Real Salt Lake joined Major League Soccer in 2005 as the 12th club, and as most expansion sides over the years, the team initially struggled on the pitch with heavy losses and a revolving door of players.
However, the difficulties on the field were not the only battles RSL had to face. In fact, its first struggle began way before the team ever set foot onto the pitch with the selection of the club’s name.
READ: RSL vs. MTL Match preview
Local businessman Dave Checketts and SCP Worldwide partners, the ownership group that also counts the NHL’s St. Louis Blues among its assets, chose Real Salt Lake as the team's name in an attempt to associate the team with the successes of Spanish giants Real Madrid and use the branding power that came with that.
Real, which means "royal" in Spanish, is used by many clubs throughout the world, particularly in Spain., but traditionnaly comes from a royal designation, as is the case with Real Madrid.
The vision for the name came into focus in September of the 2006 season when Real Salt Lake and Real Madrid signed a 10-year co-operative agreement, an idea that Checketts had devised when naming the team, even before any interaction with the Spanish giants.
The deal's provisions include a friendly match between the two teams to take place in Salt Lake City, training for RSL at the Real Madrid practice facility in Spain, and the creation of a youth academy in Salt Lake that will train up to 200 youth players.
The academy, a co-operative project, arguably became the first true soccer youth system in MLS.
Since then, the Utah club with the Spanish name has been able to overcome many obstacles, ultimately winning the MLS Cup in 2009. Real Salt Lake also made it all the way to the 2011 CONCACAF Champions League final - becoming the first MLS team ever to do so - losing 3-2 to Mexican club Monterrey.
As such, the future for this team and local soccer players looks REAL-ly promising.
