2007 Major League Soccer season

The 2007 Major League Soccer season was the 12th season of Major League Soccer. It was also the 95th season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer in the United States, and the 29th with a national first-division league.

Major League Soccer
Season2007
MLS CupHouston Dynamo (2nd title)
Supporters' ShieldD.C. United (4th shield)
2008-09 CONCACAF Champions LeagueHouston Dynamo
D.C. United
N.E. Revolution
Chivas USA
2008 SuperLigaD.C. United
Chivas USA
Houston Dynamo
N.E. Revolution
2008 CONCACAF Champions' CupHouston Dynamo
D.C. United
Matches played195
Goals scored518 (2.66 per match)
Top goalscorerLuciano Emilio
D.C. United
Goals: 20
Biggest home winCHV 4–0 RSL
NY 4–0 CLB
TOR 4–0 FCD
Biggest away winCHI 0–4 HOU
FCD 0–4 DCU
Highest scoringNY 5–4 LA
Longest winning runD.C. United
Games: 6
(08/05/ – 09/01)
Longest unbeaten runD.C. United
Games: 13
(08/05 – 10/13)
Longest losing runLos Angeles Galaxy
Games: 6
(08/09 – 09/01)
Highest attendanceLos Angeles Galaxy
Season: 363,782
Game Avg.: 24,252
Lowest attendanceK.C. Wizards
Season:173,784
Game Avg.: 11,586
Total attendance3,270,210
Average attendance16,770
2006
2008

This year marked the inaugural season for expansion franchise, Toronto FC who began play in the Eastern Conference. Two new soccer-specific stadiums opened as well. The Colorado Rapids moved into Dick's Sporting Goods Park in the Denver-suburb of Commerce City and, before the season began, BMO Field opened for expansion side, Toronto FC.

This season is often cited as the first in the modern-era of Major League Soccer because of the introduction of the Designated Player Rule which permitted each team to sign one big-ticket player without it counting against the salary cap. Six such players were signed for the 2007 season: David Beckham, Cuauhtémoc Blanco, Juan Pablo Ángel, Luciano Emilio, Denílson and Guillermo Barros Schelotto.

The regular season began on April 7, and concluded on October 21. The 2007 MLS Cup Playoffs began on October 25, and concluded with MLS Cup 2007 on November 18. For the first time in league history, the same two clubs consecutively won the MLS Cup and the Supporters' Shield. The Houston Dynamo repeated as MLS Cup Champions by defeating the New England Revolution in the final and D.C. United won the Supporters' Shield by edging Chivas USA by two points in the standings.

Overview

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Season format

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The season began on April 7 and concluded with MLS Cup on November 18. The 13 teams were split into two conferences with 7 playing the Eastern Conference and 6 playing in the Western Conference. Each team played 30 games that were evenly divided between home and away. Each team played every other team twice, home and away, for a total of 26 games. The remaining four games were played against four regional rivals, two at home and two away.

The top three teams from each conference automatically qualified for the MLS Cup Playoffs. In addition, the two highest remaining point totals, regardless of conference, also qualified. In the first round, aggregate goals over two matches determined the winners. The conference finals were played as a single match, and the winners advanced to MLS Cup. In all rounds, draws were broken with two 15-minute periods of extra time, followed by penalty kicks if necessary. The away goals rule was not used in any round.

The team with the most points in the regular season was awarded the MLS Supporters' Shield and qualified for the CONCACAF Champions' Cup. Additionally, the winner of MLS Cup also qualified for the CONCACAF Champions' Cup. If a team qualified for multiple berths into the Champions' Cup, then additional berths were awarded to the highest overall finishing MLS team(s) not already qualified. Also, Toronto FC, as a Canadian-based team, could not qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League through MLS, and had to instead qualify through the Canadian Championship.

Automatic qualification for the U.S. Open Cup was awarded to the top three finishers in each conference. The rest of the U.S.-based MLS teams had to qualify for the remaining two berths via a series of play-in games.

Qualification for the SuperLiga was determined by the overall table with the top four overall finishers qualifying for the 2008 edition.

Stadiums and locations

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Team Stadium Capacity
Chicago Fire Toyota Park 20,000
Chivas USA Home Depot Center 27,000
Colorado Rapids Dick's Sporting Goods Park 18,061
Columbus Crew Columbus Crew Stadium 22,555
D.C. United RFK Stadium 46,000
FC Dallas Pizza Hut Park 21,193
Houston Dynamo Robertson Stadium 32,000
Kansas City Wizards Arrowhead Stadium 81,425
LA Galaxy Home Depot Center 27,000
New England Revolution Gillette Stadium 68,756
New York Red Bulls Giants Stadium 80,200
Real Salt Lake Rice-Eccles Stadium 45,017
Toronto FC BMO Field 21,566

