Orlando City is a club known around the world. For some, it’s the club that once housed Kaká. For others, it’s just a Major League Soccer team. But there was a time when Orlando City was mostly unknown in the United States until a U.S. Open Cup run changed everything.
Today, American soccer is much different than it was seven years ago. Lower division teams like the Sacramento Republic, Saint Louis FC, and Louisville City are well known to soccer fans. But not too long ago, even big American soccer fans would struggle to name a single lower division soccer team.