For a moment Monday morning, Houston's Major League Soccer team was again nameless, just as it had been for more than a month after relocating from San Jose, Calif., in mid December.
This time, though, a quick fix was hiding behind plain black cloth.
The team officially gave its 1836 name the boot and announced it will build its brand around Dynamo during an unveiling ceremony at the Houston Museum of Natural Science.
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"Dynamo is a word to describe someone who never fatigues, never gives up," team president Oliver Luck said. "The new name is symbolic of Houston as an energetic, hard-working, risk-taking kind of town."
The name is not Dynamos, as in the short-lived professional team that roamed the pitch at Butler Stadium briefly in the mid-80s as part of the now-defunct United Soccer League. It's Dynamo as a reference to an energy source and in tribute to the city's outgoing spirit and ties to energy, Luck said.
The nixing of 1836 was expected after the name was deemed offensive by some in the Hispanic community shortly after its unveiling Jan. 25.
The Dynamo and MLS have maintained that 1836 was meant to honor the year Houston was founded. However, 1836 was also the year Texas fought for and gained independence from Mexico, prompting some Hispanics to object.
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"We never intended for the team's name to offend any member of the Houston community," MLS commissioner Don Garber said. "We listened hard to the fan reaction and believe that the Houston Dynamo name is an exciting, appropriate and locally relevant new team brand."
"We want everyone to feel welcome and become part of professional soccer in Houston," Luck said.
Coincidentally, the name change was announced 170 years to the day of the falling of the Alamo at the hands of the Mexican Army during the Texas Revolution, a fact not lost in e-mails received by the Chronicle by people who disagreed with the name change.
Reaction on soccer Web blogs, including the Chronicle's, has been mixed. The new name has been called everything; from "lame", "horrible" and "unoriginal" to a "PC debacle" to "catchy" and "unique."
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Many bloggers were angry the name was changed to begin with, calling it an "insult to Texas history." Most, though, suggested that the team move on and focus on the game.
The 1836 moniker had been the popular choice in a "Name the Team Sweepstakes"online poll held in January. There was no poll conducted this time around.
The new logo, a black shield with Houston Dynamo emblazoned across it and a white star in the middle, retained the same colors as the previous logo, which was shaped like a star.
The new name brings back memories for those who remember or were part of the Dynamos in 1984, before the USL folded and the team lost its pro status.
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"I like the name. Certainly this name's about the future and about the players, the Dwayne De Rosarios, the Brian Chings, the Dominic Kinnears," said former Dynamos defender Glenn Davis, now a soccer broadcaster and Chronicle contributor. "No matter what the name is, it's ultimately going to reflect the representation of the players, the organization and the fans' pride."
In addition to the local ties and the energy theme, Dynamo was picked because of its traditional feel, something MLS has been moving toward in recent years with names such as Chivas USA and Real Salt Lake entering its landscape.
The name is popular in European soccer, with teams such as Dynamo Moscow (Russia) and Dynamo Kiev (Ukraine) among the most popular in the continent.
At least two teams in Germany also have picked the moniker.
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The word dynamo, an earlier term for generator and short for dynamoelectric machine, is well-known universally.
"We believe a parallel can be drawn to the two major communities in Houston: English speakers and Spanish speakers," Luck said. "Together (these communities) will create electricity at games unlike any other in MLS."
The Dynamo players, who are in joint training with the MetroStars and Chivas USA at Carson, Calif., seemed upbeat about the name although more focused on practicing.
"Everyone's really happy to just have a name finalized so that we can have it behind us," defender Kelly Gray said.
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When in San Jose, the team was known as the Clash before changing to the Earthquakes.
The Dynamo open their first Houston season April 2 against the Colorado Rapids at Robertson Stadium.
Dynamo Notes Gone homeScottish youth midfielder
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Ryan Wilkie
, who had been practicing with the Houston Dynamo while in Carson, Calif., left the group Sunday and headed back to Scotland.
"We think he might have hurt his knee pretty badly," head coach Dominic Kinnear said.
UCLA will doDynamo defender
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Kelly Gray
is aware of the gap that exists between college and the pro game. But he chooses to see the positives of games such as Monday's 3-0 rout of UCLA.
"The game helps us learn more about (how we play)," Gray said. "Any game is good right now."
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BERNARDO FALLAS
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