Mike Petke

The new stadium has been built. Now the New York Red Bulls have to construct a worthy team. New York went a Major League Soccer-worst 5-19-6 last year, just one more than the MLS record for fewest wins in a season, and skidded to a 6-21-7 mark overall. Coach Juan Carlos Osorio was fired in August and his interim replacement, Richie Williams, was succeeded by former Notts County manager Hans Backe. Backe combines with sporting director Erik Soler to form a new management for a perennially...Read Full Story

The league’s first game was an eye opener, but in a good way.  The  Seattle Sounders , an MLS expansion team , managed to sell 32,000 tickets for their first home game against last year’s MLS Cup finalists, Red Bull New York.  They also managed to make the Red Bulls look like the expansion team, by crushing them for an emphatic 3-0 win, and generally giving the fans in Seattle something to cheer about, again, and again.   Freddy Montero , the Sounders’ 21 year old Colombian striker was the...Read Full Story

Conor Chinn scored two first-half goals and the New York Red Bulls beat the Philadelphia Union 2-1 on Tuesday night in the opening round of Major League Soccer qualifying for the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Chinn gave the Red Bulls the lead in the 16th minute, punching in the rebound after his first attempt caromed off Philadelphia goalie Chris Seitz. The rookie forward, selected in the third round of this year's draft, scored again in the 41st minute, converting a crossing pass from Luke...Read Full Story

Hans Backe apparently thinks so little of the U.S. Open Cup that he didn’t even bother to travel with the purposefully short-handed New York Red Bulls, who lost in their quarterfinal match to the Chicago Fire 4-0 on Tuesday. The Red Bulls, who only travelled with 14 players, were outplayed from start to finish as Dominic Oduro scored in the 7th minute and the Fire finished off their reserve-laden opponents with three second-half goals. Yamith Cuesta scored in the 48th minute and Orr Barouch...Read Full Story

New York Red Bulls defender Mike Petke has been suspended two games and fined $500 for inappropriate comments toward an officiating crew. Major League Soccer announced the penalties Tuesday. The comments came during the Red Bulls' 2-1 loss at Toronto FC on June 13. The suspension and fine are in addition to an automatic one-game suspension he received for getting a red card and the automatic fine of $750 for two cautions, which resulted in an ejection. Petke's fines total $1,250. He'll miss...Read Full Story