The 2005 Major League Soccer season was the 10th season of Major League Soccer. It was also the 93rd season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer in the United States, and the 27th with a national first-division league.
 | |
| Season | 2005 |
|---|---|
| MLS Cup | Los Angeles Galaxy (2nd title) |
| Supporters' Shield | S.J. Earthquakes (1st shield) |
| 2006 CONCACAF Champions' Cup | Los Angeles Galaxy New England Revolution |
| Matches played | 192 |
| Goals scored | 551 (2.87 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Taylor Twellman N.E. Revolution Goals: 17 |
| Biggest home win | CHV 5–1 RSL DCU 5–1 RSL |
| Biggest away win | CLB 0–4 KCW |
| Highest scoring | NY 5–4 NE |
| Longest winning run | N.E. Revolution Games: 6 (04/09 – 05/14) S.J. Earthquakes Games: 6 (08/20 – 09/21) |
| Longest unbeaten run | S.J. Earthquakes Games: 14 (07/20/2005) |
| Longest losing run | Real Salt Lake Games: 10 (08/10 – 10/05) |
| Highest attendance | Los Angeles Galaxy Season: 387,256 Game Avg.: 24,204 |
| Lowest attendance | K.C. Wizards Season: 155,060 Game Avg.: 9,691 |
| Total attendance | 2,900,716 |
| Average attendance | 15,108 |
← 2004 2006 → | |
At MLS Cup 2004, two new expansion teams were announced to start play in 2005, Real Salt Lake and Chivas USA. Since both teams were assigned to the Western Conference, the Kansas City Wizards moved to the Eastern Conference to maintain regional balance.
The Dallas Burn re-branded as FC Dallas and moved to the league's newest soccer-specific stadium when Pizza Hut Park opened on August 6, 2005.
The league returned to a 32-game schedule which marked the most games played since the 2000 season.
The regular season began on April 2, and concluded on October 16. The 2005 MLS Cup Playoffs began on October 22, and concluded with MLS Cup 2005 on November 13. For the second time in four years, the Los Angeles Galaxy beat the New England Revolution to win MLS Cup before a sell-out crowd at Pizza Hut Park.
Overview edit
Season format edit
The season began on April 2 and concluded with MLS Cup on November 13. 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. Additionally, the winner of MLS Cup and the runner-up qualified for the CONCACAF Champions' Cup.
Stadiums and locations edit
| Team | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago Fire | Soldier Field | 61,500 |
| 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 | Cotton Bowl Pizza Hut Park |
92,100 21,193 |
| Kansas City Wizards | Arrowhead Stadium | 81,425 |
| Los Angeles Galaxy | Home Depot Center | 27,000 |
| MetroStars | Giants Stadium | 80,200 |
| New England Revolution | Gillette Stadium | 68,756 |
| Real Salt Lake | Rice-Eccles Stadium | 45,017 |
| San Jose Earthquakes | Spartan Stadium | 30,456 |
Personnel and sponsorships edit
Coaching changes edit
| Team | Outgoing coach | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Incoming coach | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chivas USA |  Thomas Rongen
|
Reassigned | May 30, 2005 |  Javier Ledesma
|
May 30, 2005 |
| Chivas USA | Javier Ledesma
|
End of interim period | June 3, 2005 | Hans Westerhof
|
June 3, 2005 |
| Columbus Crew |  Greg Andrulis
|
Fired | July 16, 2005 |  Robert Warzycha
|
July 16, 2005 |
| MetroStars | Bob Bradley
|
