2012 Sporting Kansas City season
# 2012 Sporting Kansas City season

The 2012 Sporting Kansas City season was the seventeenth season of the team's existence in Major League Soccer and the second year played under the Sporting Kansas City moniker.

## Overview

### Preseason

**Late 2011**

Preparations for the 2012 Major League Soccer season began only a day after the 2011 MLS Cup. On November 21, 2011, Ryan Smith was traded to Chivas USA for 1st and 3rd round draft picks in the 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft. Later the same day, all MLS teams were required to submit a list of 11 protected players for the 2011 MLS Expansion Draft to be held for the newly formed Montreal Impact. The club chose to protect Davy Arnaud, Matt Besler, Teal Bunbury, Aurélien Collin, Roger Espinoza, Kei Kamara, Chance Myers, Jimmy Nielsen, Júlio César, C. J. Sapong, and Graham Zusi.

During the expansion draft on November 23, the Montreal Impact selected unprotected Sporting leftback Seth Sinovic. Later the same day, Sporting KC waived Scott Lorenz, Miloš Stojčev, Craig Rocastle, and Jéferson. The following Monday (November 28), Sporting traded team captain Davy Arnaud to the Montreal Impact for Sinovic and allocation money. The club also announced that starting goalkeeper Jimmy Nielsen signed a contract extension through the 2013 season, with an option for the 2014 season. On November 29, Sporting KC acquired Paulo Nagamura from Chivas USA for the 1st round supplemental draft pick that was part of the November 21 Ryan Smith trade.

In December, Sporting traded an international roster slot to the San Jose Earthquakes in exchange for two-time MLS All-Star and World Cup veteran winger Bobby Convey. Later in December, Sporting and Mexican club Cruz Azul agreed to a deal that would see Omar Bravo return to his home country.

**Early 2012**

Sporting Kansas City resumed its off-season transactions at the 2012 MLS SuperDraft and 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft. Generation adidas forward Dom Dwyer of South Florida was selected 16th overall in the SuperDraft, and he was joined by defender Cyprian Hedrick of Coastal Carolina in the second round. Between the two drafts, Sporting acquired the rights to local product Michael Thomas from the Earthquakes in exchange for a fourth-round supplemental pick. Thomas officially signed on January 18. On January 17, Sporting selected Shawn Singh, Pablo Punyed, Stefan Antonijevic, and Kyle Miller in the 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft. On January 19, yet another trade with the Earthquakes saw the acquisition of forward Jacob Peterson. On February 22, defender Daneil Cyrus was waived.

## Squad

### First team roster

As of December 12, 2012.

| No. | Position | Player | Nation |
| - | - | - | - |
| 1 | GK | Jimmy Nielsen (Captain) | Denmark |
| 2 | DF | Michael Harrington | United States |
| 3 | DF | Korede Aiyegbusi | England |
| 4 | DF | Kevin Ellis (HGP) | United States |
| 5 | DF | Matt Besler | United States |
| 6 | MF | Paulo Nagamura | Brazil |
| 7 | DF | Chance Myers | United States |
| 8 | MF | Graham Zusi | United States |
| 9 | FW | Teal Bunbury | United States |
| 11 | MF | Bobby Convey | United States |
| 12 | MF | Konrad Warzycha | Poland |
| 13 | MF | Lawrence Olum | Kenya |
| 14 | FW | Dom Dwyer (GA) | England |
| 15 | MF | Roger Espinoza | Honduras |
| 16 | DF | Seth Sinovic | United States |
| 17 | FW | C. J. Sapong | United States |
| 18 | GK | Eric Kronberg | United States |
| 19 | MF | Peterson Joseph | Haiti |
| 20 | MF | Oriol Rosell | Spain |
| 21 | GK | Jon Kempin (HGP) | United States |
| 22 | FW | Soony Saad | United States |
| 23 | FW | Kei Kamara | Sierra Leone |
| 24 | DF | Cyprian Hedrick | Cameroon |
| 25 | DF | Neven Marković | Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| 27 | DF | Kyle Miller | United States |
| 28 | GK | Scott Avengine | United States |
| 37 | MF | Jacob Peterson | United States |
| 55 | DF | Júlio César | Brazil |
| 78 | DF | Aurélien Collin | France |
| 88 | MF | Michael Thomas | United States |

