San Jose Earthquakes Tickets

The San Jose Earthquakes first existed as a North American Soccer League (NASL) club in 1974. After the NASL’s collapse in 1984, the club played in the Western League Series from 1985 to 1988. The San Jose Clash was one of the original clubs in Major League Soccer during its inaugural season in 1996. San Jose hosted the league’s first match on April 6, 1996, a 1-0 victory over D.C. United that included U.S. men’s national team player Eric Wynalda scoring the first MLS goal. San Jose reconnected with its soccer past by adopting the Earthquakes starting with the 2000 season.

In the club’s first decade, San Jose won MLS Cup twice and two Supporters’ Shields. The Earthquakes took its first MLS Cup in 2001, a 2-1 victory against the Los Angeles Galaxy. San Jose returned to the MLS Cup final in 2003, a 4-2 victory over the Chicago Fire. The Earthquakes took Supporters’ Shields as the league’s top team in 2003 and 2005. This first iteration of the Earthquakes stopped operations after the 2005 season as ownership left San Jose to start the Houston Dynamo.

The Earthquakes returned as an expansion team during the 2008 regular season. In the renewed club’s first decade, the Earthquakes achieved its greatest success with a Supporters’ Shield in 2012. The club reached the playoffs in 2010, 2012, and 2017. San Jose moved from Spartan Stadium at San Jose State University to Buck Shaw Stadium at Santa Clara University following expansion. The Earthquakes moved into Avaya Stadium, an 18,000-seat stadium dedicated to soccer, in 2015.

San Jose attracted top-level talent during its original incarnation and following expansion. Wynalda and Canadian men’s national team player Dwayne De Rosario were prominent goal scorers during the club’s first decade. The team featured Goalkeeper of the Year recipients Joe Cannon (2002) and Pat Onstad (2003, 2005). MLS Defender of the Year recipients John Doyle (1996) and Jeff Agoos (2001) were key contributors to the team’s early success. The most successful Earthquakes player after expansion was Chris Wondolowski, who won the 2012 regular season MVP and took the Golden Boot for top goalscorer in 2010 and 2012.