2012 Major League Soccer season

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Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer MLS wordmark 2007.svg
Season2012
MLS Cup LA Galaxy (4th title)
Supporters' Shield San Jose Earthquakes (2nd shield)
Champions League (U.S.) San Jose Earthquakes
LA Galaxy
Houston Dynamo
Sporting Kansas City (via U.S. Open Cup)
Champions League (Canada) Toronto FC (via Canadian Championship)
Matches played323
Goals scored854 (2.64 per match)
Top goalscorer Chris Wondolowski
(27 goals)
Biggest home win SJ 5–0 RSL
(July 14)
DAL 5–0 POR
(July 21)
Biggest away win CHV 0–4 LA
(August 12)
CHV 2–6 SEA
(August 25)
CHV 0-4 RSL
(September 29)
Highest scoring8 goals:
SJ 5–3 DC
(May 2)
POR 3–5 LA
(July 14)
CHV 2–6 SEA
(August 25)
Longest winning run7 matches: [1]
Sporting KC
(March 10 – April 18)
Longest unbeaten run11 matches: [1]
Sporting KC
(August 4 – October 24)
Longest winless run14 matches:
Toronto FC
(July 28 – October 28)
Longest losing run9 matches: [1]
Toronto FC
(March 17 – May 19)
Highest attendance66,452
POR @ SEA
(October 7)
Lowest attendance6,149
COL @ NE
(May 2)
Average attendance18,807 [1]
2011
2013

The 2012 Major League Soccer season was the 17th season of Major League Soccer. It was also the 100th season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer in the United States, and the 34th with a national first-division league.

Contents

The Montreal Impact became the 19th MLS club, replacing a team of the same name that previously played in the NASL.

The regular season began on March 10 and concluded on October 28. The MLS Cup Playoffs began on October 31 and ended on December 1, when the LA Galaxy claimed their fourth league title by defeating the Houston Dynamo, 3–1, in MLS Cup. It was the first rematch in the Cup final since Houston defeated the New England Revolution in the 2006 and 2007 editions.

Overview

Season format

The season began on March 10 and concluded with MLS Cup on December 1. The 19 teams were split into two conferences, with 10 teams in the Eastern Conference and 9 teams in the Western Conference. Each team played 34 games that were evenly divided between home and away. Western Conference teams played each conference rival three times, and played each Eastern Conference team once. Eastern Conference teams played seven of their conference rivals three times, the remaining two conference rivals twice, and each Western Conference team once.

The top three teams in each conference earned a bye to the conference semifinals, while the next two teams with the most points in each conference earned wild card berths. The wild card round included two single-elimination matches where the winners advanced to the conference semifinals. 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 League. Additionally, the winner of MLS Cup, and the runner-up, also qualified for the CONCACAF Champions League. An additional berth in the Champions League was also awarded to the winner of the 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, Vancouver Whitecaps FC, and Montreal Impact, as Canadian-based teams, could not qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League through MLS, and had to instead qualify through the Canadian Championship.

Stadiums and locations

TeamStadiumCapacity
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 45,596
FC Dallas FC Dallas Stadium 21,193
Houston Dynamo Robertson Stadium 32,000
LA Galaxy Home Depot Center 27,000
Montreal Impact Saputo Stadium 20,801
New England Revolution Gillette Stadium 68,756
New York Red Bulls Red Bull Arena 25,000
Philadelphia Union PPL Park 18,500
Portland Timbers Jeld-Wen Field 18,627
Real Salt Lake Rio Tinto Stadium 20,213
San Jose Earthquakes Buck Shaw Stadium 10,525
Seattle Sounders FC CenturyLink Field 68,740
Sporting Kansas City Livestrong Sporting Park 18,467
Toronto FC BMO Field 21,566
Vancouver Whitecaps FC BC Place 22,120

Personnel and sponsorships

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players and Managers may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

