In early 2019, the Houston Dynamo were the laughing stock of MLS. Fresh off an embarrassing 17th-place finish in MLS and hamstrung by some of the lowest attendances in the league, Houston felt like a team that was fading right as MLS was finally finding its stride.
The next few years weren’t any better. While a few new owners – real estate magnate Ted Segal and NBA star James Harden among them – quietly joined the backroom staff, performances on the field continued to suffer. In 2020 and 2021, Houston suffered the ignominy of back-to-back last-place finishes in MLS.
Today, things are changing. Today, Houston is the reigning U.S. Open Cup champion, defeating a cresting Inter Miami side to bring the trophy back to Texas for the first time since 2018. It’s also sitting pretty in fourth place in the Western Conference with a playoff spot all but guaranteed.
