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D.C. United

1997 season
General manager	Dave Kasper
Head coach	Bruce Arena
Stadium	RFK Stadium
MLS	Conference: 1st Overall: 1st
MLS Cup	Champions
U.S. Open Cup	Runners-Up
CONCACAF Champions' Cup	Third place
Top goalscorer	League: All: Jaime Moreno (16)
Home colors Away colors Third colors
← 19961998 →

The 1997 D.C. United season was the clubs' third year of existence, as well as their second season in Major League Soccer. United successfully defended its MLS Cup title, becoming the first club to win consecutive league championships until the Houston Dynamo in 2007. United also won its first Supporters' Shield as the team with the best regular-season record, earning their first league "double" by winning the regular season and playoffs. The team also finished as runners-up in the 1997 U.S. Open Cup final, played in Indinapolis three days after United won MLS Cup 1997 at its home stadium, RFK Memorial Stadium in Washington, D.C. In international play, United qualified for the 1997 CONCACAF Champions' Cup, which was primarily played in Washington, D.C., and were eliminated in the semifinals by the Los Angeles Galaxy; the team ultimately shared third place with C.D. Guadalajara after a tie in the third-place match.

Background

The 1996 Major League Soccer season was both Major League Soccer and D.C. United's debut season, which resulted in United winning the inaugural MLS Cup championship match.

Review

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Competitions

Preseason

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Major League Soccer

Conference standings

Overall standings

Results summary

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Results by round

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Game reports

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MLS Cup Playoffs

Bracket

• The ties were a best of three series.

Conference semifinals

October 5 Game 1	D.C. United	4–1	New England Revolution	Washington, D.C.
	Wegerle 13', 56' Moreno 65', 76'		Burns 89'	Stadium: RFK Stadium Attendance: 12,540 Referee: Tim Weyland

October 8 Game 2	New England Revolution	1–1 (a.e.t.) (3–4 SO)	D.C. United	Foxborough, Massachusetts
	Moore 72'	Report	Williams 53'	Stadium: Foxboro Stadium Attendance: 16,233 Referee: Tim Weyland

D.C. United won the series 2–0.

Conference finals

October 12 Game 1	D.C. United	3–2	Columbus Crew	Washington, D.C.
	Sanneh 9', 45' Díaz Arce 29'		Farrell 57' Dooley 73'	Stadium: RFK Stadium Attendance: 11,820 Referee: Kevin Terry

October 15 Game 2	D.C. United	1–0	Columbus Crew	Columbus, Ohio
	Díaz Arce 47'			Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 9,506 Referee: Arturo Angeles

D.C. United won the series 2–0.

MLS Cup

October 26 Final	D.C. United	2–1	Colorado Rapids	Washington, D.C.
	Moreno 37' Sanneh 68'		Paz 75'	Stadium: RFK Stadium Attendance: 57,431 Referee: Brian Hall

U.S. Open Cup

August 19, 1997 (1997-08-19) Quarterfinals	D.C. United	2–0	Tampa Bay Mutiny	Washington, D.C., United States
	Etcheverry 84' Iroha 89'			Stadium: RFK Stadium

September 3, 1997 (1997-09-03) Semifinals	San Francisco Bay Seals	1–2	D.C. United	Stockton, California
	White 84'		Moreno 2' (pen.) Díaz Arce 62'	Stadium: Stagg Memorial Stadium Attendance: 3,470

October 29, 1997 (1997-10-29) Final	Dallas Burn	0–0 (a.e.t.) (5–3 p)	D.C. United	Indianapolis
19:00 EDT				Stadium: Carroll Stadium Attendance: 9,766 Referee: Rich Grady
	Penalties
	Damián Kreis Sutter Peinado Rodríguez		Etcheverry Díaz Arce Moreno Iroha

CONCACAF Champions' Cup

Bracket

	Quarterfinals					Semifinals					Final
		D.C. United	1
		United Petrotrin	0
							D.C. United	0
							LA Galaxy	1
		LA Galaxy	2
		Luis Ángel Firpo	0
												LA Galaxy	3
												Cruz Azul	5
		Guadalajara	1
		Cartaginés	0
							Guadalajara	2
							Cruz Azul	3
		Cruz Azul	5
		Comunicaciones	0

Match results

August 12, 1997 (1997-08-12) Quarterfinals	D.C. United	1–0	United Petrotrin	Washington, D.C., United States
	Etcheverry 84'	Report		Stadium: RFK Stadium

August 22, 1997 (1997-08-22) Semifinals	D.C. United	0–1	LA Galaxy	Washington, D.C., United States
		Report	Jones 10'	Stadium: RFK Stadium

August 24, 1997 (1997-08-24) Consolation match	D.C. United	2–2	Guadalajara	Washington, D.C., United States
	Díaz Arce 40' Iroha 89'	Report	Acosta 55' Sánchez 86' (pen.)	Stadium: RFK Stadium
Note: Match stood as a draw

Statistics

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Transfers

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References

1. Schaerlaeckens, Leander (August 3, 2011). "Odds against defending MLS title". ESPN. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
2. Hall, Andy (October 16, 2024). "Which MLS teams have won a league and Supporters' Shield double?". Diario AS. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
3. Hayes, Tom (October 29, 1997). "D.C. is dethroned in Open Cup Final". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
4. Goff, Steven (August 25, 1997). "Cruz Azul captures Champions Cup, 5–3". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
5. Yannis, Alex (October 21, 1996). "United Rallies, Slides and Heads Its Way to First Title". The New York Times. p. C7. Archived from the original on May 9, 2019. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
6. ^ "1997 Major League Soccer Scores & Fixtures". FBref. Retrieved November 1, 2024.

See also

• 1997 in American soccer
• 1997 Major League Soccer season
• List of D.C. United seasons

• D.C. United seasons
• American soccer clubs 1997 season
• 1997 MLS season by team
• 1997 in sports in Washington, D.C.
• MLS Cup champion seasons
• MLS Eastern Conference champion seasons
• Supporters' Shield winning seasons