TeamHead coachCaptainShirt sponsor
Chicago Fire Flag of the United States.svg Frank Klopas Flag of the United States.svg Logan Pause Quaker
Chivas USA Flag of the United States.svg Robin Fraser Flag of Venezuela.svg Alejandro Moreno Corona
Colorado Rapids Flag of Colombia.svg Óscar Pareja Flag of the United States.svg Pablo Mastroeni
Columbus Crew Flag of Poland.svg Robert Warzycha Flag of the United States.svg Chad Marshall Barbasol
D.C. United Flag of the United States.svg Ben Olsen Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Dwayne De Rosario Volkswagen
FC Dallas Flag of the United States.svg Schellas Hyndman Flag of the United States.svg Ugo Ihemelu AdvoCare
Houston Dynamo Flag of the United States.svg Dominic Kinnear Flag of the United States.svg Brian Ching Greenstar Recycling
LA Galaxy Flag of the United States.svg Bruce Arena Flag of the United States.svg Landon Donovan Herbalife
Montreal Impact Flag of the United States.svg Jesse Marsch Flag of the United States.svg Davy Arnaud Bank of Montreal
New England Revolution Flag of the United States.svg Jay Heaps Flag of the United States.svg Matt Reis UnitedHealthcare
New York Red Bulls Flag of Sweden.svg Hans Backe Flag of France (lighter variant).svg Thierry Henry Red Bull
Philadelphia Union Flag of the United States.svg John Hackworth Flag of Colombia.svg Carlos Valdés Bimbo
Portland Timbers Flag of New Zealand.svg Gavin Wilkinson Flag of the United States.svg Jack Jewsbury Alaska Airlines
Real Salt Lake Flag of the United States.svg Jason Kreis Flag of the United States.svg Kyle Beckerman XanGo
San Jose Earthquakes Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Frank Yallop Flag of the United States.svg Ramiro Corrales
Seattle Sounders FC Flag of the United States.svg Sigi Schmid Flag of Argentina.svg Mauro Rosales Xbox
Sporting Kansas City Flag of the United States.svg Peter Vermes Flag of Denmark.svg Jimmy Nielsen
Toronto FC Flag of England.svg Paul Mariner Flag of Germany.svg Torsten Frings Bank of Montreal
Vancouver Whitecaps FC Flag of Scotland.svg Martin Rennie Flag of the United States.svg Jay DeMerit Bell Canada

Player transfers

Major League Soccer employs no fewer than 12 methods to acquire players. These include: signing players on transfers/free transfers as is done in most of the world; via trades; drafting players through mechanisms such as the MLS SuperDraft, MLS Supplemental Draft, or MLS Re-Entry Draft; rarely used methods which cover extreme hardship and injury replacement; signing players as Designated Players or Homegrown Players; placing a discovery claim on players; waivers; and methods peculiar to MLS such as through allocation or a weighted lottery. [2]

Allocation ranking

The allocation ranking is the mechanism used to determine which MLS club has first priority to acquire a U.S. National Team player who signs with MLS after playing abroad, or a former MLS player who returns to the League after having gone to a club abroad for a transfer fee. The allocation rankings may also be used in the event two or more clubs file a request for the same player on the same day. The allocations will be ranked in reverse order of finish for the 2011 season, taking playoff performance into account.

Once the club uses its allocation ranking to acquire a player, it drops to the bottom of the list. A ranking can be traded, provided that part of the compensation received in return is another club's ranking. At all times, each club is assigned one ranking. The rankings reset at the end of each MLS League season. [2]

Original RankingClubDate Allocation UsedPlayer SignedPlayer NationPrevious ClubClub NationRef
1 Montreal Impact February 17, 2012 Eddie Johnson Flag of the United States.svg  United States Fulham Flag of England.svg  England [3]
2 Philadelphia Union June 26, 2012 Bakary Soumaré Flag of Mali.svg  Mali US Boulogne Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  France [4]
3 New England Revolution August 27, 2012 Juan Toja Flag of Colombia.svg  Colombia Aris Flag of Greece.svg  Greece [5]
4 Seattle Sounders FCSeptember 14, 2012 Marcus Hahnemann Flag of the United States.svg  United States Everton Flag of England.svg  England [6]
5 Chivas USA
6 San Jose Earthquakes
7 D.C. United
8 Portland Timbers
9 Chicago Fire
10 Columbus Crew
11 Colorado Rapids March 28, 2012 Kamani Hill Flag of the United States.svg  United States Vitória Flag of Portugal.svg  Portugal [7]
12 FC Dallas
13 New York Red Bulls August 8, 2012 Luis Robles Flag of the United States.svg  United States Karlsruher SC Flag of Germany.svg  Germany [8]

Montreal immediately traded Johnson to Seattle in exchange for Mike Fucito and Lamar Neagle.

Vancouver originally had the No. 2 ranking, but traded it to Philadelphia on June 26.

