How to Be a Red Bulls Fan In Austin -- 2022 Edition

On October 16, 2017, a new ownership group bought the Columbus Crew of Major League Soccer, and announced they were moving the team to Austin, Texas, which had never had a major league sports team before. An online #SaveTheCrew movement got started, and it achieved what few team-saving movements have ever done: It saved the team. On October 12, 2018, Cleveland Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam got together with some Columbus businessmen, and bought the Crew.

The Austin ownership group were granted an expansion team, known, without much imagination, as Austin FC. In spite of COVID restrictions, they began play in 2021. Next Sunday night, the New York Red Bulls will go there to play them. This will be my first Trip Guide for this team, but not my first for an Austin-based team: I did one for the University of Texas football team in 2017.

Before You Go. It's not just The South, it's Texas. So if you go for this game, it would be best to avoid political discussions -- even if, by comparison, Austin is a comparatively liberal bastion in the Lone Star State.

Also within the realm of "It's not just The South, it's Texas," you should be prepared for hot weather. It's not just the heat that's so bad, it's the humidity. And the mosquitoes. You think it was only the heat that made the Houston Astros build the Astrodome? Sandy Koufax said, "Some of the bugs they've got down there are twin-engine jobs." At least, unlike in baseball, the Dallas-area football team has a dome. But you'll have to spend some time outside. It's hot, it's humid, it's muggy and it's buggy, and they have that shit all the time.

So, before you go, check the website of the Austin American-Statesman for the weather. Right now, they're talking about it being up to 104 during daylight, and dropping to the mid-70s at night. A hundred and four? Yeah, if you "gotta cross this one off your list," wait until next year.

Texas is in the Central Time Zone, 1 hour behind New York. (The exception for Texas is the southwestern corner, including El Paso, which borders New Mexico, so it's in the Mountain Time Zone.) Adjust your timepieces accordingly.

Despite Texas' foreignness -- and that's before you factor in the Mexican-American presence, which improves things -- and its former Confederate status, you do not need to bring your passport or change your money. 

Tickets. The current capacity of Q2 Stadium is 20,738. (Since they've only played 1 full season, and it was under COVID restrictions, attendance figures are pointless.) But getting tickets shouldn't be hard, since MLS teams set aside sections for visiting fans. In Austin's case, it's Section 228, in the northeast corner of the stadium. But they're a whopping $66.

Getting There. It is 1,745 miles from Midtown Manhattan to downtown Austin, and 1,728 miles from Red Bull Arena to Q2 Stadium. So unless you want to be cooped up for 24-30 hours, you... are... flying.

A round-trip nonstop flight on United Airlines from Newark, Kennedy or LaGuardia airports to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport could set you back as little as $528 round-trip. (Captain John August Earl Bergstrom, U.S. Army Air Force, was the 1st native of Austin killed in World War II, in the Philippines on December 8, 1941.) Bus 20 will take you downtown, for just $1.25.

Amtrak offers the Lake Shore Limited (a variation on the old New York Central Railroad's 20th Century Limited), leaving Penn Station at 3:40 PM Eastern Time and arriving at Chicago's Union Station at 10:12 AM Central Time. Then switch to the Texas Eagle at 1:45 PM, and arrive at Austin (250 N. Lamar Blvd.) the following night at 6:22 PM -- just 1 hour and 38 minutes before kickoff. You might be better off going the day before. It would be really expensive this time around: $1,076 round-trip. Like I said: Maybe you should wait until next year.

So, how bad can the bus be? $719 round-trip, that's how bad. Although advanced purchase can get it down to $504. And you'll need 4 transfers over 42 hours. The Greyhound station is at 363 Shady Lane, 3 miles east of downtown. And you'll need 2 buses to get downtown.

Oh... kay. So what about driving? As I said, over 1,700 miles. I would definitely recommend bringing a friend and sharing the driving. Get into New Jersey, take Interstate 78 West across the State and into Pennsylvania, then turn to Interstate 81 South, across Pennsylvania, the "panhandles" of Maryland and West Virginia, and across the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia into Tennessee, where I-81 will flow into Interstate 40. Take I-40 into Arkansas, and switch to Interstate 30 in Little Rock, taking it into the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area, a.k.a. "The Metroplex." Then take I-35E and I-35 South for about 3 hours, and you'll be in Austin.

Once you get across the Hudson River into New Jersey, you should be in New Jersey for about an hour, Pennsylvania for 3 hours, Maryland for 15 minutes, West Virginia for half an hour, Virginia for 5 and a half hours (more than the entire trip will be before you get to Virginia), 8 hours and 15 minutes in Tennessee, 3 hours in Arkansas, and about 6 hours and 30 minutes in Texas.

Taking 45-minute rest stops in or around (my recommendations) Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Charlottesville, Virginia; Bristol, on the Virginia/Tennessee State Line; Nashville and Memphis, Tennessee; Little Rock and Texarkana, Arkansas, and Dallas itself; and accounting for overruns there and for traffic at each end of the journey, and we're talking 35 hours.

