Hurtado. Arash Noamouz dribbled through the MetroStars defense before scoring the eventual winner from just inside the top of the box. Giovanni Savarese scored the lone goal for New York to deny the Galaxy the shutout.
The Galaxy went on to start the season with 12 wins and no losses on their way to becoming Major League Soccer’s first ever Western Conference champion.
“We weren’t sure if this thing was going to last.” Calichman said. “We were all worried if we would have jobs in two years, three years. It was always in the back of our heads. We saw that crowd and walked out and looked around, and all these people are supporting [us]. I think there was excitement but there was also relief.
“This thing is here to stay.”
Thirty years and six MLS Cup championships later, the “thing” is still here.