∞Toronto originally had the No. 4 ranking, but traded it to Seattle on September 14.

The remaining order after FC Dallas is: Vancouver Whitecaps FC (from Philadelphia), Toronto FC (from Seattle), Sporting Kansas City, Real Salt Lake, Houston Dynamo and Los Angeles Galaxy. In the unlikely event that all clubs use an allocation, the order begins anew with Montreal Impact, Colorado Rapids, Philadelphia Union, New York Red Bulls New England Revolution and Seattle Sounders FC.

Weighted lottery

Some players are assigned to MLS teams via a weighted lottery process. A team can only acquire one player per year through a weighted lottery. The players made available through lotteries include: (i) Generation adidas players signed after the MLS SuperDraft; and (ii) Draft eligible players to whom an MLS contract was offered but who failed to sign with the League prior to the SuperDraft.

The team with the worst record over its last 30 regular season games (dating back to previous season if necessary and taking playoff performance into account) will have the greatest probability of winning the lottery. Teams are not required to participate in a lottery. Players are assigned via the lottery system in order to prevent a player from potentially influencing his destination club with a strategic holdout.

The results of 2012 weighted lotteries thus far:

Lottery DatePlayerPlayer NationPositionWinning ClubOther Clubs ParticipatingRef
December 15, 2011 Lee Nguyen Flag of the United States.svg  USA MF Vancouver Whitecaps FC Toronto FC, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo, Real Salt Lake, Los Angeles Galaxy [9]
September 13, 2012 Marcus Tracy Flag of the United States.svg  USA FW San Jose Earthquakes New England Revolution, FC Dallas, Philadelphia Union, Real Salt Lake, Chicago Fire, New York Red Bulls, Seattle Sounders FC

Ownership changes

ClubNew ownerPrevious ownerDate
DC United Erick Thohir and Jason Levien D.C. United Holdings July 10, 2012

Standings

Eastern Conference

PosTeamPldWLTGFGAGDPtsQualification
1 Sporting Kansas City 3418794227+1563 MLS Cup Conference Semifinals
2 D.C. United 34171075343+1058
3 New York Red Bulls 3416995746+1157
4 Chicago Fire 34171164641+557 MLS Cup Knockout Round
5 Houston Dynamo 34149114841+753
6 Columbus Crew 34151274444052
7 Montreal Impact 34121664551642
8 Philadelphia Union 34101863745836
9 New England Revolution 3491783944535
10 Toronto FC 34521836622623
Source: MLS

Western Conference

PosTeamPldWLTGFGAGDPtsQualification
1 San Jose Earthquakes 3419697243+2966 MLS Cup Conference Semifinals
2 Real Salt Lake 34171164635+1157
3 Seattle Sounders FC 34158115133+1856
4 LA Galaxy 34161265947+1254 MLS Cup Knockout Round
5 Vancouver Whitecaps FC 341113103541643
6 FC Dallas 34913124247539
7 Colorado Rapids 34111944450637
8 Portland Timbers 348161034562234
9 Chivas USA 34718924583430
Source: MLS

Overall standings

PosTeamPldWLTGFGAGDPtsQualification
1 San Jose Earthquakes (S)3419697243+2966 CONCACAF Champions League
2 Sporting Kansas City 3418794227+1563
3 D.C. United 34171075343+1058
4 New York Red Bulls 3416995746+1157
5 Real Salt Lake 34171164635+1157
6 Chicago Fire 34171164641+557
7 Seattle Sounders FC 34158115133+1856
8 LA Galaxy (C)34161265947+1254 CONCACAF Champions League
9 Houston Dynamo 34149114841+753
10 Columbus Crew 34151274444052
11 Vancouver Whitecaps FC 341113103541643
12 Montreal Impact 34121664551642 CONCACAF Champions League
13 FC Dallas 34913124247539
14 Colorado Rapids 34111944450637
15 Philadelphia Union 34101863745836
16 New England Revolution 3491783944535
17 Portland Timbers 348161034562234
18 Chivas USA 34718924583430
19 Toronto FC 34521836622623
Source: MLS
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head record; 3) goal difference; 4) number of goals scored
(C) MLS Cup Champion; (S) Supporters' Shield

