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| Founded | December 17, 1993[1] |
|---|---|
| First season | 1996 |
| Countries | United States (27 teams) Canada (3 teams) |
| Confederation | CONCACAF |
| Conferences | Eastern Conference Western Conference |
| Number of clubs | 30 |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Domestic cup(s) | U.S. Open Cup Canadian Championship |
| International cup(s) | CONCACAF Champions Cup Campeones Cup Leagues Cup |
| Current MLS Cup | LA Galaxy (6th title) (2024) |
| Current Supporters' Shield | Inter Miami CF (1st shield) (2024) |
| Most MLS Cups | LA Galaxy (6 titles) |
| Most Supporters' Shields | D.C. United LA Galaxy (4 shields each) |
| Most appearances | Nick Rimando (514) |
| Top goalscorer | Chris Wondolowski (171) |
| TV partners | MLS Season Pass (Apple TV) |
| Website | MLSsoccer.com |
| Current: 2025 Major League Soccer season | |
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system.[2] It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation.[3] MLS is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada. The league is headquartered in Midtown Manhattan.
The predecessor of MLS was the North American Soccer League (NASL), which existed from 1968 until 1984.[4] MLS was founded in 1993 as part of the United States' successful bid to host the 1994 FIFA World Cup.[5] The inaugural season took place in 1996 with ten teams.[6] MLS experienced financial and operational struggles in its first few years, losing millions of dollars and folding two teams in 2002.[7] Since then, developments such as the proliferation of soccer-specific stadiums around the league, the implementation of the Designated Player Rule allowing teams to sign star players such as David Beckham and Lionel Messi, and national TV contracts have made MLS profitable.[8]
In 2022, with an average attendance of over 21,000 per game, MLS had the fourth-highest average attendance of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada, behind the National Football League (NFL) with over 69,000 fans per game, Major League Baseball (MLB) with over 26,000 fans per game, and the Canadian Football League (CFL) with over 21,700 fans per game.[9][10] Two years later, MLS was ranked second in the most attended soccer leagues in the world, only trailing the Premier League.[11]
The MLS regular season typically starts in late February or early March and runs through mid-October, with each team playing 34 games;[12][13] the team with the best record is awarded the Supporters' Shield. Eighteen teams compete in the postseason MLS Cup playoffs in late October and November, culminating in the league's championship game, MLS Cup.[14] Instead of operating as an association of independently owned clubs, MLS is a single entity in which each team is owned by the league and individually operated by the league's investors.[15] The league has a fixed membership like most sports leagues in the United States and Canada and Mexico's Liga MX which makes it one of the few soccer leagues that does not use a promotion and relegation process.[16]
The LA Galaxy have the most MLS Cups, with six. They are tied with D.C. United for most Supporters' Shields, with four each.
- ^ Borg, Simon (December 17, 2010). "MLS celebrates 17th anniversary of formal debut". MLSSoccer.com. Archived from the original on January 12, 2014. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
- ^ "About Major League Soccer". USSoccer.com. Archived from the original on September 23, 2014. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
- ^ "St. Louis City unveil new renderings of state-of-the-art stadium ahead of 2023 MLS debut". Chicago Tribune. Associated Press. Archived from the original on May 18, 2021. Retrieved August 20, 2019.
- ^ "By The Numbers... North American Soccer League vs Major League Soccer". February 11, 2013. Archived from the original on December 9, 2013. Retrieved September 20, 2014.
- ^ "About Major League Soccer". MLSnet.com. September 5, 2008. Archived from the original on June 25, 2008. Retrieved September 5, 2008.
- ^ "1996 Season Recap". MLSsoccer.com. February 22, 2012. Archived from the original on October 1, 2014. Retrieved September 20, 2014.
- ^ "Major League Soccer's Most Valuable Teams". Forbes. November 20, 2013. Archived from the original on September 21, 2014. Retrieved September 20, 2014.
- ^ Smith, Chris (August 19, 2015). "Major League Soccer's Most Valuable Teams 2015". Forbes. Archived from the original on August 20, 2015. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
- ^ Broughton, David (April 10, 2023). "Attendance evolution since 2003". Sports Business Journal. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
- ^ Strong, Gregory (May 19, 2023). "Intentional Grounding: CFL coverage to take hit with fewer reporters on the road". Toronto Star. The Canadian Press. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
- ^ "MLS behind only the Premier League in 2024 fan attendance, with more fans in stadiums than leagues in Spain and Italy". Goal.com UK. December 5, 2024. Retrieved February 15, 2025.
- ^ "MLS expands playoffs, adds 2 teams in 20th season". USA Today. January 7, 2015. Archived from the original on January 9, 2015. Retrieved January 8, 2015.
- ^ "Major League Soccer unveils 2015 schedule, with Decision Day finale and expanded playoff format". Major League Soccer. January 7, 2015. Archived from the original on June 26, 2015. Retrieved June 17, 2015.
- ^ "MLS Cup Playoffs 101: How the 2013 postseason works". Portland Timbers. October 29, 2013. Archived from the original on October 31, 2014. Retrieved September 20, 2014.
- ^ Fraser v. Major League Soccer, 01 F.3d 1296 (US 1st Cir. March 20, 2002).
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