Major League Soccer

Major League Soccer (MLS) is a first division professional soccer league in the United States. Most of the players are from the United States but some are from elsewhere, in particular Latin America. MLS is the highest level league sanctioned by the professional division of the United States Soccer Federation (USSF or U.S. Soccer), which is a member of FIFA.

MLS was formed in 1996, following the staging of a successful FIFA World Cup in the United States in 1994. MLS began with ten teams. The Chicago Fire and the Miami Fusion joined in 1998.

In 1999, the city of Columbus, Ohio built Columbus Crew Stadium, the first stadium ever built specifically for soccer in the United States. A major goal of MLS management is to build such stadiums, which are often called "soccer-specific stadiums".

The Miami Fusion played in Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, FL, which was a former high school stadium which had been converted into a soccer-specific stadium. However, MLS contracted following the 2001 season, from 12 back to 10 teams, and the Miami Fusion ceased operation, as did the Tampa Bay Mutiny.

A new soccer-specific stadium, the new home of the LA Galaxy of MLS beginning with the 2003 season, recently opened at Home Depot Center in Los Angeles, California. The Galaxy previously played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA.

MLS attendance was strong the first season, declined slightly each of the following years, before stabilizing in a successful 2002 season.

Previous professional leagues in the US and Canada, most notably the North American Soccer League (NASL) (1968-1984), which featured, among others, soccer legend Pele, have failed.

Quality of play in MLS has improved in the the league's first few years. The success of the United States Men's National Team in the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Japan/Korea has been partly attributed to skills built through play in MLS.

Unlike many other professional sports leagues in the United States, MLS is organized as a "single-entity" organization, in which the league contracts directly with the players, in an effort to control spending and maximize exposure. Each team has an owner/investor and the league allows an owner to have more than one team.

Table of contents 1 Current Member Teams 2 Past MLS Cup Championship Games 3 MLS Commissioners 1 External Links

Current Member Teams

Eastern Conference

• Chicago Fire
• Columbus Crew
• D. C. United
• New England Revolution
• New York-New Jersey MetroStars

Western Conference

• Colorado Rapids
• Dallas Burn
• Kansas City Wizards
• Los Angeles Galaxy
• San Jose Earthquakes

Defunct Teams

• Miami Fusion
• Tampa Bay Munity

Past MLS Cup Championship Games

• 1996 D. C. United 3-2 Los Angeles Galaxy
• 1997 D. C. United 2-1 Colorado Rapids
• 1998 Chicago Fire 2-0 D. C. United
• 1999 D. C. United 2-0 Los Angeles Galaxy
• 2000 Kansas City Wizards 1-0 Chicago Fire
• 2001 San Jose Earthquakes 2-1 Los Angeles Galaxy
• 2002 Los Angeles Galaxy 1-0 (2OTs)New England Revolution

MLS Commissioners

• Douglas Logan..........1996-99
• Don Garber.............1999-

External Links (to official websites)

• U.S. Soccer (http://www.ussoccer.com/)
• Major League Soccer (http://www.mlsnet.com/)