Major League Soccer

Discussion in 'Americas' started by agoo, Sep 29, 2008.

  1. agoo

    agoo Member

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    Major League Soccer

    Founded: 1993

    Number of Teams: Currently, 14

    Relegation: Does not occur in MLS

    Domestic Cups: United States Open Cup, Canadian Championship

    International Championships: SuperLiga, CONCACAF Champions League

    Supporter's Shield Holders: DC United

    MLS Cup Holders: Houston Dynamo

    League Overview
    Major League Soccer (MLS) represents the top flight of soccer in the United States and Canada. MLS currently consists of 13 US based teams and one from Canada. There are currently plans in place to expand to 18 teams by 2011. Seattle Sounders FC will be the league's 15 franchise when the start play next season. A franchise in Philadelphia will join in 2010. The final two franchises have not been announced, but rumors are afloat of franchises in Atlanta, downtown New York City, Las Vegas, Phoenix, and St. Louis in the US, and Montreal, Ottawa, and Vancouver in Canada.

    The league currently goes for 30 regular season rounds from March to October, with the playoffs running from season's end to November. The 14 teams are divided into two conferences for playoff standing purposes. Each team plays twice for 26 matches, with four additional matches against "regional rivals". Each team plays an equal number of home and away matches. For the playoffs, the top three teams from each conference automatically qualify, with the last two spots going to the next two top records, regardless of conference affiliation. The first round of the playoffs are a home-and-away series where the away goals rule is not in use. The second round is a home game for the higher seeded team and the MLS Cup Final is at a team's stadium chosen at the start of the season and is typically a neutral site. Despite being regarded as the superior conference over the last few seasons, DC United is the only team to win the MLS Cup Final from the Eastern Conference, having done so four times.

    The top team in the regular season wins the Supporters' Shield and qualifies for the group stage of the CONCACAF Champions League (CCL). The MLS Cup winner also qualifies for the group stage of the CCL. The two remaining CCL spots go to the MLS Cup runner-up and the US Open Cup winner. In the event that a team qualifies through more than one method, the next highest ranked team in the MLS table will go into the preliminary round. Toronto FC is not able to qualify through MLS participation because they are a Canadian team.

    The MLS calendar also features an all-star game. The MLS All-Star game has taken on many different forms over the years. It started as a typical East vs. West all-star game and has been in that format for six of 13 seasons. There was also a USA vs. World format once and an MLS vs. US National Team match. Most recently, the All-Star Game has been the MLS All-Stars vs. an international club team. The format started in 2003 with Chivas de Guadalajara, then took a year off in 2004. The format has been in use consecutively since 2005 and appears to be the format of choice for the future. Fulham, Chelsea, Celtic, and West Ham United have participated over the last four seasons.

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    Eastern Conference

    Still to come: Kansas City Wizards - New England Revolution - New York Red Bulls - Toronto FC

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    Chicago Fire
    Founded - 1997
    Stadium - Toyota Park, Bridgeview, IL (20,000)
    Coach - Denis Hamlett
    1998 MLS Cup Champion​

    The Chicago Fire are MLS' most successful team in the US Open Cup, having raised the Lamar Hunt Trophy on four occasions (98, 00, 03, 06). Many famous US Internationals have donned the red and white kit, including DaMarcus Beasley, Frank Klopas, Eric Wynalda, Carlos Bocanegra, Ante Razov, Josh Wolff, Tony Sanneh, and current assistant coach, Chris Armas. International players are also a significant part of Fire history with internationals including Hristo Stoichkov, Piotr Nowak, Lubos Kubic, Jorge Campos, Roman Kosecki, and more recently, Tomasz Frankowski and Cuauhtemoc Blanco. The Fire won the MLS Cup in their second season and, despite no additional MLS Cups, they have been a model franchise with a long standing developmental academy and a number of the league's top players.

    Brian McBride currently plays for the club, in addition to former US Nationals, CJ Brown and Chris Rolfe. There is also a strong foreign contingent with capped players like Blanco, Frankowski, and Costa Ricans Gonzalo Segares and Andy Herron. Bakary Soumare is a major player to watch for the future. Soumare was born in Mali, but moved to Paris as a child and New York as a teen. Soumare is not yet a citizen, but has stated that he would like to play with the US National Team and hopes to receive a cap when he receives his citizenship in 2009.


