New York Cosmos (2025)

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New York Cosmos
New York Cosmos (2025).svg
FoundedFebruary 14, 2025;5 months ago (2025-02-14)
Ground
Capacity7,500
Owner
League
Website thecosmos.us

The New York Cosmos (also known as simply the Cosmos) are a professional soccer club based in Paterson, New Jersey. The club is majority-owned by Baye Adofo-Wilson, and plans to field a men's team in USL League One in 2026, and a women's team in the USL Super League in 2027. A phoenix club, it is the third iteration of the Cosmos, after the original team, which played from 1971 to 1985, and its immediate predecessor, which played parts of six seasons between 2013 and 2020.

Contents

History

Background

The original New York Cosmos was founded in 1970 by ten executives from Atlantic Records and its parent company Warner Communications, most notably Atlantic's Ahmet and Nesuhi Ertegun and Warner's CEO Steve Ross. [1] They began play in the original North American Soccer League (NASL), and signed international superstars such as Pelé and Franz Beckenbauer. [2] [3] Although the club was largely successful, having won the league five times, the club folded in 1985 after the NASL's demise and floundering attendance for their Major Indoor Soccer League team. [4] [5]

The second iteration of the Cosmos in Shuart Stadium 2013 Cosmos home match.jpg
The second iteration of the Cosmos in Shuart Stadium

With Major League Soccer's (MLS) rise at the turn of the century, the league sought a second club in the New York metropolitan area alongside the New York Red Bulls, preferably one that could revive the Cosmos name. [6] [7] [8] A group funded by the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia bought the Cosmos name and logo. They announced a new Cosmos club with ambitions to join MLS but shortly thereafter declined the league's offer to join (New York City FC would take the spot). The second Cosmos instead began play in the revived second-division NASL in 2013. [9] [10] Despite winning the league three times, the second Cosmos was plagued by low attendance and poor financial management [11] [12] [13] and went on two prolonged hiatuses; once in 2017 after the revived NASL's demise, and again in 2021 following half a season in the National Independent Soccer Association. [14] The Cosmos continued to exist as a legal entity and clothing brand, and were involved in the NASL's lawsuit against the MLS and U.S. Soccer over a sanctioning dispute, which was eventually lost in February 2025. [15]

Foundation

After obtaining franchise rights for a USL League One team in February 2025, [16] [17] North Jersey Pro Soccer, a group based in the city of Paterson, New Jersey led by Baye Adofo-Wilson, purchased a majority stake in the Cosmos, [18] [19] and full ownership of the club's intellectual property. [18] [19] The Cosmos branding was unveiled in July. [20] The club plans to field a men's team into USL League One in its 2026 season, and a women's team into the USL Super League in its 2027–28 season. [19] [21]

Organization

The club is owned by real estate developer Baye Adofo-Wilson and former Red Bull and second Cosmos executive Erik Stover. Rocco B. Commisso, who had held the rights to the Cosmos' name and identity from 2017 onwards and is the majority owner of Serie A's ACF Fiorentina, is a minority owner of the club. [19] In July 2025, Giuseppe Rossi, a New Jersey native who would go on to play 30 times for the Italian national football team, joined the club as a vice chairman and director of soccer. [22]

Branding

When the branding of the New York Cosmos was announced in July 2025, it was revealed that the club would be utilizing a more modernized approach to the classic crest, still retaining the typical green, yellow, and blue color scheme used by Cosmos clubs. [23] The name "New York" was dropped, leaving only the moniker "Cosmos" on the badge. [24] [25]

New Jersey-based sportswear company Capelli Sport will supply the team's uniforms and training gear. [26]

Stadium

Hinchliffe Stadium (pictured) before it was redeveloped, with Great Falls in the foreground. Hinchliffe Stadium November 2020.jpg
Hinchliffe Stadium (pictured) before it was redeveloped, with Great Falls in the foreground.

The Cosmos will play at Hinchliffe Stadium, [27] a 7,500 capacity multi-purpose stadium in Paterson, being able to host baseball, football, and track events. Hinchliffe Stadium, a part of the surrounding Great Falls National Historical Park, was built in 1932, and reopened in 2023 following a renovation required after a period of neglect that started when the stadium was abandoned in 1997. [28] One of only six Negro League stadiums still standing, [29] Hinchliffe Stadium is currently hosts to the New Jersey Jackals, a baseball team that plays in the independent Frontier League and the Paterson Board of Education's two local high schools. Historically, Hinchliffe hosted Negro League teams such as the New York Black Yankees and New York Cubans. [30] The stadium also has soccer history, having hosted the American Soccer League's New Jersey Eagles in 1988 and 1989. [31]

