2007 Major League Soccer season

The 2007 Major League Soccer season was the 12th season in the history of Major League Soccer. The season began on April 7 and concluded with MLS Cup 2007 on November 18, 2007 at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Washington, D.C.

2007 Major League Soccer season
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
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
Average attendanceMLS
Season: 3,270,210
Game Avg.: 16,770
2006
2008

For the first time in MLS history, the same two clubs consecutively won the MLS Cup title and the MLS Supporters' Shield honor. The 2007 MLS Cup champions were Houston Dynamo who defeated New England Revolution in the final. D.C. United won the MLS Supporters' Shield edging Chivas USA by two points for the regular season honor.

New England, Houston, and D.C. United earned berths into the inaugural CONCACAF Champions League for their performances in the regular season and playoffs.

Changes from the 2006 Season

The 2007 season was often cited as the first season in the modern-era of Major League Soccer. Most notably, the regular season decreased from 32 matches to 30, emphasizing the importance of matches during this time window, as well as boosting the credibility for the MLS Supporters' Shield. This year marked the inaugural season for expansion franchise, Toronto FC who began play in the Eastern Conference.

For the 2007 MLS Cup Playoffs, the top two clubs in each conference automatically qualified for the playoffs, down from four. Additionally, the next four highest remaining point totals regardless of conference qualified via wild-card berth. The change allowed a single table to determine the entire playoff field.

Starting this season, MLS clubs were allowed to sell advertisements on the front of their jerseys. Six MLS clubs took advantage of the opportunity. Local corporations XanGo and Amigo Energy became the kit sponsors of Real Salt Lake and Houston Dynamo, respectively. More national brands such as BMO, Comex and Herbalife became the sponsors of Toronto FC, Chivas USA and Los Angeles Galaxy, respectively. The international recognized brand, Red Bull became the shirt sponsor of New York Red Bulls, whom they owned.

Two new soccer-specific stadiums opened this season. The Colorado Rapids moved into Dick's Sporting Goods Park in the Denver-suburb of Commerce City, Colorado. Before the season began, BMO Field opened for expansion side, Toronto FC.

Competition format

The format for the 2007 season was as follows:

  • The season ran from April 7 to November 18.
  • The 13 teams were split into two conferences. The Eastern Conference had seven teams with the addition of Toronto FC, while the Western Conference had six teams. Each team played 30 games that were evenly divided between home and away games. Each team played every other team twice, home and away, for a total of 24 games. The remaining six games were played against six regional rivals, three at home and three away.
  • The two teams from each conference with the most points qualified for the playoffs. In addition, the next four highest 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 2007. In all rounds, draws were followed by 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 won the MLS Supporters' Shield and qualified for the CONCACAF Champions League 2008–09. The MLS Cup winner also qualified for the Champions League 2008–09. The MLS Cup runner-up qualified for the Champions League 2008–09. An additional berth in the Champions League was also awarded to the winner of the 2007 U.S. Open Cup. If a team qualified for multiple berths into the Champions League, then additional berths were awarded to the highest overall finishing MLS team(s) not already qualified. Also, Toronto FC, as a Canadian-based team, cannot qualify through MLS for the Champions League, and must instead qualify through the Canadian Championship.
  • The four teams with the most points in the regular season, regardless of conference, qualified for SuperLiga 2008.
  • The three teams from each conference with the most points also qualified for berths into the 2008 U.S. Open Cup. The rest of the U.S.-based MLS teams had to qualify for the remaining two berths via a series of play-in games.

