Mark Chung was one of the early stars of the Kansas City Wizards after being selected sixth overall in the MLS Inaugural Draft prior to the leagues’ first season in 1996.
Chung followed that up with success on the pitch as he was named to the MLS Best XI in 1997 and an MLS All-Star in the same season.
The midfielder earned more Best XI and All-Star accolades in his career, however they occurred after he left Kansas City following the 1998 season.
Richard Gough and Mo Johnston are shown above in similar shirts to this Chung jersey with the pointed WIZ/Wizards inspired numbering and sewn KANSAS CITY wordmark across the chest.
Chung was issued or wore this jersey during the Major League Soccer’s second season in 1997.
The shirt has several interesting differences from the shirts shown in the few photos and bits of video that exist from the Wizards in 1997, however, there are also some photos of this style being worn by players which can be seen in the images of Richard Gough and Mo Johnston above.
The most obvious difference lies in the font used for the numbering. These shirts had a sharp, pointed numbering style that evokes the font used on previous season’s WIZ badge and the new Wizards badge.
Another difference is found in the KANSAS CITY wordmark across the front. In most 1997 and later shirts, the wordmark is sublimated, however on this shirt the wordmark is actually embroidered into the shirt letter-by-letter.
A source at the club who was also with the Wizards at the time claims that these shirts were indeed worn by the players and that there was also a font change early in the season. The source referenced how loose the rules and restrictions were on the uniforms during the early years of the league.