Full Name: Philadelphia Union City: Philadelphia Founded: 2010 Stadium: PPL Park (18,500) Colors: Navy Blue, Light Blue, Gold Rivals: DC United, New York Red Bulls
Introduction:
Major League Soccer's newest expansion team are the Philadelphia Union, the 16th team to join the US and Canada-based league. Union are the first Pennsylvania-based club to join the league and the first major professional soccer team in Philadelphia since the 1980 demise of the Philadelphia Fury of the NASL. Union are expected to spark up rivalries with Northeast neighbors DC United and New York Red Bulls, both of which are less than 3 hours drive from Philadelphia, practically a derby in the American sports landscape.
The Philadelphia Union name pays tribute to the central importance of the city of Philadelphia in the founding of the United States, the "union" of 13 formerly British colonies. Both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, the nation's founding documents, were composed in Philadelphia. The name was chosen in a "name the team" competition over other options AC Philadelphia, SC Philadelphia and Philadelphia City.
Philadelphia Union Colors:
Philadelphia Union colors of navy blue and gold pay tribute to the similarly-colored Continental Army of the United States. The light blue is a nod both to the city of Philadelphia, whose principal city colors are light blue and gold, and to the Sons of Ben, a Union supporters group formed before the club started and who had adopted light blue and gold colors.
Philadelphia Union Logo:
The Philadelphia Union logo is circular (representing unity) and includes 13 stars, representing the original 13 colonies that formed the United States of America. The shield in the center references the similarly-shaped shield in the Philadelphia coat of arms while the rattlesnake dates back to an 18th century political cartoon by Benjamin Franklin, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States and early leader of Philadelphia. The rattlesnake in the cartoon represented the dangers of disunity for the American colonies and featured in many early flags and symbols of the United States.
Benjamin Franklin is also referred to by the Philadelphia Union supporters group - the Sons of Ben.
PPL Park:
PPL Park is located in Chester, PA, a suburb of Philadelphia about 15 miles south of the city center. The stadium is in the Chester Waterfront neighborhood on the banks of the Delaware River. PPL Park is named for PPL, the Pennslyvania-based utility company who sponsors the Philadelphia Union stadium. PPL Park is also home to the Philadelphia Independence of Women's Professional Soccer.
The first two home matches of the 2010 season were played at Lincoln Financial Field while construction was completed on PPL Park. Lincoln Financial Field is home to the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles. The first home game at PPL Park was on June 27, 2010.
Sports map specialist Bill Turianski contributes an article to Albion Road roughly once a month, bringing us something from his collection of sports maps.
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