## Player movement

### In

| Date | Player | Position | Previous club | Fee/notes |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| November 28, 2011 | Seth Sinovic | DF | Montreal Impact | Acquired with allocation money for Davy Arnaud |
| November 29, 2011 | Paulo Nagamura | MF | Chivas USA | Acquired for a first-round 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft pick |
| December 2, 2011 | Bobby Convey | MF | San Jose Earthquakes | Acquired for a 2012 international roster slot |
| January 12, 2012 | Dom Dwyer | FW | University of South Florida | Superdraft, 1st Round |
| January 18, 2012 | Michael Thomas | MF | Ljungskile SK | Signed after MLS rights acquired from San Jose Earthquakes for a fourth-round 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft pick |
| January 20, 2012 | Jacob Peterson | FW | San Jose Earthquakes | Free |
| February 21, 2012 | Cyprian Hedrick | DF | Coastal Carolina University | Superdraft, 2nd Round |
| March 19, 2012 | Shawn Singh | DF | UCLA | Supplemental Draft, 1st Round |
| May 30, 2012 | Kyle Miller | DF | Rockhurst University | Supplemental Draft, 3rd Round |
| July 6, 2012 | Neven Marković | DF | Doxa Drama F.C. | Undisclosed |
| July 24, 2012 | Scott Angevine | GK | Coastal Carolina University | Free |
| August 2, 2012 | Oriol Rosell | MF | Barcelona B | Undisclosed |

### Out

| Date | Player | Position | Destination club | Fee/notes |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| November 21, 2011 | Ryan Smith | MF | Chivas USA | Trade |
| November 23, 2011 | Seth Sinovic | DF | Montreal Impact | Expansion Draft |
| November 23, 2011 | Scott Lorenz | DF | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | Waived |
| November 23, 2011 | Jéferson | MF | Esporte Clube Bahia | Waived |
| November 23, 2011 | Craig Rocastle | MF | Thrasyvoulos F.C. | Waived |
| November 23, 2011 | Miloš Stojčev | DF | FC Akzhayik | Waived |
| November 28, 2011 | Davy Arnaud | MF | Montreal Impact | Trade |
| December 12, 2011 | Omar Bravo | FW | Cruz Azul | Free |
| February 22, 2012 | Daneil Cyrus | DF | W Connection | Waived |
| March 26, 2012 | Birahim Diop | FW | None | Waived |
| June 29, 2012 | Luke Sassano | MF | Carolina RailHawks | Waived |
| July 6, 2012 | Shawn Singh | DF | None | Waived |

### Loans

**In**

| Date | Player | Position | Loaned from | Fee/notes | Ref |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |

**Out**

| Date | Player | Position | Loaned to | Fee/notes | Ref |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| August 28, 2012 | Konrad Warzycha | MF | Carolina RailHawks | Recalled back to Sporting KC on September 12, 2012 | |

## Major League Soccer

### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts | |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | San Jose Earthquakes (SS) | 34 | 19 | 6 | 9 | 72 | 43 | +29 | 66 | 2013–14 CONCACAF Champions League |
| 2 | Sporting Kansas City | 34 | 18 | 7 | 9 | 42 | 27 | +15 | 63 | 2013–14 CONCACAF Champions League |
| 3 | D.C. United | 34 | 17 | 10 | 7 | 53 | 43 | +10 | 58 | |
| 4 | New York Red Bulls | 34 | 16 | 9 | 9 | 57 | 46 | +11 | 57 | |
| 5 | Real Salt Lake | 34 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 46 | 35 | +11 | 57 | |
| 6 | Chicago Fire | 34 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 46 | 41 | +5 | 57 | |
| 7 | Seattle Sounders FC | 34 | 15 | 8 | 11 | 51 | 33 | +18 | 56 | |
| 8 | LA Galaxy | 34 | 16 | 12 | 6 | 59 | 47 | +12 | 54 | 2013–14 CONCACAF Champions League |
| 9 | Houston Dynamo | 34 | 14 | 9 | 11 | 48 | 41 | +7 | 53 | 2013–14 CONCACAF Champions League |
| 10 | Columbus Crew | 34 | 15 | 12 | 7 | 44 | 44 | 0 | 52 | |
| 11 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 34 | 11 | 13 | 10 | 35 | 41 | −6 | 43 | |
| 12 | Montreal Impact | 34 | 12 | 16 | 6 | 45 | 51 | −6 | 42 | |
| 13 | FC Dallas | 34 | 9 | 13 | 12 | 42 | 47 | −5 | 39 | |
| 14 | Colorado Rapids | 34 | 11 | 19 | 4 | 44 | 50 | −6 | 37 | |
| 15 | Philadelphia Union | 34 | 10 | 18 | 6 | 37 | 45 | −8 | 36 | |
| 16 | New England Revolution | 34 | 9 | 17 | 8 | 39 | 44 | −5 | 35 | |
| 17 | Portland Timbers | 34 | 8 | 16 | 10 | 34 | 56 | −22 | 34 | |
| 18 | Chivas USA | 34 | 7 | 18 | 9 | 24 | 58 | −34 | 30 | |
| 19 | Toronto FC | 34 | 5 | 21 | 8 | 36 | 62 | −26 | 23 | 2012–13 CONCACAF Champions League |

(SS) = Supporters Shield winner

* $^1The$ highest ranked U.S.-based MLS club qualifies to the 2013–14 CONCACAF Champions League (placed in Pot A). The other U.S. representatives in the 2013–14 CONCACAF Champions League are:
   * Winner of the 2012 MLS Cup (Pot A)
   * Runner-up of the 2012 MLS Cup (Pot B)
   * Winner of the 2012 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup (Pot B)
* $^2Toronto$ FC qualified for the 2012–13 CONCACAF Champions League as winners of the 2012 Canadian Championship.