MLS Cup Playoffs

Knockout Conference semifinals Conference finals MLS Cup
E1 Kansas City 0 1 1
E4 Chicago 1 E5 Houston 2 0 2
E5 Houston 2 Eastern Conference E5 Houston 3 1 4
E2 D.C. United 1 1 2
E2 D.C. United 1 1 2
E3 New York 1 0 1
E5 Houston 1
W4 Los Angeles 3
W1 San Jose 1 1 2
W4 Los Angeles 2 W4 Los Angeles 0 3 3
W5 Vancouver    1 Western Conference W4 Los Angeles 3 1 4
W3 Seattle 0 2 2
W2 Salt Lake 0 0 0
W3 Seattle 0 1 1

Player statistics

Goals

RankPlayerClubGoals
1 Flag of the United States.svg Chris Wondolowski San Jose Earthquakes 27
2 Flag of the United States.svg Kenny Cooper New York Red Bulls 18
3 Flag of Costa Rica.svg Álvaro Saborío Real Salt Lake 17
4 Flag of Ireland.svg Robbie Keane LA Galaxy 16
5 Flag of France.svg Thierry Henry New York Red Bulls 15
6 Flag of the United States.svg Eddie Johnson Seattle Sounders FC 14
7 Flag of the United States.svg Alan Gordon San Jose Earthquakes 13
Flag of Colombia.svg Fredy Montero Seattle Sounders FC
9 Flag of the United States.svg Will Bruin Houston Dynamo 12
Flag of the United States.svg Chris Pontius D.C. United

Assists

RankPlayerClubAssists
1 Flag of the United States.svg Graham Zusi Sporting Kansas City 15
2 Flag of the United States.svg Landon Donovan LA Galaxy 14
3 Flag of Honduras (1949-2022).svg Marvin Chávez San Jose Earthquakes 13
Flag of Argentina.svg Mauro Rosales Seattle Sounders FC
5 Flag of the United States.svg Brad Davis Houston Dynamo 12
Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Dwayne De Rosario D.C. United
Flag of France.svg Thierry Henry New York Red Bulls
8 Flag of Brazil.svg Felipe Martins Montreal Impact 10
9 Flag of England.svg David Beckham LA Galaxy 9
Flag of Colombia.svg David Ferreira FC Dallas
Flag of Ireland.svg Robbie Keane LA Galaxy
Flag of Argentina.svg Javier Morales Real Salt Lake

Clean sheets

RankPlayerClubClean
sheets
1 Flag of Denmark.svg Jimmy Nielsen Sporting Kansas City 15
2 Flag of the United States.svg Tally Hall Houston Dynamo 12
Flag of the United States.svg Nick Rimando Real Salt Lake
4 Flag of Puerto Rico.svg Josh Saunders LA Galaxy 9
5 Flag of the United States.svg Joe Cannon Vancouver Whitecaps FC 8
Flag of the United States.svg Andy Gruenebaum Columbus Crew
Flag of Austria.svg Michael Gspurning Seattle Sounders FC
Flag of the United States.svg Bill Hamid D.C. United
Flag of the United States.svg Zac MacMath Philadelphia Union
10 Flag of the United States.svg Jon Busch San Jose Earthquakes 7
Flag of the United States.svg Dan Kennedy Chivas USA
Flag of the United States.svg Matt Pickens Colorado Rapids

Awards

Individual awards

AwardPlayerClub
Most Valuable Player Flag of the United States.svg Chris Wondolowski San Jose Earthquakes
Defender of the Year Flag of the United States.svg Matt Besler Sporting Kansas City
Goalkeeper of the Year Flag of Denmark.svg Jimmy Nielsen Sporting Kansas City
Coach of the Year Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Frank Yallop San Jose Earthquakes
Rookie of the Year Flag of the United States.svg Austin Berry Chicago Fire
Newcomer of the Year Flag of Argentina.svg Federico Higuaín Columbus Crew
Comeback Player of the Year Flag of the United States.svg Eddie Johnson Seattle Sounders FC
Golden Boot Flag of the United States.svg Chris Wondolowski San Jose Earthquakes
Goal of the Year Flag of the United States.svg Patrick Ianni Seattle Sounders FC
Save of the Year Flag of the United States.svg Nick Rimando Real Salt Lake
Fair Play Award Flag of the United States.svg Logan Pause Chicago Fire
Humanitarian of the Year Flag of the United States.svg Chris Seitz FC Dallas