References

  1. ↑ Newsham, Gavin (December 2007). Once in a Lifetime: The Incredible Story of the New York Cosmos. Grove Atlantic. pp. 21, 22. ISBN   978-0802142887.
  2. ↑ Ben Green (December 30, 2022). "Pele's legendary career told in numbers: Just how good was Brazil's emblematic forward?". squawka.com.
  3. ↑ Yannis, Alex (May 25, 1977). "Cosmos Will Sign Beckenbauer For 4 Years, $2.8 Million Today". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved July 10, 2025.
  4. ↑ Whitney, David. "North American Soccer League". RSSSF . Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
  5. ↑ "COSMOS FOLD INDOOR SQUAD". The New York Times . February 23, 1985. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
  6. ↑ Borg, Simon (December 5, 2012). "Borough Boys stoke RBNY rivalry: "They don't like us"". mlssoccer.com. Major League Soccer. Retrieved November 10, 2017.
  7. ↑ Borg, Simon (November 16, 2010). "MLS focused on making NY club its 20th team". dcunited.com. Major League Soccer. Retrieved September 13, 2021.
  8. ↑ @DaveMartinezNY (December 21, 2018). "Nope. But to the other tweet Leo sent out, Garber actually said long ago - if there was going to be another NY team, it would be the Cosmos. LONG ago. So ya - had Cosmos achieved the dream, it would have been very hard for MLS to ignore the history and infrastructure" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  9. ↑ O'Brien, Seamus (July 12, 2012). "New York Cosmos Returns to NASL". nycosmos.com. New York City: New York Cosmos. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
  10. ↑ O'Mard, Marcus Kwesi (July 12, 2012). "Report: New York Cosmos Plan to Make NASL Return in 2013". Watertown, Massachusetts: New England Sports Network . Retrieved July 12, 2012.
  11. ↑ Martinez, Dave. "Cosmos in Crisis: Late Pay, Furloughs cast team's future in doubt". Empire of Soccer. Archived from the original on December 2, 2016. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  12. ↑ Prince-Wright, Joe (November 28, 2016). "Report: New York Cosmos on brink of collapse, again". NBC Sports. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  13. ↑ Bell, Jack (November 10, 2013). "Cosmos Rewind: Champions Again". The New York Times.
  14. ↑ Bob Williams. "New York Cosmos to join third-tier league NISA | SportBusiness" . Retrieved November 25, 2019.
  15. ↑ McCann, Michael (February 3, 2025). "U.S. Soccer, MLS Win $500M Antitrust Trial Over NASL". Sportico.com. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
  16. ↑ "Paterson's Hinchliffe will be home to new men's, women's USL pro soccer teams" . Retrieved February 18, 2025.
  17. ↑ "United Soccer League, North Jersey Pro Soccer to Bring Professional Soccer to Paterson, New Jersey" . Retrieved February 14, 2025.
  18. 1 2 "New York Cosmos return". Hudson River Blue. July 10, 2025. Archived from the original on July 11, 2025. Retrieved July 11, 2025.
  19. 1 2 3 4 Rueter, Jeff (July 10, 2025). "New York Cosmos revived as USL expansion club in New Jersey" . The Athletic . Archived from the original on July 10, 2025. Retrieved July 10, 2025. The group bought the intellectual property as well as primary ownership of the club from Rocco Commisso, with the Fiorentina owner holding "a small ownership stake."
  20. ↑ "NY Cosmos to compete in USL League One in 2026; historic Hinchliffe Stadium is the new home". News 12 - Default. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
  21. ↑ Malinconico, Joe (February 18, 2025). "Paterson's Hinchliffe will be home to new men's, women's USL pro soccer teams" . Paterson Press . Archived from the original on July 11, 2025. Retrieved July 11, 2025. Two professional soccer teams will be playing their home games at Paterson's Hinchliffe Stadium, with a men's squad starting in 2026 and a women's club in 2027...
  22. ↑ "North Jersey Pro Soccer (NJPS) names local legend and former Italian national team star Giuseppe Rossi as vice chairman and head of soccer". New York Cosmos. Retrieved July 11, 2025.
  23. ↑ "True Blue: Threads Through Time". www.nycosmos.com. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
  24. ↑ "New York Cosmos: Pele and Franz Beckenbauer's old club in USA revived". BBC Sport. July 11, 2025.
  25. ↑ Rueter, Jeff (July 10, 2025). "New York Cosmos revived as USL expansion club in New Jersey". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved July 10, 2025.
  26. ↑ Battista, Michael (July 16, 2025). "Cosmos CEO Erik Stover: 'You need good versus evil'". Hudson River Blue. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
  27. ↑ "Professional soccer coming to Paterson's historic Hinchliffe Stadium" . Retrieved February 14, 2025.
  28. ↑ Harrington, John (June 3, 2025). "Wellpoint New Jersey, Jackals to rename field at historic Hinchliffe Stadium". ROI-NJ. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
  29. ↑ Enelow-Snyder, Sarah (February 3, 2025). "Negro Leagues Baseball Sites Are Finally Getting the Recognition They Deserve". AFAR Media. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
  30. ↑ Hartnett, Bill (November 18, 2024). "$100 Million Restoration Paterson's Hinchliffe Stadium Wins 2024 National Preservation Award". Jersey Digs. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
  31. ↑ Battista, Michael (February 14, 2025). "Professional soccer coming to Paterson's historic Hinchliffe Stadium". Hudson River Blue. Retrieved July 13, 2025.
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