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    Columbus Crew
    Founded - 1994
    Stadium - Columbus Crew Stadium, Columbus, OH (20,555)
    Coach - Sigi Schmid​

    The Columbus Crew are one of the original members of Major League Soccer. At the start of MLS, they were one of two teams owned by Lamar Hunt (Kansas City was the other). Lamar Hunt went on to purchase FC Dallas before his death and both the Crew and Dallas are owned by his son, Clark. The Crew played their first few seasons at Ohio Stadium where the Ohio State University football team plays their games. Lamar Hunt funded the first soccer-specific stadium in MLS and the first in the United States with a FIFA-regulation pitch (USL's Charleston Battery had the first SSS opened in 1999). The Crew were the original MLS side of Brian McBride (who, with Jeff Cunningham, is the all-time leading scorer). Other well known Americans include Thomas Dooley, Brad Friedel, and John Harkes. The Crew have had less of an international presence historically, but featured Stern John (Trinidad and Tobago), Robert Warzycha (Poland), and Doctor Khumalo (South Africa).

    The Crew have only raised one trophy in their existence (2002 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup), but have a very strong side that earned the 2008 Supporters' Shield. The current roster relies more on foreign born players than previous Crew sides, despite being Captained by American fullback, Frankie Hejduk. Other significant Americans wearing the yellow and black have been capped at the youth level but have not found regular time with the senior national team, including Eddie Gaven, Chad Marshall, and Robbie Rogers. Key foreigners for the Crew include Guillermo Barros Schelotto (Argentina), Alejandro Moreno (Venezuela), and 2008 Olympic Silver Medalist, Emmanuel Ekpo (Nigeria).


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    DC United
    Founded - 1995
    Stadium - RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C. (56,692)
    Coach - Tom Soehn
    MLS Champions 1996, 1997, 1999, 2004​

    If its been won by an MLS Team, DC United have done it. The team won the first two MLS Cups and added two more, and participated in the first four MLS Cup matches, winning three. They have won four MLS Supporters' Shields and two US Open Cups. They did the first double in the MLS era in 1996. They won the CONCACAF Champions' Cup in 1998 and the last ever Copa Interamericana. They were also the only MLS team to participate in the Copa Sudamericana.

    To go with all of the trophies, the names associated with DC United are unmatched by any other club in MLS. Bruce Arena coached for two years before taking over the United States National Team. Among the players on the team that won three of the first four MLS Cups were Americans Jeff Agoos, John Harkes, Richie Williams, Tony Sanneh, and Eddie Pope, and the legendary Bolivians, Marco Etcheverry and Jaime Moreno. Other well known United players include Bobby Convey, Earnie Stewart, Freddy Adu, and Ben Olsen.

    Currently, DC United fields another very strong team based mostly on strong attacking play from foreign players. Luciano Emilio paces the attack with his size and strength at forward, with, all-time MLS leading scorer, Jaime Moreno in support. Among the midfielders are Brazil's Fred, Guatemala's Ivan Guerrero and former Argentina International, Marcelo Gallardo. While United's big names are foreign born players, capped Americans in the squad include keeper Zach Wells (1), Olsen (37), Clyde Simms (1), Santino Quaranta (11), and Bryan Namoff (1).

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    Western Conference

    Still to come: FC Dallas - Houston Dynamo - Los Angeles Galaxy - Real Salt Lake - San Jose Earthquakes

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    Chivas USA
    Founded - 2004
    Stadium - Home Depot Center, Carson, CA (27,000)
    Coach - Preki​

    Chivas USA set a new direction for MLS franchises that has been adopted by a few other franchises in the league. CD Guadalajara President, Jorge Vegara paid up to bring a second franchise to the Los Angeles area and to the Home Depot Center. The two clubs are linked by name and less frequently by players. While the club was originally marketed hard to Southern California's Mexican population, those ideas have also fallen off a bit and the team is now based more around American players and other internationals.

    While that shift is taking place, Claudio Suarez, the most capped player in Mexico's history, serves as central defender and club captain. Rafael Wicky joined in the 2008 season as a designated player. Capped Americans on the team include recently capped players like Sacha Kljestan and Jonathan Bornstein, as well as Sasha Victorine, Jesse Marsch, and Ante Razov. Cuban defector Maykel Galindo stars as a forward. One to watch for the future is former Sueno MLS winner Jorge Flores who won a reality TV show competition to get on the team and has gone on to player for the US at the U-20 level.


