In front of 27,779 fans at the Cotton Bowl on April 14th, 1996, the Dallas Burn would earn a shootout win over the San Jose Clash. The Burn, with their superstar Jason Kries and coach Dave Dir, would quickly become one of MLS's better teams as they used a midseason 5-game winning streak to earn their first playoff berth with a record of 17-15.

The playoffs, however, would be short-lived for the Burn as the Kansas City Wiz in three games beat them.