Mike Burns joined the Kansas City Wizards in 2001 from the San Jose Earthquakes in exchange for conditional picks in the 2002 MLS SuperDraft.
The veteran defender was an MLS All-Star with the New England Revolution in 1998, and earned 75 caps with the United States Men’s National Team.
Burns slotted into Bob Gansler’s lineup and played 19 matches in MLS in 2001, starting 14 of them. He had 3 assists. The USMNT international also started all three of the club’s playoff games against the Miami Fusion and added an assist there as well.
Mike Burns wore two numbers in the 2001 season. He began the campaign wearing the #16 and then switched to #28 later in the season. I haven’t been able to pinpoint when the change occurred, but it was in place prior to the playoffs beginning.
Mike Burns wearing the #16 early in his time with the Kansas City Wizards in 2001 before swapping to #28 later in the season.
This Burns 2001 match worn jersey has a few differences from the 1999 Lalas and 2000 Johnson jerseys of this same style.
First and foremost, the numbering has changed from the felt style to the straight plastic/vinyl lettering and numbering. The font is the same, however.
The second change is to the US Soccer Foundation sponsorship patches. They are no longer fabric patches but also plastic/vinyl applications applied via heat press. These are definitely a step down from the fabric ones, but I assume they were cheaper and easier to apply. The new patches are visible in several photos from the season thanks to how shiny they are, and also the white border around them.
The 2000 MLS Cup Champions patch that is found on all 2001 Wizards shirts prior to September of that season.
2001 also had a third change which was an addition; the 2000 MLS Cup Champions patch honoring the club’s MLS Cup title triumph over the Chicago Fire the previous season.
This is the second MLS Cup Champions patched shirt in my collection joining the 2001 Onandi Lowe.
Mike Burns’ match worn shirt from that season has some light signs of wear and fading/bleeding on the tagging but is otherwise fairly clean.
These white secondary jerseys with rainbow sides were the last jerseys the club wore on the pitch with the rainbow motif. The colorful design choice was fully retired the following season, with royal blue and white taking over as the permanent new look of the club. that went unchanged until the rebrand.