Once In the City. Texas declared its independence from Mexico on March 2, 1836; was admitted to the Union as the 28th State on December 29, 1845; became the 7th State to secede from the Union, on February 1, 1861; and the 10th former Confederate State to be readmitted, on March 30, 1870.

Named for Stephen F. Austin, "the Father of Texas" and the leader of the successful Texas Rebellion of 1836, and founded 3 years later, Austin has grown by leaps and bounds, and is now home to about 965,000 people, and would be well over 1 million counting students at the University of Texas and people working for the State government, both of whom have their permanent residences elsewhere. The metropolitan area has over 2.3 million.

The State Capitol building is larger in area and floor space than the national one in Washington. Like Raleigh, North Carolina; Nashville, Tennessee; Atlanta, Georgia; Jackson, Mississippi; Lincoln, Nebraska; Laramie, Wyoming and Salt Lake City, Utah, Austin is a liberal capital in a conservative State.

The Texas State House in Austin

The leading newspaper is the Austin American-Statesman. ZIP Codes for Austin start with 786, 787 and 789. The Area Code is 512. Austin Energy runs the city's electricity.

Aside from the University and the State government, the city is known for its alternative music scene, including the South By Southwest Festival, a.k.a. SXSW. Congress Avenue divides addresses into East and West, and the Colorado River (not the same one that goes through Arizona and Nevada) into North and South.

Consistent with much of Texas other than Dallas and Houston, Austin has a population that is about 48 percent non-Hispanic white, 35 percent Hispanic, 8 percent black, and 6 percent Asian. A 2014 study by UT showed that it was the only rapidly-growing U.S. city to have a net loss of African-Americans between 2000 and 2010.

The Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority, or Capital Metro for short, runs buses and a commuter rail, Capital MetroRail, in the city and the nearby suburbs. A single ride is just $1.25.

Capital Metro Rail

The University of Texas was founded in 1883. It became the 1st major Southern university to racially desegregate, in 1950. In 1967, the State legislature, in recognition of the vast growth of the University of Texas System, officially renamed the main campus "The University of Texas at Austin." Texans call it "UT-Austin." Or maybe "The Longhorns," or "The 'Horns" for short. Unless they're Texas A&M people, in which case they call 'em "tea-sippin' liberals," or "tea-sips" for short.

The University of Texas System also has campuses in Dallas, Arlington, San Antonio, El Paso, Rio Grande Valley (in Brownsville and Edinburg), Tyler, and the Permian Basin (in Odessa). Surprisingly, there is no campus in Houston, the State's largest city.

Texas-El Paso, or UTEP, competes in NCAA Division I FBS. It was known as Texas Western University until 1967. It is best known for its all-black starting five that upset Kentucky for the 1966 National Championship. UT-Arlington, UTSA, UTRGV also compete in NCAA Division I FBS. UT-Tyler and UTPB are in NCAA Division II. UT-Dallas is in NCAA Division III. 

Going In. Q2 Stadium, named for Q2 Holdings, a local online banking provider, opened on June 16, 2021. The address is 10414 McKalla Pace, 9 miles north of downtown. Take Bus 803 to Burnet Road & Braker Lane, and then it's a 6-minute walk east on Panhandle Lane. Parking is expensive, ranging from $30 to $65. The field is natural grass, and is aligned roughly north-to-south.

The stadium's opening featured the U.S. women's national team beating Nigeria, 2-0 in a friendly. Since then, the U.S. men's team has beaten Qatar 1-0 in a CONCACAF Gold Cup Semifinal in 2021, Jamaica 2-0 in a 2022 World Cup Qualifying match, and Grenada 5-0 in a 2023 CONCACAF Nations League match.

Food. According to the Austin entry for Eater.com, the food options for a stadium in the capital of Texas are, as you might expect, heavy on barbecue and Mexican influences. As you might expect from a city that caters to hipsters, there's more craft beers than Lone Star Beer.

Team History Displays. We can already stop singing that they "ain't got no history": They have already wrapped up the Copa Tejas (Texas Cup) for 2022. Yes, they already have rivalries, with the other MLS teams in Texas. In their brief history, they are 4-1 against the Houston Dynamo, and 1-3 with 3 ties against FC Dallas. Austin FC have already wrapped up the Copa Tejas for 2022.

Stuff. The Verde Store -- Austin is the only MLS team whose main color is green -- is located in the northwest corner of the stadium's ground floor. A smaller store is located at the southwest corner.

As a new team, there are, as yet, no books or videos about them.

During the Game. Austin is a liberal oasis in a desert of conservative fanatacism. Your safety probably will not be an issue during your stay -- except for the extreme heat. Remember to stay hydrate.

Austin FC do not have a regular singer for the National Anthem, instead offering auditions. And, so far, they don't have a regular mascot. Instead, for each home game, a rescue dog serves as a mascot, and can be adopted by a fan.