Best XI

GoalkeeperDefendersMidfieldersForwards
Flag of Denmark.svg Jimmy Nielsen, Sporting KC Flag of Honduras.svg Víctor Bernárdez, San Jose
Flag of the United States.svg Matt Besler, Sporting KC
Flag of France.svg Aurélien Collin, Sporting KC
Flag of Cuba.svg Osvaldo Alonso, Seattle
Flag of the United States.svg Landon Donovan, LA Galaxy
Flag of the United States.svg Chris Pontius, D.C. United
Flag of the United States.svg Graham Zusi, Sporting KC
Flag of France.svg Thierry Henry, Red Bulls
Flag of Ireland.svg Robbie Keane, LA Galaxy
Flag of the United States.svg Chris Wondolowski, San Jose

Player of the Month

MonthPlayerClubStats
March Flag of France (lighter variant).svg Thierry Henry New York Red Bulls 5G, 3A
April Flag of the United States.svg Chris Wondolowski San Jose Earthquakes 3G
May Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Dwayne De Rosario D.C. United 4G, 3A
June Flag of the United States.svg Chris Wondolowski San Jose Earthquakes 3G
July Flag of Ireland.svg Robbie Keane LA Galaxy 5G, 4A
August Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Patrice Bernier Montreal Impact 3G, 3A
September Flag of the United States.svg Chris Wondolowski San Jose Earthquakes 4G, 2A
October Flag of the United States.svg Chris Wondolowski San Jose Earthquakes 5G