Tiebreakers

  1. Head-to-Head (Points only)
  2. Overall Goal Differential
  3. Overall Total Goals Scored
  4. Tiebreakers 1-3 applied only to matches on the road
  5. Tiebreakers 1-3 applied only to matches at home
  6. Fewest team disciplinary points in the League Fair Play table
  7. Coin toss

MLS Tiebreakers

Standings

Eastern Conference

Eastern Conference
Pos Team Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 D.C. United 30 16 7 7 56 34 +22 55 2007 MLS Cup Playoffs, 2008 U.S. Open Cup
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 2007 MLS Cup Playoffs (Wild Card), 2008 U.S. Open Cup
4 Chicago Fire 30 10 10 10 31 36 5 40 2007 MLS Cup Playoffs (Wild Card)
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[lower-alpha 1] 30 6 17 7 25 49 24 25
Source:
Notes:
  1. Toronto FC cannot qualify for the U.S. Open Cup, as it is a Canadian-based team. If they had qualified for an automatic berth into the U.S. Open Cup, the next highest placed team in the Eastern Conference not already qualified would have qualified.

Western Conference

Western Conference
Pos Team Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Chivas USA 30 15 7 8 46 28 +18 53 2007 MLS Cup Playoffs, 2008 U.S. Open Cup
2 Houston Dynamo 30 15 8 7 43 23 +20 52
3 FC Dallas 30 13 12 5 37 44 7 44 2007 MLS Cup Playoffs (Wild Card), 2008 U.S. Open Cup
4 Colorado Rapids 30 9 13 8 29 34 5 35
5 Los Angeles Galaxy 30 9 14 7 38 48 10 34
6 Real Salt Lake 30 6 15 9 31 45 14 27
Source:

Overall standings

Pos Team Pld W L D GF GA GD Pts
1 D.C. United (SS, E1) 30 16 7 7 56 34 +22 55 2008–09 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage 2
2 Chivas USA (W1) 30 15 7 8 46 28 +18 53 2008–09 CONCACAF Champions League Preliminary Round 2
3 Houston Dynamo 30 15 8 7 43 23 +20 52 2008–09 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage 2
4 New England Revolution 30 14 8 8 51 43 +8 50 2008–09 CONCACAF Champions League Preliminary Round 2
5 FC Dallas 30 13 12 5 37 44 7 44 2007 MLS Cup Playoffs
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 1 30 6 17 7 25 49 24 25
Source:

2007 MLS Cup Playoffs

  Conference Semifinals Conference Finals MLS Cup 2007
                             
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.

Statistics

Golden Boot

Full article: MLS Golden Boot
Rank Player Club Games Goals Asst.
1 Luciano Emilio D.C. United 29 20 1
2 Juan Pablo Ángel New York Red Bulls 24 19 5
3 Taylor Twellman New England Revolution 26 16 3
4 Eddie Johnson Kansas City Wizards 24 15 6
5 Maykel Galindo Chivas USA 28 12 5
6 Ante Razov Chivas USA 26 11 8
7 Christian Gomez D.C. United 27 10 9
8 Jozy Altidore New York Red Bulls 22 9 4
9 Landon Donovan Los Angeles Galaxy 24 8 13
10 Robbie Findley Real Salt Lake 25 8 0

Goalkeeping Leaders

Rank Goalkeeper Club GP MINS SHTS SVS GA GAA W-L-T SHO
1 Pat Onstad Houston Dynamo 27 2418 109 85 22 0.82 13-8-6 11
2 Brad Guzan Chivas USA 27 2430 119 87 25 0.93 14-6-7 13
3 Bouna Coundoul Colorado Rapids 30 2668 158 120 32 1.08 9-12-8 9
4 Jon Conway New York Red Bulls 14 1143 79 57 14 1.10 6-5-2 4
5 Troy Perkins D.C. United 29 2610 155 117 32 1.10 16-6-7 8

