Wikipedia

2006 Major League Soccer season

The 2006 Major League Soccer season was the 11th season of Major League Soccer. It was also the 94th season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer in the United States, and the 28th with a national first-division league.

2006 Major League Soccer season
Season2006
MLS CupHouston Dynamo (1st title)
Supporters' ShieldD.C. United (3rd shield)
2007 CONCACAF Champions' CupHouston Dynamo
D.C. United
Matches played192
Goals scored503 (2.62 per match)
Top goalscorerJeff Cunningham
Real Salt Lake
Goals: 16
Biggest home winNY 6–0 RSL
Biggest away winNY 1–4 DCU
LA 0–3 RSL
DCU 2–5 LA
Highest scoringNY 5–4 CHV
Longest winning runD.C. United
Wins: 6
(06/21 – 07/15)
Longest unbeaten runD.C. United
Wins: 14
(05/13 – 07/22)
Longest losing runK.C. Wizards
Loss: 7
(06/24 – 07/22)
Los Angeles Galaxy
Loss: 7
(05/06 -06/08)
Highest attendanceLos Angeles Galaxy
Season: 333,016
Game avg.: 20,814
Lowest attendanceK.C. Wizards
Season: 177,322
Game avg.: 11,083
Total attendance2,976,787
Average attendance15,504
← 2005
2007 →
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Locations of teams for the 2006 Major League Soccer season
Western Conference   Eastern Conference

The MetroStars were bought by Austrian company Red Bull and rebranded as the New York Red Bulls.

Due to owner AEG being unable to secure a soccer specific stadium in San Jose, the Earthquakes ceased operations and had their personnel transferred to the expansion Houston Dynamo.

In June, the Chicago Fire moved into their new soccer-specific stadium, Toyota Park, in Bridgeview, Illinois.

The regular season began on April 1, and concluded on October 15. The 2006 MLS Cup Playoffs began on October 21, and concluded with MLS Cup 2006 on November 12. Houston marked their inaugural season with a league championship by defeating the New England Revolution on penalties in MLS Cup.

Overview

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Season format

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The season began on April 1 and concluded with MLS Cup on November 12. The 12 teams were split evenly into two conferences. Each team played 32 games that were evenly divided between home and away. Each team played every other team in their conference four times, and every team in the opposite conference twice.

The top four teams from each conference qualified for the MLS Cup Playoffs. 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. Qualification for the inaugural SuperLiga was also awarded to the MLS Cup Champion and Supporters' Shield winner, as well two invited teams, FC Dallas and LA Galaxy.

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.

Stadiums and locations

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Main article: List of Major League Soccer stadiums
Team Stadium Capacity
Chicago Fire Toyota Park 20,000
Chivas USA Home Depot Center 27,000
Colorado Rapids Invesco Field at Mile High 76,125
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
Los Angeles 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

Personnel and sponsorships

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Team Head coach Captain Shirt sponsor
Chicago Fire   Dave Sarachan Honda
Chivas USA   Bob Bradley —
Colorado Rapids   Fernando Clavijo —
Columbus Crew   Sigi Schmid   Robin Fraser —
D.C. United   Piotr Nowak Sierra Mist
FC Dallas   Colin Clarke RadioShack
Houston Dynamo   Dominic Kinnear   Wade Barrett —
Kansas City Wizards   Bob Gansler U.S. Soccer Foundation
Los Angeles Galaxy   Steve Sampson Budweiser
New England Revolution   Steve Nicol Sierra Mist
New York Red Bulls   Mo Johnston   Youri Djorkaeff Red Bull
Real Salt Lake   John Ellinger   Jason Kreis —

Coaching changes

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Team Outgoing coach Manner of departure Date of vacancy Incoming coach Date of appointment
Los Angeles Galaxy   Steve Sampson Fired June 6, 2006   Frank Yallop June 7, 2006
New York Red Bulls   Mo Johnston Fired June 27, 2006   Richie Williams June 28, 2006
New York Red Bulls   Richie Williams End of interim period July 18, 2006   Bruce Arena July 18, 2006
Kansas City Wizards   Bob Gansler Resigned July 19, 2006   Brian Bliss July 19, 2006

