# 1996 New England Revolution season

The 1996 New England Revolution season was the inaugural season for the New England Revolution both as a club and in Major League Soccer (MLS). The team finished last out of five teams in the Eastern Conference, missing the MLS Cup Playoffs. Following the team's last game of the season, head coach Frank Stapleton resigned on September 26, 1996. He was replaced by Thomas Rongen on November 5, 1996.
Revolution forward Joe-Max Moore was named MLS Player of the Week for Week 18, and Alexi Lalas and Wélton were both named All-Stars for the 1996 MLS All-Star Game.

## Pre-season
### Initial player allocations

As part of Major League Soccer's first season, teams were each allocated four marquee players before the 1996 MLS Inaugural Player Draft. On October 17, 1995, MLS allocated defender Alexi Lalas and defender Mike Burns to the Revolution. Lalas was a United States national team regular who had played in the 1992 Summer Olympics and 1994 FIFA World Cup and was under contract with Padova in Italy's Serie A, while Burns had played alongside Lalas for the United States in the 1992 Olympics and was playing for Viborg FF in Denmark's Superliga at the time.
On February 5, 1996, MLS allocated American goalkeeper Jim St. Andre of the A-League's New York Centaurs and Italian forward Giuseppe Galderisi, Lalas' teammate at Padova, to the Revolution.

### First head coach

On January 4, 1996, the team named Frank Stapleton the first head coach of the New England Revolution. Stapleton was an Irish international who had played for Arsenal, Manchester United, Ajax, Blackburn Rovers, and Bradford City among others.

### Draft results
#### Inaugural player draft

On February 6 and 7, 1996, New England selected 16 players in the Inaugural Player Draft.
New England Revolution – 1996 MLS Inaugural Player Draft :
| Round | Overall | Name | Position | Previous Club |
| 1 | 5 | Iain Fraser | D | Sacramento Knights |
| 2 | 15 | Peter Woodring | M | Hawaii Tsunami |
| 3 | 25 | Bojan Vučković | F | Tampa Bay Terror |
| 4 | 35 | Marquis White | F | Club Destroyers |
| 5 | 45 | Ted Chronopoulos | D | Panionios |
| 6 | 55 | Yari Allnutt | F | Irapuato |
| 7 | 65 | Rob Ukrop | F | Richmond Kickers |
| 8 | 75 | Darren Sawatzky | M | Oregon Surge |
| 9 | 85 | Tom Lips | D | New York Fever |
| 10 | 95 | Richard Weiszmann | D | North Bay Breakers |
| 11 | 105 | John DeBrito | M | New York Fever |
| 12 | 115 | Jim Adams | GK | Cleveland Crunch |
| 13 | 125 | Geoff Aunger | M | Vancouver 86ers |
| 14 | 135 | Antonio Superbia | M | Jersey Dragons |
| 15 | 145 | Derk Droze | F | San Marcos |
| 16 | 155 | Jorge Olamendi | M | Los Angeles Salsa |

#### College draft

On March 4, 1996, the Revolution selected Paul Keegan, Imad Baba, and Paulo Dos Santos in the College Draft.
New England Revolution – 1996 MLS College Draft :
| Round | Overall | Name | Position | Previous Club |
| 1 | 6 | Paul Keegan | F | Boston College Eagles |
| 2 | 16 | Imad Baba | M | Clemson Tigers |
| 3 | 26 | Paulo Dos Santos | M | Rhode Island Rams |

#### Supplemental draft

Following the College Draft, the Revolution selected Beto Naveda, Wélton, and Zak Ibsen in the Supplemental Draft.
New England Revolution – 1996 MLS Supplemental Draft :
| Round | Overall | Name | Position | Previous Club |
| 1 | 6 | Beto Naveda | M | Boca Juniors |
| 2 | 16 | Wélton | F | America (RJ) |
| 3 | 26 | Zak Ibsen | D | Tampa Bay Terror |

## Competitions
### Major League Soccer
#### Conference standings

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | SOW | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Tampa Bay Mutiny | 32 | 19 | 1 | 12 | 66 | 51 | +15 | 58 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 2 | D.C. United | 32 | 15 | 1 | 16 | 62 | 56 | +6 | 46 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 3 | NY/NJ MetroStars | 32 | 12 | 3 | 17 | 45 | 47 | −2 | 39 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 4 | Columbus Crew | 32 | 11 | 4 | 17 | 59 | 60 | −1 | 37 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 5 | New England Revolution | 32 | 9 | 6 | 17 | 43 | 56 | −13 | 33 | |

#### Overall standings

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | SOW | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Tampa Bay Mutiny (S) | 32 | 19 | 1 | 12 | 66 | 51 | +15 | 58 | |
| 2 | Los Angeles Galaxy | 32 | 15 | 4 | 13 | 59 | 49 | +10 | 49 | CONCACAF Champions' Cup |
| 3 | D.C. United (C) | 32 | 15 | 1 | 16 | 62 | 56 | +6 | 46 | CONCACAF Champions' Cup |
| 4 | Dallas Burn | 32 | 12 | 5 | 15 | 50 | 48 | +2 | 41 | |
| 5 | Kansas City Wiz | 32 | 12 | 5 | 15 | 61 | 63 | −2 | 41 | |
| 6 | NY/NJ MetroStars | 32 | 12 | 3 | 17 | 45 | 47 | −2 | 39 | |
| 7 | San Jose Clash | 32 | 12 | 3 | 17 | 50 | 50 | 0 | 39 | |
| 8 | Columbus Crew | 32 | 11 | 4 | 17 | 59 | 60 | −1 | 37 | |
| 9 | New England Revolution | 32 | 9 | 6 | 17 | 43 | 56 | −13 | 33 | |
| 10 | Colorado Rapids | 32 | 9 | 2 | 21 | 44 | 59 | −15 | 29 | |

#### Matches
## Honors

* Team Most Valuable Player: Joe-Max Moore
* Team Scoring Champion: Joe-Max Moore (23 pts, 11 G, 1 A)
* Team Defender of the Year: Francis Okaroh
* MLS All-Star Game Selections: Alexi Lalas, Wélton
* MLS Player of the Week: Joe-Max Moore (Week 18)