Individual awards

Player of the Week

WeekPlayer of the WeekClub
Week 1 Jeff CunninghamReal Salt Lake
Week 2 Eddie JohnsonKansas City Wizards
Week 3 Maykel GalindoChivas USA
Week 4 Landon DonovanLos Angeles Galaxy
Week 5 Dwayne De RosarioHouston Dynamo
Week 6 Taylor TwellmanNew England Revolution
Week 7 Juan Pablo ÁngelNew York Red Bulls
Week 8 Eddie JohnsonKansas City Wizards
Week 9 Eddie JohnsonKansas City Wizards
Week 10 Ben OlsenD.C. United
Week 11 Luciano EmilioD.C. United
Week 12 Brad DavisHouston Dynamo
Week 13 Nicholas AddleryD.C. United
Week 14 Stuart HoldenHouston Dynamo
Week 15 Juan TojaFC Dallas
Week 16 Guillermo Barros SchelottoColumbus Crew
Week 17 Ante RazovChivas USA
Week 18 Luciano EmilioD.C. United
Week 19 Juan Pablo ÁngelNew York Red Bulls
Week 20 Jozy AltidoreNew York Red Bulls
Week 21 Maykel GalindoChivas USA
Week 22 Ben OlsenD.C. United
Week 23 Luciano EmilioD.C. United
Week 24 Scott SealyKansas City Wizards
Week 25 Ante RazovChivas USA
Week 26 FredD.C. United
Week 27 Abe ThompsonFC Dallas
Week 28 Guillermo Barros SchelottoColumbus Crew
Week 29 Scott SealyKansas City Wizards

Player of the Month

MonthPlayer of the MonthClub
April Eddie JohnsonKansas City Wizards
May Juan Pablo ÁngelNew York Red Bulls
June Juan Pablo ÁngelNew York Red Bulls
July Guillermo Barros SchelottoColumbus Crew
August Troy PerkinsD.C. United
September Luciano EmilioD.C. United
October Matt PickensChicago Fire

Goal Of The Week

WeekPlayerClub
Week 1 Sacha KljestanChivas USA
Week 2 Herculez GomezColorado Rapids
Week 3 Jozy AltidoreNew York Red Bulls
Week 4 Taylor TwellmanNew England Revolution
Week 5 Chris BrownReal Salt Lake
Week 6 Danny DichioToronto FC
Week 7 Chris GbandiFC Dallas
Week 8 Jim BrennanToronto FC
Week 9 Danny DichioToronto FC
Week 10 Ben OlsenD.C. United
Week 11 Juan Pablo ÁngelNew York Red Bulls
Week 12 Brad DavisHouston Dynamo
Week 13 Maykel GalindoChivas USA
Week 14 Stuart HoldenHouston Dynamo
Week 15 Joseph NgwenyaHouston Dynamo
Week 16 Dwayne De RosarioHouston Dynamo
Week 17 Kerry ZavagninKansas City Wizards
Week 18 Robbie FindleyReal Salt Lake
Week 19 Jozy AltidoreNew York Red Bulls
Week 20 Cuauhtémoc BlancoChicago Fire
Week 21 Jaime MorenoD.C. United
Week 22 Eddie JohnsonKansas City Wizards
Week 23 Taylor TwellmanNew England Revolution
Week 24 Scott SealyKansas City Wizards
Week 25 Chris RolfeChicago Fire
Week 26 Luciano EmilioD.C. United
Week 27 Paulo NagamuraChivas USA
Week 28 Edson BuddleLos Angeles Galaxy
Week 29 Danny DichioToronto FC

Team Attendance Totals

[1]

Club Games Season Game Avg.
Los Angeles Galaxy 15 390,132 26,009
Toronto FC 15 301,793 20,120
D.C. United 15 297,531 19,835
New England Revolution 15 263,706 17,580
Chicago Fire 15 255,511 17,034
Houston Dynamo 15 254,083 16,939
Real Salt Lake 15 242,690 16,179
New York Red Bulls 15 238,925 15,928
FC Dallas 15 195,356 15,145
Chivas USA 15 226,717 15,114
Columbus Crew 15 219,332 14,622
San Jose Earthquakes 15 416,258 13,875
Colorado Rapids 15 204,884 13,659
Kansas City Wizards 15 160,286 10,686
OVERALL 210 3,456,641 16,460

International competitions

CONCACAF Champions' Cup 2007

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

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

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


Other competitions

2007 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup

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

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.

Coaches

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

References

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