Personnel and sponsorships

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Team Head coach Captain Shirt sponsor
Chicago Fire   Dave Sarachan
Chivas USA   Preki Comex
Colorado Rapids   Fernando Clavijo
Columbus Crew   Sigi Schmid   Frankie Hejduk
D.C. United   Tom Soehn
FC Dallas   Steve Morrow
Houston Dynamo   Dominic Kinnear   Wade Barrett
Kansas City Wizards   Curt Onalfo
LA Galaxy   Frank Yallop Herbalife
New England Revolution   Steve Nicol
New York Red Bulls   Bruce Arena   Claudio Reyna Red Bull
Real Salt Lake   John Ellinger   Jason Kreis
  Eddie Pope
Toronto FC   Mo Johnston

Coaching changes

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Team Outgoing coach Manner of departure Date of vacancy Incoming coach Date of appointment
Chicago Fire   Dave Sarachan Fired June 20, 2007   Juan Carlos Osorio July 1, 2007
Real Salt Lake   John Ellinger Fired May 3, 2007   Jason Kreis May 3, 2007

Standings

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Eastern Conference

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Pos Team Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 D.C. United 30 16 7 7 56 34 +22 55 MLS Cup Playoffs
2 New England Revolution 30 14 8 8 51 43 +8 50
3 New York Red Bulls 30 12 11 7 47 45 +2 43
4 Chicago Fire 30 10 10 10 31 36 −5 40
5 Kansas City Wizards 30 11 12 7 45 45 0 40
6 Columbus Crew 30 9 11 10 39 44 −5 37
7 Toronto FC 30 6 17 7 25 49 −24 25
Source: MLS

Western Conference

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Pos Team Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Chivas USA 30 15 7 8 46 28 +18 53 MLS Cup Playoffs
2 Houston Dynamo 30 15 8 7 43 23 +20 52
3 FC Dallas 30 13 12 5 37 44 −7 44
4 Colorado Rapids 30 9 13 8 29 34 −5 35
5 LA Galaxy 30 9 14 7 38 48 −10 34
6 Real Salt Lake 30 6 15 9 31 45 −14 27
Source: MLS

Overall standings

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Pos Team Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 D.C. United (S) 30 16 7 7 56 34 +22 55 CONCACAF Champions' Cup
2 Chivas USA 30 15 7 8 46 28 +18 53 North American SuperLiga
3 Houston Dynamo (C) 30 15 8 7 43 23 +20 52 CONCACAF Champions' Cup
4 New England Revolution 30 14 8 8 51 43 +8 50 North American SuperLiga
5 FC Dallas 30 13 12 5 37 44 −7 44
6 New York Red Bulls 30 12 11 7 47 45 +2 43
7 Chicago Fire 30 10 10 10 31 36 −5 40
8 Kansas City Wizards 30 11 12 7 45 45 0 40
9 Columbus Crew 30 9 11 10 39 44 −5 37
10 Colorado Rapids 30 9 13 8 29 34 −5 35
11 LA Galaxy 30 9 14 7 38 48 −10 34
12 Real Salt Lake 30 6 15 9 31 45 −14 27
13 Toronto FC 30 6 17 7 25 49 −24 25
Source: MLS
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head record; 3) goal difference; 4) number of goals scored
(C) Champions; (S) Supporters' Shield

MLS Cup Playoffs

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Conference semifinals Conference finals MLS Cup
          
E1 D.C. United 0 2
E4 Chicago Fire 1 2
E4 Chicago Fire 0
Eastern Conference
E2 New England Revolution 1
E3 New York Red Bulls 0 0
E2 New England Revolution 0 1
E2 New England Revolution 1
W2 Houston Dynamo 2
W1 Chivas USA 0 0
W4 Kansas City Wizards1 1 0
W4 Kansas City Wizards 0
Western Conference
W2 Houston Dynamo 2
W3 FC Dallas 1 1
W2 Houston Dynamo (AET) 0 4

1 The Kansas City Wizards earned the eighth and final playoff berth, despite finishing fifth in the Eastern Conference.
They represent the fourth seed in the Western Conference playoff bracket, as only three teams in the Western Conference qualified for the playoffs.

Player statistics

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Goals

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Rank Player Club Goals
1   Luciano Emilio D.C. United 20
2   Juan Pablo Ángel New York Red Bulls 19
3   Taylor Twellman New England Revolution 16
4   Eddie Johnson Kansas City Wizards 15
5   Maykel Galindo Chivas USA 12
6   Ante Razov Chivas USA 11
7   Christian Gómez D.C. United 10
8   Jozy Altidore New York Red Bulls 9
9   Landon Donovan LA Galaxy 8
  Robbie Findley Real Salt Lake

Assists

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Rank Player Club Assists
1   Landon Donovan LA Galaxy 11
  Steve Ralston New England Revolution
3   Davy Arnaud Kansas City Wizards 9
  Guillermo Barros Schelotto Columbus Crew
  Sacha Kljestan Chivas USA
6   Cuauhtémoc Blanco Chicago Fire 7
  Christian Gómez D.C. United
  Alejandro Moreno Columbus Crew
9   Eddie Gaven Columbus Crew 6
  Stuart Holden Houston Dynamo
  Dax McCarty FC Dallas