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 32 15 7 10 52 38 +14 55 MLS Cup Playoffs
2 New England Revolution 32 12 8 12 39 35 +4 48
3 Chicago Fire 32 13 11 8 43 41 +2 47
4 New York Red Bulls 32 9 11 12 41 41 0 39
5 Kansas City Wizards 32 10 14 8 43 45 −2 38
6 Columbus Crew 32 8 15 9 30 42 −12 33
Source: MLS

Western Conference

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Pos Team
 Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 FC Dallas 32 16 12 4 48 44 +4 52 MLS Cup Playoffs
2 Houston Dynamo 32 11 8 13 44 40 +4 46
3 Chivas USA 32 10 9 13 45 42 +3 43
4 Colorado Rapids 32 11 13 8 36 49 −13 41
5 Los Angeles Galaxy 32 11 15 6 37 37 0 39
6 Real Salt Lake 32 10 13 9 45 49 −4 39
Source: MLS

Overall standings

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Pos Team
 Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 D.C. United (S) 32 15 7 10 52 38 +14 55 CONCACAF Champions' Cup
2 FC Dallas 32 16 12 4 48 44 +4 52 North American SuperLiga
3 New England Revolution 32 12 8 12 39 35 +4 48
4 Chicago Fire 32 13 11 8 43 41 +2 47
5 Houston Dynamo (C) 32 11 8 13 44 40 +4 46 CONCACAF Champions' Cup
6 Chivas USA 32 10 9 13 45 42 +3 43
7 Colorado Rapids 32 11 13 8 36 49 −13 41
8 New York Red Bulls 32 9 11 12 41 41 0 39
9 Los Angeles Galaxy 32 11 15 6 37 37 0 39 North American SuperLiga
10 Real Salt Lake 32 10 13 9 45 49 −4 39
11 Kansas City Wizards 32 10 14 8 43 45 −2 38
12 Columbus Crew 32 8 15 9 30 42 −12 33
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 1 1
E4 New York 0 1
E1 D.C. United 0
Eastern Conference
E2 New England 1
E3 Chicago 1 1 (2)
E2 New England (p) 0 2 (4)
E2 New England 1 (3)
W2 Houston (p) 1 (4)
W1 Dallas 2 2 (4)
W4 Colorado (p) 1 3 (5)
W4 Colorado 1
Western Conference
W2 Houston 3
W3 Chivas USA 2 0
W2 Houston 1 2

Conference semifinals

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D.C. United1–0New York Red Bulls
Gómez   77' Report
Attendance: 8,630
Referee: Michael Kennedy
New York Red Bulls1–1D.C. United
Altidore   70' Report Gómez   86'
Attendance: 21,455
Referee: Tim Weyland

D.C. United advance 2–1 on aggregate.

New England Revolution0–1Chicago Fire
Report Mapp   35'
Attendance: 10,217
Referee: Tim Weyland
Chicago Fire1–2 (AET)New England Revolution
Jaqua   18' (Report) Twellman   41'
Noonan   58'
Penalties
Thiago  
Gutiérrez  
Herron  
Guerrero  		 2–4   Cancela
  Reis
  Noonan
  Twellman
Attendance: 9,372
Referee: Jair Marrufo

New England Revolution advance 4–2 on penalties (2–2 aggregate after extra time).

FC Dallas2–1Colorado Rapids
Ruíz   15'
Thompson   55'		 Report Cooke   23'
Martins   88'
Attendance: 4,176
Referee: Hilario Grajeda
Colorado Rapids3–2 (AET)FC Dallas
Hernández   57', 83'
Mathis   114'		 Report[permanent dead link‍] Gbandi   29'
Ruíz   48'
Goodson   92'
Penalties
Mathis  
Hernández  
Kirovski  
Beckerman  
Karanka  
Mastroeni  		 5–4   Ruíz
  O'Brien
  Mulrooney
  Vanney
  Valakari
  Sala
Attendance: 15,486
Referee: Abiodun Okulaja

Colorado Rapids advance 5–4 on penalties (4–4 aggregate after extra time).

Houston Dynamo1–2Chivas USA
Ching   75' Report Razov   45'
Palencia   68'
Attendance: 15,110
Referee: Jorge Gonzalez
Chivas USA0–2Houston Dynamo
Palencia   57'   58' Report Davis   64' (pen.)
Ching   90+3'
Attendance: 17,440
Referee: Michael Kennedy

Houston Dynamo advance 3–2 on aggregate.

