Can we now dispense of this silly notion that Orlando City and Atlanta United FC are rivals?
They are not.
Orlando City is not nearly good enough or composed enough to carry that connotation.
Dictionary.com tells us that a rival is “a person or thing that is in a position to dispute another’s preeminence or superiority.”
Right now, Orlando City does not qualify; not after Sunday night’s 2-1 loss to Atlanta United in front of a less-than-capacity, badly behaved crowd at the Purple Palace.
Near the end of the match, after Orlando City’s last-ditch attempt to tie the match had failed, the field was littered with debris from fans who were obviously upset with the officiating.