MLS Season
The regular season consists of 30 games, 15 home games and 15 away games. Each club plays two games against each of the other 15 clubs. See Sports-at-a-Glance for the season timeline.
MLS Post-Season (Playoffs and Championship)
The MLS Cup Playoffs is the postseason elimination tournament of Major League Soccer held at the end of the regular season en route to the MLS Cup Championship game. A total of eight clubs from the MLS Eastern Conference and MLS Western Conference qualify for the tournament based on regular-season records, and a tiebreaking procedure exists in the case of equal records.
- In the first round, the Conference Semifinal series are conducted in a home-and-away, aggregate-goal format. The lower-seeded club in the Conference Semifinal hosts the first game. The winners of those four series advance to single-game Conference Championships that will determine the MLS Cup finalists. If the clubs are tied after 180 minutes in the Conference Semifinal series, a 30-minute extra time period (divided into two 15-minute periods) will be played followed by kicks from the penalty mark, if necessary.
- In the second round, the club that scores the most goals in the Conference Semifinals advances to the Conference Championship. The club with the higher seed between the two conference finalists will host the Conference Championship game. In the case of ties after 90 minutes of regulation play, 30 minutes of extra time (divided into two 15-minute periods) would be played followed by kicks from the penalty mark, if necessary, to determine the winners.
- In the third round, the winners of each Conference Championship play in the MLS Championship for the MLS Cup.
MLS All-Star Game
The MLS All-Star Game set-up has been far more fluid than that of All Star Games in more traditional leagues such as the NHL, NBA, NFL, and MLB. Five of the first six years used a format typical of that used for other league all-star games with Eastern Division players playing Western Division players. In recent years, this format has been replaced by a matchup between an MLS All-Star team and a selected international club. The all-star players are selected by a vote of fans, players, media, coaches, and general managers.
MLS Draft
The MLS SuperDraft is an annual event in which the Major League Soccer clubs select players who have graduated from college or otherwise been signed by MLS. The SuperDraft was first instituted in 2000, as a combination of the MLS College Draft, in which players having graduated from college were selected, and the MLS Supplemental Draft, in which all other players were chosen. The draft is divided into four rounds of sixteen picks, the order of which is determined by a combination of the clubs’ playoff and regular season positions, with the last placed team getting the first pick.
MLS Hall of Fame
The National Soccer Hall of Fame is located in Oneonta, NY. Its mission is to celebrate the history, honor the heroes, inspire the youth, and preserve the legacy of the sport of soccer in the United States. The top men and women soccer players are selected by a committee that consists of all present and former coaches of the Men’s and Women’s National Team, all active MLS coaches with a minimum of 4 years as Head Coach, MLS management representatives, MLS Commissioner, US Soccer Secretary General, designated members of the media, and all MLS Hall of Famers.
MLS Major Annual Awards
| MLS Cup | Most Valuable Player |
| Golden Boot | Comeback Player of the Year |
| Defender of the Year | Goalkeeper of the Year |
| Newcomer of the Year | Rookie of the Year |
| Coach of the Year |
MLS Players Association
The Major League Soccer Players Union, also referred to as MLS Players Union, or MLSPU, is the union of professional Major League Soccer players. The Players Union serves as the exclusive collective bargaining representative for all current players in MLS. The Players Union’s Executive Director is Bob Foose, and his office is in Bethesda, MD.
MLS Commissioner
The MSL Commissioner is Donald Garber, and his office is in New York City.
Other Soccer Leagues
The United Soccer League (USL) has a First Division with 12 clubs, 6 clubs in the USL Conference and 6 clubs in the NASL Conference. The USL also has a Second Division with 6 clubs. The USL W-League (Women’s) has 29 clubs. The Premier Development League has 67 clubs in 4 Divisions. The Super-20 League and the Super Y-League have a combined 88 clubs. The I-League will begin play in 2011. All leagues, with the exception of the Second Division, have clubs in the United States and Canada.
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