Weekly awards

WeekPlayer of the WeekAT&T Goal of the WeekMLS Save of the Week
PlayerNatClubPlayerNatClubPlayerNatClub
Week 1 Kalif Alhassan Flag of Ghana.svg  GHA Portland Timbers Kris Boyd Flag of Scotland.svg  SCO Portland Timbers Nick Rimando Flag of the United States.svg  USA Real Salt Lake
Week 2 David Estrada Flag of the United States.svg  USA Seattle Sounders FC Ryan Johnson Flag of Jamaica.svg  JAM Toronto FC Joe Cannon Flag of the United States.svg  USA Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Week 3 Thierry Henry Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  FRA New York Red Bulls Thierry Henry Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  FRA New York Red Bulls Joe Cannon Flag of the United States.svg  USA Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Week 4 Thierry Henry Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  FRA New York Red Bulls Darlington Nagbe Flag of Liberia.svg  LBR Portland Timbers Paolo Tornaghi Flag of Italy.svg  ITA Chicago Fire
Week 5 Thierry Henry Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  FRA New York Red Bulls Álvaro Saborío Flag of Costa Rica.svg  CRC Real Salt Lake Donovan Ricketts Flag of Jamaica.svg  JAM Montreal Impact
Week 6 Dan Kennedy Flag of the United States.svg  USA Chivas USA David Beckham Flag of England.svg  ENG Los Angeles Galaxy Nick Rimando Flag of the United States.svg  USA Real Salt Lake
Week 7 Chris Pontius Flag of the United States.svg  USA D.C. United Kyle Beckerman Flag of the United States.svg  USA Real Salt Lake Jimmy Nielsen Flag of Denmark.svg  DEN Sporting Kansas City
Week 8 Steven Lenhart Flag of the United States.svg  USA San Jose Earthquakes Marco Pappa Flag of Guatemala.svg  GUA Chicago Fire Nick Rimando Flag of the United States.svg  USA Real Salt Lake
Week 9 Chris Wondolowski Flag of the United States.svg  USA San Jose Earthquakes Fredy Montero Flag of Colombia.svg  COL Seattle Sounders FC Nick Rimando Flag of the United States.svg  USA Real Salt Lake
Week 10 Lee Nguyen Flag of the United States.svg  USA New England Revolution David Beckham Flag of England.svg  ENG Los Angeles Galaxy Sean Johnson Flag of the United States.svg  USA Chicago Fire
Week 11 Dwayne De Rosario Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  CAN D.C. United Fredy Montero Flag of Colombia.svg  COL Seattle Sounders FC Andy Gruenebaum Flag of the United States.svg  USA Columbus Crew
Week 12 Emilio Rentería Flag of Venezuela.svg  VEN Columbus Crew C. J. Sapong Flag of the United States.svg  USA Sporting Kansas City Troy Perkins Flag of the United States.svg  USA Portland Timbers
Week 13–15 Patrice Bernier Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  CAN Montreal Impact Júlio César Flag of Brazil.svg  BRA Sporting Kansas City Jimmy Nielsen Flag of Denmark.svg  DEN Sporting Kansas City
Week 16 Landon Donovan Flag of the United States.svg  USA Los Angeles Galaxy Patrick Ianni Flag of the United States.svg  USA Seattle Sounders FC Jason Hernandez Flag of the United States.svg  USA San Jose Earthquakes
Week 17 Danny Koevermans Flag of the Netherlands.svg  NED Toronto FC Chris Wondolowski Flag of the United States.svg  USA San Jose Earthquakes Josh Saunders Flag of Puerto Rico.svg  PUR Los Angeles Galaxy
Week 18 Álvaro Saborío Flag of Costa Rica.svg  CRC Real Salt Lake Jack McInerney Flag of the United States.svg  USA Philadelphia Union Jimmy Nielsen Flag of Denmark.svg  DEN Sporting Kansas City
Week 19 Chris Wondolowski Flag of the United States.svg  USA San Jose Earthquakes David Beckham Flag of England.svg  ENG Los Angeles Galaxy Jimmy Nielsen Flag of Denmark.svg  DEN Sporting Kansas City
Week 20 Calen Carr Flag of the United States.svg  USA Houston Dynamo Jose Villarreal Flag of the United States.svg  USA Los Angeles Galaxy Matt Reis Flag of the United States.svg  USA New England Revolution
Week 21 Jairo Arrieta Flag of Costa Rica.svg  CRC Columbus Crew Saër Sène Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  FRA New England Revolution Sean Johnson Flag of the United States.svg  USA Chicago Fire
Week 22 Eddie Johnson Flag of the United States.svg  USA Seattle Sounders FC Felipe Martins Flag of Brazil.svg  BRA Montreal Impact Kevin Hartman Flag of the United States.svg  USA FC Dallas
Week 23 Landon Donovan Flag of the United States.svg  USA Los Angeles Galaxy Sanna Nyassi Flag of The Gambia.svg  GAM Montreal Impact Troy Perkins Flag of the United States.svg  USA Montreal Impact
Week 24 David Ferreira Flag of Colombia.svg  COL FC Dallas Lamar Neagle Flag of the United States.svg  USA Montreal Impact Donovan Ricketts Flag of Jamaica.svg  JAM Portland Timbers
Week 25 Federico Higuaín Flag of Argentina.svg  ARG Columbus Crew Marco Di Vaio Flag of Italy.svg  ITA Montreal Impact Steven Smith Flag of Scotland.svg  SCO Portland Timbers
Week 26 Federico Higuaín Flag of Argentina.svg  ARG Columbus Crew David Beckham Flag of England.svg  ENG Los Angeles Galaxy Matt Pickens Flag of the United States.svg  USA Colorado Rapids
Week 27 Eddie Johnson Flag of the United States.svg  USA Seattle Sounders FC Eddie Johnson Flag of the United States.svg  USA Seattle Sounders FC Nick Rimando Flag of the United States.svg  USA Real Salt Lake
Week 28 Sean Johnson Flag of the United States.svg  USA Chicago Fire Fredy Montero Flag of Colombia.svg  COL Seattle Sounders FC Marcelo Sarvas Flag of Brazil.svg  BRA Los Angeles Galaxy
Week 29 Thierry Henry Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  FRA New York Red Bulls Javier Morales Flag of Argentina.svg  ARG Real Salt Lake Nick Rimando Flag of the United States.svg  USA Real Salt Lake
Week 30 Chris Wondolowski Flag of the United States.svg  USA San Jose Earthquakes Álvaro Saborío Flag of Costa Rica.svg  CRC Real Salt Lake Nick Rimando Flag of the United States.svg  USA Real Salt Lake
Week 31 Thierry Henry Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  FRA New York Red Bulls Robbie Keane Flag of Ireland.svg  IRE Los Angeles Galaxy Jimmy Nielsen Flag of Denmark.svg  DEN Sporting Kansas City
Week 32 Chris Wondolowski Flag of the United States.svg  USA San Jose Earthquakes Jack Jewsbury Flag of the United States.svg  USA Portland Timbers Jimmy Nielsen Flag of Denmark.svg  DEN Sporting Kansas City
Week 33 Brad Evans Flag of the United States.svg  USA Seattle Sounders FC Jacob Peterson Flag of the United States.svg  USA Sporting Kansas City
Week 34 Kenny Cooper Flag of the United States.svg  USA New York Red Bulls