Fired | October 4, 2005 |  Mo Johnston
|
October 4, 2005 |
Standings edit
Eastern Conference edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New England Revolution | 32 | 17 | 7 | 8 | 55 | 37 | +18 | 59 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 2 | D.C. United | 32 | 16 | 10 | 6 | 58 | 37 | +21 | 54 | |
| 3 | Chicago Fire | 32 | 15 | 13 | 4 | 49 | 50 | −1 | 49 | |
| 4 | MetroStars | 32 | 12 | 9 | 11 | 53 | 49 | +4 | 47 | |
| 5 | Kansas City Wizards | 32 | 11 | 9 | 12 | 52 | 44 | +8 | 45 | |
| 6 | Columbus Crew | 32 | 11 | 16 | 5 | 34 | 45 | −11 | 38 |
Western Conference edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Jose Earthquakes | 32 | 18 | 4 | 10 | 53 | 31 | +22 | 64 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 2 | FC Dallas | 32 | 13 | 10 | 9 | 52 | 44 | +8 | 48 | |
| 3 | Colorado Rapids | 32 | 13 | 13 | 6 | 40 | 37 | +3 | 45 | |
| 4 | Los Angeles Galaxy | 32 | 13 | 13 | 6 | 44 | 45 | −1 | 45 | |
| 5 | Real Salt Lake | 32 | 5 | 22 | 5 | 30 | 65 | −35 | 20 | |
| 6 | Chivas USA | 32 | 4 | 22 | 6 | 31 | 67 | −36 | 18 |
Overall standings edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Jose Earthquakes (S) | 32 | 18 | 4 | 10 | 53 | 31 | +22 | 64 | |
| 2 | New England Revolution | 32 | 17 | 7 | 8 | 55 | 37 | +18 | 59 | CONCACAF Champions' Cup |
| 3 | D.C. United | 32 | 16 | 10 | 6 | 58 | 37 | +21 | 54 | |
| 4 | Chicago Fire | 32 | 15 | 13 | 4 | 49 | 50 | −1 | 49 | |
| 5 | Dallas Burn | 32 | 13 | 10 | 9 | 52 | 44 | +8 | 48 | |
| 6 | MetroStars | 32 | 12 | 9 | 11 | 53 | 49 | +4 | 47 | |
| 7 | Colorado Rapids | 32 | 13 | 13 | 6 | 40 | 37 | +3 | 45 | |
| 8 | Los Angeles Galaxy (C) | 32 | 13 | 13 | 6 | 44 | 45 | −1 | 45 | CONCACAF Champions' Cup |
| 9 | Kansas City Wizards | 32 | 11 | 9 | 12 | 52 | 44 | +8 | 45 | |
| 10 | Columbus Crew | 32 | 11 | 16 | 5 | 34 | 45 | −11 | 38 | |
| 11 | Real Salt Lake | 32 | 5 | 22 | 5 | 30 | 65 | −35 | 20 | |
| 12 | Chivas USA | 32 | 4 | 22 | 6 | 31 | 67 | −36 | 18 |
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 edit
Bracket edit
| Conference semifinals | Conference finals | MLS Cup | |||||||||||||
| E1 | New England | 0 | 3 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | MetroStars | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New England | 1 | |||||||||||||
| Eastern Conference | |||||||||||||||
| E3 | Chicago | 0 | |||||||||||||
| E3 | Chicago | 0 | 4 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | D.C. United | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New England | 0 | |||||||||||||
| W4 | Los Angeles | 1 | |||||||||||||
| W1 | San Jose | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Los Angeles | 3 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Los Angeles | 2 | |||||||||||||
| Western Conference | |||||||||||||||
| W3 | Colorado | 0 | |||||||||||||
| W3 | Colorado | 0 | 2(5) | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Dallas | 0 | 2(4) | ||||||||||||
Conference semifinals edit
| MetroStars | 1–3 | New England Revolution |
|---|---|---|
Djorkaeff  59' |
Report | Cancela 68' Noonan 73' Smith 83' |
New England Revolution advance 3-2 on aggregate.
| Chicago Fire | 4–0 | D.C. United |
|---|---|---|
| Stewart 10' Guerrero 37' Guerrero 45+5' Marsch 67' |
Report | Gómez  55' |
Chicago Fire advance 4-0 on aggregate.
