Empire Supporters Club
Encyclopedia
| Empire Supporters Club | |
| Motto | "Soy del Metro " |
| Teams | New York Red Bulls |
| Location | New York/New Jersey Metro Area New York City New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and... |
| Established | 1995 |
| Website | EmpireSupportersClub.com |
The Empire Supporters Club, or ESC, is the oldest supporters club in Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
and the largest supporters club dedicated to the New York Red Bulls of Major League Soccer.
History
The club was founded in 1995 by members of the New York City Firm (NYCF), a supporters group for the short-lived A-League New York CentaursNew York Centaurs
The New York Centaurs were an A-League professional soccer club, based in New York City. The team played only one season in 1995. The New York Fever of the USISL Pro League, debuted in 1994, playing two seasons in the league before merging with the Centaurs organization in 1996...
, in anticipation of a Major League Soccer franchise starting play in the New York/New Jersey metro area. To reflect the initial franchise name, Empire Soccer Club, the supporters chose to name themselves the Empire Supporters Club. By the start of the inaugural year the team owners had elected to call the team the New York / New Jersey MetroStars.
Since its founding, the variety of backgrounds amongst club members has influenced the style of the group in the stands. The end result is a mix of South American Barra, European Ultra, British Supporter and American flavor with the members singing in both English and Spanish.
Prior to New York Red Bulls home matches in the past, the ESC tailgate
Tailgate party
In the United States, a tailgate party is a social event held on and around the open tailgate of a vehicle. Tailgating often involves consuming alcoholic beverages and grilling food. Tailgate parties usually occur in the parking lots at stadiums and arenas, before and occasionally after games and...
took place in parking lot 16-A at Giants Stadium
Giants Stadium
Giants Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium, located in East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA, in the Meadowlands Sports Complex. Maximum seating capacity was 80,242. The building itself was 230.5 m long, 180.5 m wide and 44 m high from service level to the top of the seating bowl and 54 m high to...
. Starting in the 2010 season, the official game day pub of the club is El Pastor Restaurant in Newark, NJ. During games, supporters stood in section 101 of Giants Stadium, directly above the player's entrance tunnel, and supported the club with songs and chants. Section 101 is also where the ESC now stands at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, NJ. 101 is the middle of 3 sections composing the supporters end known as the "South Ward."
In addition to its base membership, the ESC acts as an umbrella organization for a variety of smaller groups, including a revived NYCF, Sparta Metro Firm, MDS, Cobra Kai Metro Firm, La Banda Imperial, Hub City Hooligans, Metro Ultras. The New York Red Bulls two other largest supporters groups, Garden State Supporters and Viking Army can trace their roots back to the ESC as well. It is not uncommon for members of the ESC to hold dual memberships with any of the other New York Red Bulls supporters clubs. Many of these same supporters have joined independent US men's national team supporters clubs like the North Jersey Brigade, Sam's Army and the American Outlaws.
For most away games and US men's national team
United States men's national soccer team
The United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...
games, the ESC organizes viewing parties, usually at the Football Factory in Legends in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. The club also handles away ticketing and transportation for many away matches (particularly matches against neighboring teams New England Revolution
New England Revolution
The New England Revolution is an American professional association football club based in Foxborough, Massachusetts which competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada...
, D.C. United
D.C. United
D.C. United is an American professional soccer club based in Washington, D.C. which competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. It is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, having competed in the league since its inception, in 1996.Over the...
, and the new Philadelphia Union franchise).
Songs
The ESC has performed hundreds of chants throughout the years. The ESC chants in both EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
because of the large number of Spanish speakers in the group. Popular English songs include "We Love You", "As Long As I'm Breathing", "Everywhere We Go", "I Believe", and "No Cojones". Popular Spanish songs include "Soy del Metro", "Baila Hinchada Baila", "Ole Ole Ola", "El Que no Salta" and "Metro, Mi Buen Amigo". Covers of songs such as The Ramones' "I Wanna Be Sedated
I Wanna Be Sedated
"I Wanna Be Sedated" is a song by the American punk rock band the Ramones. It is one of the band's best known songs. It was originally released on their fourth album, Road to Ruin, in September 1978 and was the b-side of the UK single "She's the One" released on January 10, 1979. The song was later...
" are also included, though personalized for the support. To maintain cohesion, most chants are started by designated supporters in the section, leading the club in song when needed.
With the building of the team's own stadium, Red Bull Arena, the supporters have become much closer to the general public, in both communication and proximity. Sitting mere feet from the goal, and surrounded on all sides by unaffiliated fans, the club is able to encourage, and often lead, the surrounding crowds in song. The atmosphere the club helps create is improved in the arena as sound carries much more under the roof as compared to Giants Stadium.
Philanthropy
With the team's new arena and a local restaurant acting as supporters' home, the Empire Supporters Club has begun reaching out to the community by hosting or participating in charity events.In both 2009 and 2010 the club played in the Downtown United Soccer Club's annual supporter's club charity soccer tournament in support of the City Soccer Initiative.
In August 2010 the club used its home venue at El Pastor in Newark to host a fundraiser for Joe Vide
Joe Vide
Joe Vide is an American soccer player.-Amateur:Vide attended high school while playing for TSV Munich 1860's youth team in Munich, Germany. He played four years at the University of Virginia as a defensive midfielder and became a regular for the Cavaliers by his senior year...
, an ex-player diagnosed with cancer.
February 2011, a month before the start of the 2011 MLS season, saw the ESC men's soccer team play in the inaugural South Ward Football Challenge, winning the Spanish Pavilion Cup. The tournament saw teams representing the ESC, Garden State Supporters, Viking Army supporters and NY Red Bull front office play for the cup and bring in both cash and equipment donations for Balls Without Borders and the U.S. Soccer Foundation.