Ever since their establishment in 1996, the Rochester (Raging) Rhinos brand has embodied small-town success to die-hard soccer enthusiasts all across the United States.  Having won four USL Championships, winning the 1999 US Open Cup as the first and only non-MLS team in the MLS era to win it, and even being teased as a possible MLS expansion side time and again, the Rochester Rhinos established a legacy for Western New Yorkers and all Americans to look up to.

Said legacy was erased on September 1, 2021, when the club's new ownership, like a poacher in the tall grass, killed off the Rhinos in favor of the European-style "Rochester New York FC" brand seen as generic to many Americans.  Though they paid the Rhinos lip service in their press release, they made no concrete plans to how they plan to honor the Rhinos' legacy, instead choosing to make change for change's sake, which, as we all learned in Columbus earlier this year, never truly works.

Although this writer lives some 677 miles away from Rochester, he has been a sports fan since childhood, with a propensity for following small-market teams which defy the odds (it helps that the rhino is his favorite animal.  He loves the Rhinos and wants them to stay, and so do the people of Rochester.  Perhaps a new logo and color scheme was needed, but the name Rochester Rhinos means SO much to people across America, and has a worldwide fanbase.

Therefore, we urge Jamie Vardy, David Dworkin, and the rest of the club ownership to discard the "RNYFC" rebrand, bring back the Rochester Rhinos name, and ensure the legacy lives on for generations to come, inspiring a new era of soccer fans.  Remember, if the Columbus Crew fans could save their beloved brand, so can we.

#BelieveImpossible
#SaveTheRhinos