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Minnesota United FC is an American professional soccer team based in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area in Minnesota. Founded in 2010, the team plays in the North American Soccer League (NASL), a professional league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation. The team won the 2011 NASL championship. On March 25, 2015, Major League Soccer announced it had selected Minnesota United as an expansion team, to begin play in 2017 or 2018.〔http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2015/03/25/mls-commissioner-don-garber-minneapolis-represents-everything-spurring-growt〕 The team has historically played its home games at the National Sports Center in Blaine, Minnesota, 18 miles north of Minneapolis. The team's colors are sky blue, grey, and black with a red accent. The current head coach is Manny Lagos. ==History== The National Sports Center began considering fielding a Division 2 men's professional soccer team in December 2009. The then current team, the Minnesota Thunder, were tenants of the National Sports Center and were struggling through financial difficulties.〔From news services (November 11, 2009) "NSC plans don't include Thunder" ''Saint Paul Pioneer Press''〕 In January 2010, the National Sports Center announced they would field a new team to replace the Minnesota Thunder. The Thunder at the time were not officially folded but were facing financial ruin.〔Leighton, Tim (January 8, 2010) "Soccer – New team will replace Thunder" ''Saint Paul Pioneer Press''〕 Following a team-naming contest, the National Sports Center (NSC) announced the official team name would be NSC Minnesota, with the team nickname being Stars on February 5, 2010. The team played its first official game on April 11, 2010, a 2–0 loss to the Vancouver Whitecaps.〔LA VAQUE, DAVID (April 25, 2010) "Stars launch franchise with a win – The team, the successor to the Thunder, scored its first goal on a penalty kick and made it hold up." ''Star Tribune''〕 The first goal in franchise history was scored by Daniel Wasson in their next game, a 1–0 victory over the Carolina RailHawks. The Stars enjoyed some impressive victories in their debut season, including a 3–1 win over Crystal Palace Baltimore, a 3–0 win over AC St. Louis, and a 3–1 win over FC Tampa Bay, eventually finishing fourth in their conference. Unfortunately for the Stars, they went out of the playoffs at the quarter final stage, 4–0 on aggregate to the Carolina RailHawks, after defender Andres Arango was issued a red card after just 38 minutes. Simone Bracalello and Brian Cvilikas were the Stars' top scorers in 2010, with 5 goals each. The team averaged an attendance of 1,374 which was 10th out of the 12 league teams.〔 The Stars announced that for the 2011 season the team would no longer be owned by the National Sports Center but by the North American Soccer League. The U.S. Soccer Federation created ownership standards where the owner must have a net worth of at least US$20 million and the National Sports Center did not meet that criteria. The NASL committed to owning the team for three years. The team set a budget of $2 million based on the goal of average 1,000 fans per game. By June 5 the team was in second place but a four-game losing streak as part of a 0–6–1 stretch sent the team in a slump before finishing with the sixth and final playoff spot. The Stars knocked off the Tampa Bay Rowdies 1–0 in the quarterfinals before defeating the first seed Carolina RailHawks on penalty kicks after the two-legged series ended 4–4. A 3–1 home victory was enough to win the NASL championship after the second leg ended in a 0–0 draw.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url= http://www.nasl.com/index.php?id=12 )〕 The team averaged around 1,700 fans during the season but drew 2,500 for the playoff semifinals and 4,511 for the final home leg. On January 9, 2012, the club announced a new logo as well as a new name. The NSC portion of the name, which had led to confusion, was dropped, with the new name being the Minnesota Stars FC. The new logo was revealed with the word 'NSC' removed and the state motto, ''L’Étoile du Nord'', added. The team continued a search for a new owner in the offseason and opened the 2012 season with a 0–0 draw against the Carolina RailHawks at the Metrodome in front of a crowd of 8,693. Minnesota faced an October 27, 2012 deadline to find new ownership to ensure a place in the NASL for the 2013 season. At the time the Minnesota Vikings expressed interest in professional soccer in Minnesota but were not contemplating purchasing the Stars.〔Steger, Cody (October 4, 2012) "Desperately seeking an owner – League title wasn't enough; Stars are on bubble to remain in soccer league", ''Saint Paul Pioneer Press''〕 The league planned to vote on whether or not to fund the team for the 2013 season after the conclusion of the 2012 season. The USSF requirement that owners of a Division II team to be worth at least $20 million and a potential MLS bid by the Minnesota Vikings were seen as possible deterrents to finding a potential new owner.〔La Vaque, David (October 27, 2012) "As Stars go for title, their future goes up for a vote – The NASL board is expected to decide Saturday whether to fund the league-owned team for another year." ''Star Tribune''〕 On November 9, 2012 the league officially announced that the team was purchased by Bill McGuire. On March 5, 2013, that was followed up by the team rebranding with the name Minnesota United FC. The $1.2 million budget that the Stars were operating on was expanded and the staff size increased to 20 employees for the start of the 2013 season,〔Greder, Andy (March 6, 2013) "Can local soccer soar with new name, deep pockets?" ''Saint Paul Pioneer Press''〕 and has since more than doubled. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Minnesota United FC」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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