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    Colorado Rapids
    Founded - 1995
    Stadium - Dick's Sporting Goods Park, Commerce City, CO (18,776 total, 18,086 seated)
    Coach - Gary Smith​

    The Colorado Rapids have a long history of struggling through the MLS. The Rapids have reached only two finals in their existence, the 1997 MLS Cup and the 1999 US Open Cup, and losing both. Early Rapdis players include US Internationals Roy Wegerle, Marcelo Balboa, Paul Bravo, and Marcus Hahnemann. Glenn Myernick, former US National goal keeper coach, served as Rapids coach from 1997 to 2000. Significant international players for the Rapids include Scotland's john Spencer (2001-2004), Columbia's Carlos Valderama (2001-2002), Cameroon's Alain Nkong (2005-2007), Sweden's Anders Limpar (1999-2000), Spain's Aitor Karanka (2006), and Uruguay's Adrian Paz (1997-1998). Paz became the first Uruguayan in the Premiership when he made 18 appearances for Ipswich Town in the 94-95 season.

    An interesting note about the Rapids is the international club partnerships that they have. Their first partnership was announced with Mexico's CF Pachuca in August of 2007. Under the Pachuca partnership, the Mexican side has a youth academy set up at Dick's Sporting Goods Park, the team play a home-and-home series annually, and conduct preseason trainings at each other's training ground. The other partnership comes through owner, Stan Kroenke, who owns a significant part of Arsenal. The partnership with Arsenal focuses mostly on development in terms of coaching, players, and best business practices. Arsenal's main benefit is the potential for exposure in the United States, which has proven to be a significant revenue source for Man United and Real Madrid among others.

    Today's Rapids are lead by captian and US International, Pablo Mastroeni, as well as other capped Americans in Cory Gibbs and Conor Casey. The roster also features former MVP Christian Gomez (Argentina), Jamaican international Omar Cummings, and Senegalese keeper Bouna Coundoul. A name to watch for is Moroccan midfielder Mehdi Ballouchy. Ballouchy spent time in the Raja Casablanca youth set up before moving to the states in 2000 and is working on getting his US citizenship.

    Work in Progress. We'll get there some day...don't you worry.
     
    Last edited: Oct 6, 2008
  2. agoo

    agoo Member

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    Year by Year histories will go here.
     
  3. agoo

    agoo Member

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    Links and other resources will go here.
     
  4. M Two One

    M Two One Halló Veröld!

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    Nice work, Agoo. Please add the team kits to your work as well.
     
  5. Colonel Ronan

    Colonel Ronan Continue...?

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  6. shookem

    shookem Still not a bust

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    Amazing work dude.
     
  7. agoo

    agoo Member

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    So you're pretty much looking at the format that I am going with for the clubs. A paragraph of history, then a paragraph about current players to notice.

    The season reviews will be a bit about regular season, a bit about the playoffs, then a bit about the awards. The earlier seasons will be somewhat sparse because there isn't a lot of great information available on either wikipedia or the MLS history site.

    The links post will have all the club web sites and some of the blogs that I read regularly (though some are general American soccer blogs).

    At the pace I'm going and with other stuff I have coming up, I think I'll be done by the end of October.

    Is there anything else that anyone would like to see?
     
  8. Claud

    Claud Legendary

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    Looks good.
     
  9. Colonel Ronan

    Colonel Ronan Continue...?

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    Perhaps create a page break for every Conference.
     
  10. agoo

    agoo Member

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    Not sure what you mean by that.


    And the Rapids are up. Its a bit longer, but it speaks to the partnerships that they have developed that other teams desperately need to start looking into. If the newly formed Puerto Rican league can get River Plate and Sevilla to set up partner clubs, there's no reason why MLS teams cannot get equal or better clubs involved.
     
  11. CelticKing

    CelticKing The Green Monster

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    Great job Agoo. :)
     
  12. agoo

    agoo Member

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    DC United added, FC Dallas is up next.
     
  13. Colonel Ronan

    Colonel Ronan Continue...?

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    A bar that splits each conference. It might make it look more organized - Not that it isn't organized!
     
  14. Colonel Ronan

    Colonel Ronan Continue...?

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    Wow, I must be high as shit. Nevermind. Haha.
     
  15. agoo

    agoo Member

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    This will get done, I swear.
     
  16. isrus

    isrus Go Devils

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    Take your time :) This looks good btw
     
  17. agoo

    agoo Member

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    Sorry about the delays here. Work, classes, and life kinda shat on me all at once. This will get there at some point though.
     
  18. M Two One

    M Two One Halló Veröld!

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    We all have that once in a while. Update when you're able to.
     
  19. Andy Bulldog

    Andy Bulldog GO DAWGS!

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    Looks nice, keep up the good work!
     
  20. Colonel Ronan

    Colonel Ronan Continue...?

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    I miss you!
     

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