There are 4 main supporters' groups: Austin Anthem, Los Verdes (The Green Ones), the Burnt Orange Brigade (in honor of the color of the main campus of the University of Texas, in the city), and Oak Army New Braunfels (about 55 miles southwest of the stadium). They have a band, La Murga de Austin. Their songs include "Verde Submarine" (a variation of The Beatles' "Yellow Submarine," a frequent base for soccer chants), and "Alright, Alright, Alright," a takeoff on a line from actor Matthew McConaughey, a UT graduate and a part-owner of the team.

After the Game. The city is relatively safe. As long as you don't make any snide remarks about the Cowboys or the Longhorns, safety will not be an issue.

To the north of the stadium, on Braker Lane, there are several places to get a postgame meal, including some chain restaurants. If nothing there catches your attention, you best bet is to head back downtown. One such possibility is the Scholz Garten, a German-themed burgers, brats and beer place at 1607 San Jacinto Blvd. Sports Illustrated once included it as a reason why they believe Austin was the best college town in America: "If you don't like Austin, you're a sad case."

Austin is a very good city for watching European soccer: At The Tavern (Arsenal, 922 W. 12th Street, at the western edge of downtown), B.D. Riley's (Liverpool, 1905 Aldrich Street, 4 miles northeast of downtown, Bus 20 to 701 Dean Keeton, then Bus 10 to 1719 Aldrich, then a 5-minute walk), and Haymaker (Manchester City, 2310 Manor Road, 3 miles northeast of downtown, Bus 20).

Sidelights. The 16,540-seat Frank C. Erwin Jr. Special Events Center has been the home of Texas basketball since 1977. Erwin was a member of UT's Board of Regents. 1701 Red River Street, about a 5-minute walk south of the stadium, about halfway between it and the State Capitol.

Austin's nearest professional baseball team is the Round Rock Express, owned by Nolan Ryan (the Hall of Fame pitcher from the Houston suburbs, a.k.a. The Ryan Express) and his family. Appropriately, they are a farm team of the Texas Rangers, in Class AAA, in the now-inaptly-named Pacific Coast League. They've made the Playoffs 3 times in their 1st 18 seasons, most recently in 2015.

They play at the 11,631-seat Dell Diamond. 3400 E. Palm Valley Blvd., 21 miles north of downtown Austin. No public transit.

Elvis Presley sang in Austin 5 times: On March 17, 1955 (the day of the Rocket Richard Riot in Montreal), at Dessau Dance Hall, 13422 Dessau Road, 14 miles northeast of downtown, no public transit (the original burned down in 1967, replaced with this one in 1969); on August 25, 1955, at the Sportcenter, now the Armadillo World Headquarters, 501 Barton Springs Road, just south of the river from downtown, Bus 10; on October 6, 1955, at the Skyline Club, 11306 N. Lamar Blvd., about 10 miles north of downtown, Bus 801; on January 18, 1956, at the City Coliseum, 701 W. Riverside Drive, across from the Sportcenter site; and on March 28, 1977, at the Municipal Auditorium, also at that location.

The nearest Major League Baseball team to Austin is the Houston Astros, 167 miles to the east. The nearest NFL team is the Houston Texans, 169 miles. The Texas Rangers are 203 miles to the north, and the Dallas Cowboys 202. The nearest NHL team is the Dallas Stars, 197 miles to the north. The closest NBA team is a bit closer, the San Antonio Spurs, 76 miles to the southwest.

And if you're thinking of making a side-trip into Mexico, don't: Not only would you need a passport and Mexican driving insurance (obtainable for a fee at a consulate), but it's 235 miles to either Del Rio or Laredo, 310 to McAllen, and 350 to Brownsville. That's too far.

Austin is home to the Texas Memorial Museum, 2400 Trinity Street, just to the north of Memorial Stadium; the Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library, 2313 Red River Street, just to the northeast of the stadium; the Bullock Texas State History Museum, 1800 Congress Avenue; and the Blanton Museum of Art, right across from the Bullock Museum at 200 E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

The tallest building in Austin is The Austonian, at 683 feet the tallest residential building west of the Mississippi River. 200 N. Congress Avenue. Of course, you can't talk about tall buildings in Texas without referring to the University's 307-foot Tower. Built in 1937, it is, as I said, lit up in certain colors for special occasions, white otherwise.

But it's best known for the 96-minute shooting spree on its 28th floor observation deck by Charles Whitman on August 1, 1966, resulting in the wounding of 34, 17 of whom died, before the police managed to get off a shot that killed him.

The MTV sitcom Faking It was set in Austin. And the South by Southwest (or SXSW) Festival is held in Austin in mid-March.

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Texas is a weird place, and Austin is no exception. But it's a pretty good area for sports, and they have taken to "football" almost as much as they have football. Go in and say, "Howdy."