Scoring

Discipline

International competitions and friendlies

CONCACAF Champions League

Prior to the start of the MLS regular season, Toronto FC defeated Los Angeles Galaxy while Mexican side Santos Laguna defeated Seattle Sounders FC in two of the 2011–12 CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal series. Toronto FC then lost 3–7 on aggregate in the semifinal with Santos Laguna. [10]

In the 2012–13 CCL, Los Angeles Galaxy, Seattle Sounders, Houston Dynamo and Real Salt Lake earned group stage spots (the preliminary round has been eliminated). The Canadian representative, determined by the 2012 Canadian Championship, was Toronto FC.

At the end of the groups stages, the Los Angeles Galaxy, Seattle Sounders, and Houston Dynamo qualified for the quarterfinals, which will be played in March 2013.

MLS All-Star Game

The 2012 MLS All-Star Game was played on July 25 at PPL Park in Chester, Pennsylvania, home stadium of the Philadelphia Union. As has been the format every year since 2005, the MLS All-Stars played an international club; the 2012 opponent was England's Chelsea FC, 2012 champions of both the FA Cup and UEFA Champions League and visiting side in the 2006 MLS All-Star Game (when they lost to the All-Stars, 1–0, at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Illinois). [11] The MLS All-Stars won the game 3–2.

Domestic competitions

Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup

For the 2012 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup tournament, U.S. Soccer has increased the size of the main tournament from 40 to 64 clubs, assembling the competition so that all U.S.-based Major League Soccer clubs gain entry. [12] On August 8, 2012, Sporting Kansas City defeated the Seattle Sounders on penalties to win the franchise's second open cup title. [13]

Canadian Championship

The three Canadian-based MLS clubs, Toronto FC, Montreal Impact and Vancouver Whitecaps FC, along with NASL club FC Edmonton, competed for the Voyageurs Cup, Canada's national championship trophy. The tournament is organized in a knockout format with two-legged ties in both the semifinals and final, with the away goals rule in place. Toronto defeated Vancouver in the finals, their fourth consecutive national championship, and qualified for the 2012–13 CONCACAF Champions League.

League Competitions

MLS Cup

The MLS Cup playoffs took place after the conclusion of the regular season. For 2012, the playoff structure underwent several changes:

  • The playoffs will no longer feature wild cards and the possibility of "crossovers" (i.e. teams from opposite conferences playing in the early rounds). Instead, the top five clubs in each conference's standings will qualify for the playoffs and will play in the following manner:
    • The 4th place team will host the 5th place team in a single "play-in" match, with the winner advancing to the conference semifinals.
    • The Conference Semifinals will again be a two-game aggregate goal setup as before (with extra time and penalty kicks employed if the aggregate is level after 180 minutes). The 1st place team will play the winner of the 4th/5th game, while the 2nd and 3rd place teams play each other. The lower-seeded team will host the first leg of each semifinal.
    • The semifinal winners will play each other in the Conference Finals, which will be altered to a two-game aggregate series patterned after the semifinal round (before this year, this round was a single-game format).
  • The Conference Final winners will advance to the MLS Cup Championship Game, which for the first time will be played at the home stadium of the finalist with the better regular season point total; before this season, the game was played at a predetermined site.

Coaches

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

Notes

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    The 2014 Seattle Sounders FC season was the club's sixth season in Major League Soccer, the United States' top-tier of professional soccer. Including previous Seattle Sounders franchises, this was the 34th season of a soccer team playing in the Seattle metro area.

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    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Tim Parker (soccer)</span> American soccer player

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    References

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    3. "Montreal send Johnson to Seattle for Neagle, Fucito". MLSsoccer.com. February 17, 2012. Archived from the original on February 21, 2012. Retrieved February 21, 2012.
    4. "Union sign central defender Bakary Soumare". philadelphiaunion.com. June 26, 2012. Archived from the original on July 13, 2012. Retrieved June 26, 2012.
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    6. Freedman, Jonah (September 14, 2012). "Hahnemann returns to MLS, lands with hometown Seattle". MLSsoccer.com. Archived from the original on September 16, 2012. Retrieved September 15, 2012.
    7. "Rapids sign forward Kamani Hill". coloradorapids.com. March 28, 2012. Archived from the original on February 3, 2014. Retrieved June 26, 2012.
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