2016 Colorado Rapids season
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Overall: 2nd
| 2016 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Chairman | Stan Kroenke | ||
| Head coach | Pablo Mastroeni | ||
| Major League Soccer | Conference: 2nd Overall: 2nd | ||
| MLS Cup Playoffs | Conference Finals | ||
| U.S. Open Cup | Fifth round | ||
| Rocky Mountain Cup | Runners-up | ||
| Top goalscorer | League: Shkëlzen Gashi (9) All: Shkëlzen Gashi (9) | ||
| Highest home attendance | 18,759 (Jul. 4 vs. POR) | ||
| Lowest home attendance | 10,670 (Apr. 16 vs. RBNY) | ||
| Average home league attendance | 16,278 | ||
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The 2016 Colorado Rapids season was the club's 21st season of existence, and their 21st season in Major League Soccer, the top tier of the American and Canadian soccer pyramids.
The 2016 season was, at the time, the Rapids' most successful regular season in franchise history. During the season, the Rapids finished 2nd in the Western Conference and 2nd overall in the regular season, besting their previous best regular season finish of 3rd in the Western Conference and 4th overall in 2002. In 2021 they also finished second overall.[1] The Rapids finished undefeated at home with a record of 11-0-6. At home, they conceded only 7 goals, setting a new MLS record with a 0.41 goals-against average. The season also featured a franchise-record 15 match unbeaten streak. After finishing at the bottom of the table for the 2015, the season was hallmarked as a surprising turnaround. The team was bolstered by incoming transfer targets Tim Howard, Shkëlzen Gashi, Marco Pappa and Jermaine Jones. Outside of the regular season, the Rapids reached the fifth round of the U.S. Open Cup before falling to eventual champions, FC Dallas. As of 2025, this is the last time the Rapids have won an MLS Cup playoff game.
Club
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality. Squad correct as of May 13, 2016.[2]
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Transfers
For transfers in, dates listed are when Colorado officially signed the players to the roster. Transactions where only the rights to the players are acquired are not listed. For transfers out, dates listed are when Colorado officially removed the players from its roster, not when they signed with another club. If a player later signed with another club, his new club will be noted, but the date listed here remains the one when he was officially removed from the Rapids roster.
In
| No. | Pos. | Player | Transferred from | Fee/notes | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 | MF |  Michael Azira |
 Seattle Sounders FC |
Waiver Draft | December 9, 2015 | |
| 18 | GK | Zac MacMath |
Philadelphia Union |
Trade | December 11, 2015 | |
| 10 | MF |  Marco Pappa |
Seattle Sounders FC |
Trade | December 15, 2015 | |
| 16 | MF | Zach Pfeffer |
Philadelphia Union |
Trade | January 15, 2016 | |
| 11 | FW |  Shkëlzen Gashi |
 FC Basel |
Transfer, undisclosed | February 1, 2016 | |
| 5 | DF |  Mekeil Williams |
Antigua GFC |
Transfer, Discovery Signing | February 4, 2016 | |
| 19 | FW | Conor Doyle |
D.C. United |
Traded for a 3rd Round pick in the 2016 MLS SuperDraft | February 9, 2016 | |
| 13 | FW | Jermaine Jones |
New England Revolution |
Trade | March 4, 2016 | |
| 1 | GK | Tim Howard |
 Everton |
Free | June 28, 2016 | |
| 7 | MF |  Sébastien Le Toux |
Philadelphia Union |
Trade | August 3, 2016 | |
Draft picks
Draft picks are not automatically signed to the team roster. Only those who are signed to a contract will be listed as transfers in. Only trades involving draft picks and executed after the start of 2015 MLS SuperDraft will be listed in the notes.
| Date | Player | Number | Position | Previous club | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 14, 2016 |  Emmanuel Appiah |
MF | Cincinnati Bearcats |
MLS SuperDraft 1st Round Pick (#15); Pick acquired from Chicago Fire through Seattle Sounders FC. | ||
| January 14, 2016 |  Dennis Castillo |
DF | VCU Rams |
MLS SuperDraft 2nd Round Pick (#37); Pick acquired from Dallas FC. | ||
| January 19, 2016 | Chris Frouchauer |
GK | Ohio State Buckeyes |
MLS SuperDraft 3rd Round Pick (#43). | ||
| January 19, 2016 | Javan Torre |
FW | UCLA Bruins |
MLS SuperDraft 3rd Round Pick (#56) | ||
| January 19, 2016 | Bradley Kamdem |
DF | UNLV Rebels |
MLS SuperDraft 3rd Round Pick (#58) | ||
| January 19, 2016 |  John Manga |
FW | Cincinnati Bearcats |
MLS SuperDraft 4th Round Pick (#63) |
Out
| No. | Pos. | Player | Transferred to | Fee/notes | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | DF | James Riley |
Waived | December 3, 2015 | ||
| 3 | DF | Drew Moor |
 Toronto FC |
Waived | December 3, 2015 | |
| 2 | MF | Nick LaBrocca |
Chicago Fire |
Waived | December 3, 2015 | |
| 22 | MF |  Lucas Pittinari |
Belgrano |
Loan ended, option declined | December 3, 2015 | |
| 7 | FW |  Vicente Sánchez |
Defensor Sporting |
Waived | December 3, 2015 | |
| 57 | MF | Carlos Alvarez |
San Antonio FC |
Waived | December 3, 2015 | |
| 19 | FW |  Charles Eloundou |
Jacksonville Armada |
Waived | December 3, 2015 | |
| 10 | FW |  Gabriel Torres |
 Zamora |
Free Transfer | December 3, 2015 | |
| 5 | DF | Michael Harrington |
Chicago Fire |
Waived | December 3, 2015 | |
| 1 | GK | Clint Irwin |
Toronto FC |
Received allocation money, #56 in 2016 MLS SuperDraft, conditional pick in 2017 MLS SuperDraft | January 18, 2016 | |
| 31 | DF |  Maynor Figueroa |
FC Dallas |
Traded for allocation money | January 26, 2016 | |
| 5 | MF |  Marcelo Sarvas |
D.C. United |
Traded for allocation money | February 1, 2016 | |
| 30 | GK | Chris Froschauer |
Waived | June 30, 2016 | ||
| MF | Emmanuel Appiah |
Sporting Kansas City |
Waived | June 30, 2016 | ||
| 21 | FW | Luis Solignac |
Chicago Fire |
Traded | August 3, 2016 |
Loaned out
| No. | Pos. | Player | Loaned to | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | MF | Juan Ramirez |
Talleres |
August 8, 2016 | |
| 29 | FW | Caleb Calvert |
Charlotte Independence |
March 15, 2016 | |
| MF | Emmanuel Appiah |
Charlotte Independence |
March 15, 2016 | ||
| 12 | GK | John Berner |
Charlotte Independence |
April 11, 2016 | |
| 16 | MF | Zach Pfeffer |
Charlotte Independence |
April 28, 2016 | |
| 26 | DF | Dennis Castillo |
Charlotte Independence |
April 28, 2016 |