### Eastern Conference standings

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD | Pts | |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Sporting Kansas City (E1) | 34 | 18 | 7 | 9 | 42 | 27 | +15 | 63 | 2012 MLS Cup Conference Semifinals |
| 2 | D.C. United | 34 | 17 | 10 | 7 | 53 | 43 | +10 | 58 | 2012 MLS Cup Conference Semifinals |
| 3 | New York Red Bulls | 34 | 16 | 9 | 9 | 57 | 46 | +11 | 57 | 2012 MLS Cup Conference Semifinals |
| 4 | Chicago Fire | 34 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 46 | 41 | +5 | 57 | 2012 MLS Cup Knockout Round |
| 5 | Houston Dynamo | 34 | 14 | 9 | 11 | 48 | 41 | +7 | 53 | 2012 MLS Cup Knockout Round |
| 6 | Columbus Crew | 34 | 15 | 12 | 7 | 44 | 44 | 0 | 52 | |
| 7 | Montreal Impact | 34 | 12 | 16 | 6 | 45 | 51 | −6 | 42 | |
| 8 | Philadelphia Union | 34 | 10 | 18 | 6 | 37 | 45 | −8 | 36 | |
| 9 | New England Revolution | 34 | 9 | 17 | 8 | 39 | 44 | −5 | 35 | |
| 10 | Toronto FC | 34 | 5 | 21 | 8 | 36 | 62 | −26 | 23 | |

(E1) = Eastern Conference champion

### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Pld | Pts | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD |
| 34 | 63 | 18 | 7 | 9 | 42 | 27 | +15 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 22 | 12 | +10 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 20 | 15 | +5 |

Last updated: October 25, 2012 Source: MLSSoccer.com Pld = Matches played; Pts = Points; W = Matches won; T = Matches tied; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; GD = Goal difference

### Match results

Win  Tie  Loss

**MLS Cup Playoffs**

Houston Dynamo won 2–1 on aggregate

## Recognition

### AT&T Goal of the Week

| Week | Player |
| - | - |
| Week 12 | C. J. Sapong |
| Weeks 13–15 | Júlio César |

### MLS Save of the Week

| Week | Player |
| - | - |
| Week 7 | Jimmy Nielsen |
| Weeks 13–15 | Jimmy Nielsen |
| Week 18 | Jimmy Nielsen |
| Week 19 | Jimmy Nielsen |
| Week 31 | Jimmy Nielsen |
| Week 32 | Jimmy Nielsen |

### MLS All-Stars 2012

| Position | Player | Note |
| - | - | - |
| DF | Aurélien Collin | First XI |
| GK | Jimmy Nielsen | First XI |
| MF | Graham Zusi | First XI |

### 2012 Team Awards

| Player(s) | Award |
| - | - |
| Jimmy Nielsen Graham Zusi | Sporting Kansas City 2012 Most Valuable Players |
| Kei Kamara | Sporting Kansas City 2012 Offensive Player of the Year |
| Matt Besler | Sporting Kansas City 2012 Defensive Player of the Year |
| Kei Kamara | Sporting Kansas City 2012 Humanitarian of the Year |
| Paul Dean | 2012 Bob Gansler Award (Most Outstanding Academy Player) |
| Kei Kamara | Sporting Kansas City 2012 Budweiser Golden Boot |

## Miscellany

### Allocation ranking

Sporting Kansas City is in the #14 position in the MLS Allocation Ranking. The allocation ranking is the mechanism used to determine which MLS club has first priority to acquire a U.S. National Team player who signs with MLS after playing abroad, or a former MLS player who returns to the league after having gone to a club abroad for a transfer fee. A ranking can be traded, provided that part of the compensation received in return is another club's ranking.

### International roster slots

Sporting Kansas City has 7 MLS International Roster Slots for use in the 2012 season. Each club in Major League Soccer is allocated 8 international roster spots. Sporting Kansas City traded one slot to San Jose Earthquakes for the 2012 season only.

### Future draft pick trades

Future picks acquired: * 2013 MLS SuperDraft Round 2 pick acquired from New York Red Bulls. Future picks traded: None.

### MLS rights to other players

It is believed that Sporting maintains the MLS rights to Herculez Gomez after the player declined a contract offer by the club and instead signed with a non-MLS side on a free transfer.