| San Jose Earthquakes | 1–3 | Los Angeles Galaxy |
|---|---|---|
| Clark 68' |
Report | Gomez 13' Donovan 39', 87' |
Los Angeles Galaxy advance 4-2 on aggregate.
| Colorado Rapids | 2–2 | FC Dallas |
|---|---|---|
| Cunningham 19' Nkong 58' Kotschau 106' |
Report | Ruíz 67' Ruiz 105' |
| Penalties | ||
Mastroeni  Kirovski Cunningham Cooke Philippe |
5–4 | Ruíz Núñez Pareja Vanney Miña |
Colorado Rapids advance 5-4 on penalties (2-2 on aggregate).
Conference finals edit
| Los Angeles Galaxy | 2–0 | Colorado Rapids |
|---|---|---|
| Donovan 28', 88' |
Report |
| Chicago Fire | 0–1 | New England Revolution |
|---|---|---|
| Herron 90+2' |
Report | Dempsey 4' |
MLS Cup edit
| New England Revolution | 0–1 (AET) | Los Angeles Galaxy |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Ramírez 105+1' |
Player statistics edit
Goals edit
Assists edit
| Rank | Player | Club | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Josh Wolff
|
Kansas City Wizards | 10 |
| 2 | Landon Donovan
|
FC Dallas | 9 |
| 3 |  Ronnie O'Brien
|
Colorado Rapids | 8 |
| 4 |  Christian Gómez
|
D.C. United | 7 |
 Amado Guevara
|
MetroStars | ||
 Dwayne De Rosario
|
San Jose Earthquakes | ||
 Ronald Cerritos
|
San Jose Earthquakes | ||
| Brad Davis
|
San Jose Earthquakes | ||
| 9 | Chris Rolfe
|
Chicago Fire | 6 |
| 10 | 16 players | 5 | |
Clean sheets edit
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pat Onstad
|
San Jose Earthquakes | 12 |
| 2 | Nick Rimando
|
D.C. United | 11 |
| 3 | Matt Reis
|
New England Revolution | 10 |
| 4 | Joe Cannon
|
Colorado Rapids | 8 |
| 5 | Bo Oshoniyi
|
Kansas City Wizards | 7 |
| 6 | Scott Garlick
|
FC Dallas | 6 |
| Kevin Hartman
|
Los Angeles Galaxy | ||
| Zach Thornton
|
Chicago Fire | ||
| 9 | Jonny Walker
|
Columbus Crew | 5 |
| 10 | D.J. Countess
|
Real Salt Lake | 4 |
| Zach Wells
|
MetroStars |
Awards edit
Individual awards edit
Best XI edit
| Goalkeeper | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pat Onstad, San Jose
|
Chris Albright, LA Galaxy Danny Califf, San Jose Jimmy Conrad, Kansas City
|
Clint Dempsey, New England Dwayne De Rosario, San Jose Christian Gómez, D.C. United Shalrie Joseph, New England Ronnie O'Brien, Dallas
|
 Jaime Moreno, D.C. United Taylor Twellman, New England
|
Attendance edit
| Club | Games | Total | Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Galaxy | 16 | 387,256 | 24,204 |
| Real Salt Lake | 16 | 288,586 | 18,037 |
| Chicago Fire | 16 | 275,811 | 17,238 |
| Chivas USA | 16 | 273,284 | 17,080 |
| D.C. United | 16 | 266,617 | 16,664 |
| MetroStars | 16 | 241,230 | 15,077 |
| Colorado Rapids | 16 | 218,206 | 13,638 |
| San Jose Earthquakes | 16 | 208,594 | 13,037 |
| Columbus Crew | 16 | 206,654 | 12,916 |
| New England Revolution | 16 | 200,397 | 12,525 |
| FC Dallas | 16 | 179,021 | 11,189 |
| Kansas City Wizards | 16 | 155,060 | 9,691 |
| Totals | 192 | 2,900,716 | 15,108 |