Just up the freeway from Avaya Stadium in Stanford, Palo Alto’s adjacent city, Stanford University stands as one of the world’s most prestigious institutions. With a strong sports presence alongside a renowned academic program, it’s no surprise that the school shares a rich history with their MLS neighbors.
Beginning in 1998, the then San Jose Clash built a relationship with Stanford, playing three games at their stadium during the season and continuing with another in 1999. After taking a hiatus from hosting matches for several years, they would renew the partnership in 2011. Building off the success of that match, the Earthquakes and Cardinal would create a yearly tradition.
In each of the past five seasons, the Earthquakes have played one match at Stanford Stadium. Since 2012, it’s also been home of the league’s most storied rivalry, the California Clasico, against the rival LA Galaxy. In the four meetings between the Quakes and Galaxy, over 50,000 fans have packed the seats of the stadium; a record that is already on it’s way to repeating for their upcoming clash this year.
There are several Quakes players, current and former, who aren’t strangers to Stanford. Forward Adam Jahn was a standout player for the Cardinal from 2009-2012, scoring 24 goals and adding 12 assists in his college career. In January, the Earthquakes drafted another Stanford grad in the MLS SuperDraft, snagging midfielder Ty Thompson, Tommy Thompson’s older brother, 69th overall. In total, 28 players from The Farm have been drafted into MLS, with exactly half (14) of them being selected by San Jose.
The connections don’t stop on the playing field either. Earthquakes President Dave Kaval, who joined the team in October of 2010, earned a BA in International Relations and an MBA in Entrepreneurship from Stanford. The Cleveland transplant has helped the team achieve numerous milestones since taking the helm, including the construction and opening of Avaya Stadium and winning the rights to host the 2016 MLS All-Star Game against Arsenal, among countless others.
As Earthquakes fans take over Stanford Stadium for its fifth straight California Clasico on June 25, the next chapter in their budding relationship is set to begin. In the words of Humphrey Bogart, “I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”
