New York Red Bulls and Hospital for Special Surgery Announce Partnership

SECAUCUS, N.J.—March 21, 2007

The New York Red Bulls announced today that Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) will now serve as the team’s official hospital. The new partnership provides the Red Bulls with access to one of the world’s leading centers for orthopedics and sports medicine. With this new partnership the Red Bulls have officially named HSS physician Riley J. Williams, III, M.D., as their team physician and medical director.

“The Hospital for Special Surgery is without a doubt one of the finest, most respected facilities in the world and we are extremely proud to enter this partnership with them,” said Managing Director of Red Bull New York Marc de Grandpre. “The partnership also guarantees our players will have access to the best care in the tri-state area, which is a top priority for our organization.”

Dr. Williams is a world-renowned specialist in the field of shoulder, knee and elbow surgery. A member of the Sports Medicine and Shoulder Service, Dr. Williams is also director of the Institute for Cartilage Repair at HSS. Dr. Williams currently serves as the official team physician for the NBA’s New Jersey Nets and has served as associate team physician for both the New York Mets professional baseball and New York Giants professional football teams.

“With soccer’s popularity rising in the United States, it will be great to be affiliated with a top-notch club like the Red Bulls,” said Dr. Williams. “It’s only natural that HSS works with them to provide medical coverage that will help maintain a healthy team and provide a quick return to the game if injuries occur.”

The Sports Medicine and Shoulder Service at HSS is dedicated to treating athletic injuries and is one of the largest, most active, most highly respected departments in athletic medicine today. Its physicians are experts in advanced surgical techniques, including many that were pioneered at Special Surgery.

The Red Bulls have now joined an elite group of professional sports teams and organizations that utilize HSS physicians and athletic trainers. This group includes the New York Mets, the New York Football Giants, the New York Knicks, Nets Basketball, the National Retired Basketball Players Association and the Major League Baseball Players Alumni. In addition, HSS sports medicine specialists have provided medical coverage for many athletic events and have served on the U.S. Olympic Committee medical staff team that covered the 2004 Games in Athens.

“It is an honor to be selected as the official hospital for the Red Bulls,” said Louis A. Shapiro, president and chief executive officer at HSS. “Our physicians have a long history of providing high quality patient care to professional athletes and this partnership reinforces HSS’s renowned leadership in sports medicine.”

Also joining Dr. Williams in caring for the team will be associate team physicians David S. Levine, M.D., and Bryan T. Kelly, M.D.

Recently HSS was ranked #1 for orthopedics in New York Magazine’s inaugural Best Hospitals issue. The magazine also ranked HSS first in several subspecialty categories including knee surgery, spine surgery and hip replacement.