Clean sheets

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Rank Player Club Clean
sheets
1   Brad Guzan Chivas USA 13
2   Pat Onstad Houston Dynamo 11
3   Matt Pickens Chicago Fire 10
  Matt Reis New England Revolution
5   Bouna Coundoul Colorado Rapids 9
6   Troy Perkins D.C. United 8
7   Nick Rimando Real Salt Lake 7
8   Joe Cannon LA Galaxy 5
  Jon Conway New York Red Bulls
  Kevin Hartman Kansas City Wizards
  Will Hesmer Columbus Crew
  Darío Sala FC Dallas
  Ronald Waterreus New York Red Bulls

Awards

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Individual awards

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Award Player Club
Most Valuable Player   Luciano Emilio D.C. United
Defender of the Year   Michael Parkhurst New England Revolution
Goalkeeper of the Year   Brad Guzan Chivas USA
Coach of the Year   Preki Chivas USA
Rookie of the Year   Maurice Edu Toronto FC
Newcomer of the Year   Luciano Emilio D.C. United
Comeback Player of the Year   Eddie Johnson Kansas City Wizards
Golden Boot   Luciano Emilio D.C. United
Goal of the Year   Cuauhtémoc Blanco Chicago Fire
Fair Play Award   Michael Parkhurst New England Revolution
Humanitarian of the Year   Diego Gutiérrez Chicago Fire

Best XI

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Goalkeeper Defenders Midfielders Forwards
  Brad Guzan, Chivas USA   Michael Parkhurst, New England
  Eddie Robinson, Houston Dynamo
  Jonathan Bornstein, Chivas USA
  Christian Gómez, D.C. United
  Shalrie Joseph, New England
  Dwayne De Rosario, Houston Dynamo
  Ben Olsen, D.C. United
  Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Columbus
  Luciano Emílio, D.C. United
  Juan Pablo Ángel, New York Red Bulls

Weekly awards

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Monthly awards

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Attendance

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Club Games Season Game Avg.
LA Galaxy 15 363,782 24,252
D.C. United 15 314,506 20,967
Toronto FC 15 301,947 20,130
New England Revolution 15 251,132 16,742
New York Red Bulls 15 247,948 16,530
Chicago Fire 15 247,536 16,502
Real Salt Lake 15 239,395 15,960
Houston Dynamo 15 238,240 15,883
Columbus Crew 15 228,451 15,230
FC Dallas 15 227,182 15,145
Colorado Rapids 15 221,209 14,747
Chivas USA 15 214,578 14,305
Kansas City Wizards 15 173,784 11,586
OVERALL 195 3,269,690 16,768

International competitions

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CONCACAF Champions' Cup 2007

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  D.C. United
Defeated   Club Deportivo Olimpia in the Quarterfinals
Lost   Club Deportivo Guadalajara in the Semifinals.

  Houston Dynamo
Defeated   Puntarenas FC in the Quarterfinals.
Lost   C.F. Pachuca in the Semifinals.


SuperLiga 2007

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FC Dallas
Finished in fourth place and did not advance from
Group A after going 0-1-2 in group play.

D.C. United
Runner-up of Group B after going 1-1-1 in group play.
Lost to Los Angeles Galaxy in Semifinals.

Houston Dynamo
Winner of Group B after going 2-0-1 in group play.
Lost to C.F. Pachuca on penalty kicks in the Semifinals.

Los Angeles Galaxy
Winner of Group A after going 2-1-0 in group play.
Defeated D.C. United in the Semifinals
Lost to C.F. Pachuca on penalty kicks in the Final.


Copa Sudamericana 2007

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D.C. United
Lost to Club Deportivo Guadalajara on away goals in the Round of 16.


Other competitions

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2007 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup

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Eight of the twelve U.S.-based MLS teams entered the tournament in the third round.

D.C. United
Lost to Harrisburg City Islanders in the third round.

Los Angeles Galaxy
Lost to Richmond Kickers in the third round.

Chicago Fire
Lost to Carolina RailHawks in the third round.

Houston Dynamo
Lost to Charleston Battery in the third round.

Chivas USA
Lost to Seattle Sounders (USL) in the third round

Colorado Rapids
Defeated California Victory in the third round.
Lost to Seattle Sounders (USL) in the Quarterfinals.

FC Dallas
Defeated Atlanta Silverbacks on penalty kicks in the third round,
Defeated Charleston Battery after extra time in the Quarterfinals,
Defeated Seattle Sounders (USL) after extra time in the Semifinals,
Lost to New England Revolution in the Final.

New England Revolution
Defeated Rochester Raging Rhinos in the third round.
Defeated Harrisburg City Islanders in the Quarterfinals.
Defeated Carolina RailHawks after extra time in the Semifinals.
Defeated FC Dallas in the Final.


All-Star game

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The 2007 MLS All-Star Game was held at Dick's Sporting Goods Park
in Commerce City, Colorado, home of the Colorado Rapids on July 19.
The opponent was Celtic F.C. of the Scottish Premier League.

Final Score:
MLS All-Stars 2-0 Celtic F.C.

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References

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