Conference finals

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New England Revolution1–0D.C. United
Twellman   4' Report
Attendance: 19,552
Referee: Kevin Stott

New England Revolution advances 1–0 in single elimination.

Colorado Rapids1–3Houston Dynamo
Kirovski   4' Report Dalglish   10', 21'
Mullan   71'
Attendance: 23,107
Referee: Brian Hall

Houston Dynamo advances 3–1 in single elimination.

MLS Cup

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Main article: MLS Cup 2006
Houston Dynamo1–1 (AET)New England Revolution
Ching   114' (Report) Twellman   113'
Penalties
Gray  
Holden  
De Rosario  
Davis  
Ching  		 4–3   Joseph
  Reis
  Noonan
  Twellman
  Heaps
Attendance: 22,427
Referee: Jair Marrufo

Player statistics

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Goals

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Rank Player Club Goals
1   Jeff Cunningham Real Salt Lake 16
2   Christian Gómez D.C. United 14
  Ante Razov Chivas USA
4   Carlos Ruiz FC Dallas 13
5   Landon Donovan Los Angeles Galaxy 12
6   Jaime Moreno D.C. United 11
  Dwayne De Rosario Houston Dynamo
  Taylor Twellman New England Revolution
  Kenny Cooper FC Dallas
  Brian Ching Houston Dynamo

Assists

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Rank Player Club Assists
1   Brad Davis Houston Dynamo 9
2   Jeff Cunningham Real Salt Lake 8
  Christian Gómez D.C. United
  José Burciaga Jr. Kansas City Wizards
  Justin Mapp Chicago Fire
  Carey Talley Real Salt Lake
  Ronnie O'Brien FC Dallas
  Terry Cooke Colorado Rapids
9   Landon Donovan Los Angeles Galaxy 7
  Andy Dorman New England Revolution
  Sasha Victorine Kansas City Wizards

Clean sheets

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Rank Player Club Clean
sheets
1   Matt Reis New England Revolution 10
2   Kevin Hartman Los Angeles Galaxy 9
3   Troy Perkins D.C. United 8
4   Joe Cannon Colorado Rapids 7
  Zach Thornton Chicago Fire
6   Preston Burpo Chivas USA 5
  Jon Conway New York Red Bulls
  Brad Guzan Chivas USA
  Tony Meola New York Red Bulls
  Pat Onstad Houston Dynamo
  Bo Oshoniyi Kansas City Wizards
  Darío Sala FC Dallas

Awards

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Individual awards

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Award Player Club
Most Valuable Player   Christian Gómez D.C. United
Defender of the Year   Bobby Boswell D.C. United
Goalkeeper of the Year   Troy Perkins D.C. United
Coach of the Year   Bob Bradley Chivas USA
Rookie of the Year   Jonathan Bornstein Chivas USA
Comeback Player of the Year   Richard Mulrooney FC Dallas
Golden Boot   Jeff Cunningham Real Salt Lake
Goal of the Year   Brian Ching Houston Dynamo
Fair Play Award   Chris Klein Real Salt Lake
Humanitarian of the Year   Michael Parkhurst New England Revolution

Best XI

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Goalkeeper Defenders Midfielders Forwards
  Troy Perkins, D.C. United   Bobby Boswell, D.C. United
  José Burciaga Jr., Kansas City
  Jimmy Conrad, Kansas City 		  Ricardo Clark, Houston
  Clint Dempsey, New England
  Dwayne De Rosario, Houston
  Christian Gómez, D.C. United
  Justin Mapp, Chicago 		  Jeff Cunningham, Salt Lake
  Jaime Moreno, D.C. United

Attendance

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Club Games Total Average
Los Angeles Galaxy 16 333,016 20,814
Chivas USA 16 317,432 19,840
Houston Dynamo 16 302,957 18,935
D.C. United 16 291,442 18,215
Real Salt Lake 16 261,855 16,366
FC Dallas 16 239,714 14,982
New York Red Bulls 16 233,112 14,570
Chicago Fire 16 225,775 14,111
Columbus Crew 16 212,699 13,294
Colorado Rapids 16 192,894 12,056
New England Revolution 16 188,569 11,786
Kansas City Wizards 16 177,322 11,083
Totals 192 2,976,787 15,504
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