History UsefulNotes / MajorLeagueSoccer

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 1st. Overall: 1st. Playoffs: Hosting Philadelphia Union–New England Revolution winner in conference semifinals

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 7th. Overall: 12th. Playoffs: vs. Orlando City SC in Round One

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 5th. Overall: 6th. Playoffs: vs. Philadelphia Union in Round One

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 2nd. Overall: 2nd. Playoffs: vs. Nashville SC in Round One

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 4th. Overall: 5th. Playoffs: vs. New England Revolution in Round One

For decades, St. Louis has been one of the hotbeds of U.S. soccer, and the city has long been trying to get MLS' interest. In 2009, one group had all approvals for a new stadium across the Mississippi in Collinsville, Illinois, but MLS wasn't impressed with the group's financial resources. Other attempts were made through the 2010s, which accelerated after the [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague Rams]] left for Los Angeles in 2016. The city's bid for a team looked to have died in 2017 when city voters turned down a tax package to fund a new stadium. However, IT billionaire Jim Kavanaugh, part of the previous ownership group and also principal owner of Saint Louis FC, the city's USLC side, didn't give up. He recruited several female members of the Taylor family, principal owners of the Enterprise Holdings car rental company, as lead investors in a new ownership group. The group got initial approval for a new stadium in downtown St. Louis, in large part because their stadium plan almost totally used their own funds; the only new taxes for the stadium are being paid by fans attending the team's games. In August 2019, MLS officially announced that St. Louis City SC (in short "City SC") would join the league, with a target date of 2022 for the team's debut (though that would be put off to 2023, mainly due to stadium delays brought on by COVID-19). The combination of COVID-19 and the impending entry of City SC led Kavanaugh to fold Saint Louis FC at the end of the 2020 season, meaning that (1) the city was to be without pro soccer for two years and (2) City SC would have to establish its own reserve side. Both points ended up being addressed with the launch of the Next Pro side [=City2=] in 2022. The ownership group is most notable as the first in MLS in which women hold a majority interest. City SC came in with a bang, topping the Western Conference table in its first season, but flamed out in Round One, being swept by its cross-state rival Sporting KC.

'''Major League Soccer''' ('''MLS''') is the UsefulNotes/UnitedStates' and UsefulNotes/{{Canada}}'s[[note]]Technically Canada's sanctioned top-tier league is the ''Canadian Premier League'' (CPL), although by all other metrics (budgets, facilities, media, players, etc.), the CPL is in the same tier as the USL Championship, the American second division. [[/note]] top-tier professional [[UsefulNotes/AssociationFootball soccer]] league. Its predecessor league, the North American Soccer League (NASL) closed its doors in 1984. MLS was founded in 1993 as a condition FIFA imposed on the US Soccer Federation in exchange for allowing the United States to host the 1994 [[UsefulNotes/TheWorldCup World Cup]]. MLS operates more like the other North American professional sports leagues. Unlike almost every other men's (or women's) association football league in the world, it currently does not have a relegation/promotion system. Each of the teams in the league are franchises granted by the league, as opposed to being completely individual entities like their European counterparts. Australia's A-League Men is the only other men's soccer league to operate the same way;[[note]]Apart from countries that are too small to support more than one league level. New Zealand's top level doesn't have promotion and relegation, but has annual regional qualifying, giving all teams the chance to qualify for the top league.[[/note]] both countries' top women's leagues, the National Women's Soccer League in the States and A-League Women in Australia, also use this model.[[note]]While the Canadian Premier League currently has no promotion and relegation, the league organizers have publicly stated that they intend to create a promotion/relegation system once enough teams enter.[[/note]] Also, unlike any of the traditional major leagues of the US and Canada (MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL), MLS operates on a "single-entity" model, in which all teams—and even (technically) player contracts—are owned by the league itself. The team operators, while they do have much of the same control that team owners do in other major leagues, are actually shareholders in the league. From 2005 to 2008, MLS operated a reserve league, with each franchise [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin fielding its reserve side]] in that circuit. That league was relaunched in 2011, but by 2013 its schedule been integrated with that of the third-tier league then known as USL Pro (later the United Soccer League and now the second-level USL Championship), and by 2015 the Reserve League was folded and all MLS teams were required to place a reserve side in the USLC or affiliate with an independently-owned side in that league. However, this requirement had never been strictly enforced, and by 2019 a few MLS teams had started fielding reserve sides in USL League One, a new third-level league run by the same body that runs the USLC. MLS announced in 2020 that it would relaunch the Reserve League in 2021, but COVID-19 put that plan on hold. MLS later tweaked this plan, announcing a new developmental league, unveiled as MLS Next Pro, that launched in 2022 as a third-level league (the same level as USL League One). Next Pro started with 21 teams, 20 of which are directly owned MLS reserve sides and the other independently owned. In the 2023 season, Next Pro features reserve sides for all MLS teams except CF Montréal and D.C. United; the latter originally planned to link up with Next Pro, but ended up not doing so for the time being.\\\

'''Major League Soccer''' ('''MLS''') is the United States' and Canada's[[note]]Technically Canada's sanctioned top-tier league is the ''Canadian Premier League'' (CPL), although by all other metrics (budgets, facilities, media, players, etc.), the CPL is in the same tier as the USL Championship, the American second division. [[/note]] top-tier professional [[UsefulNotes/AssociationFootball soccer]] league. Its predecessor league, the North American Soccer League (NASL) closed its doors in 1984. MLS was founded in 1993 as a condition FIFA imposed on the US Soccer Federation in exchange for allowing the United States to host the 1994 [[UsefulNotes/TheWorldCup World Cup]]. MLS operates more like the other North American professional sports leagues. Unlike almost every other men's (or women's) association football league in the world, it currently does not have a relegation/promotion system. Each of the teams in the league are franchises granted by the league, as opposed to being completely individual entities like their European counterparts. Australia's A-League Men is the only other men's soccer league to operate the same way;[[note]]Apart from countries that are too small to support more than one league level. New Zealand's top level doesn't have promotion and relegation, but has annual regional qualifying, giving all teams the chance to qualify for the top league.[[/note]] both countries' top women's leagues, the National Women's Soccer League in the States and A-League Women in Australia, also use this model.[[note]]While the Canadian Premier League currently has no promotion and relegation, the league organizers have publicly stated that they intend to create a promotion/relegation system once enough teams enter.[[/note]] Also, unlike any of the traditional major leagues of the US and Canada (MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL), MLS operates on a "single-entity" model, in which all teams—and even (technically) player contracts—are owned by the league itself. The team operators, while they do have much of the same control that team owners do in other major leagues, are actually shareholders in the league. From 2005 to 2008, MLS operated a reserve league, with each franchise [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin fielding its reserve side]] in that circuit. That league was relaunched in 2011, but by 2013 its schedule been integrated with that of the third-tier league then known as USL Pro (later the United Soccer League and now the second-level USL Championship), and by 2015 the Reserve League was folded and all MLS teams were required to place a reserve side in the USLC or affiliate with an independently-owned side in that league. However, this requirement had never been strictly enforced, and by 2019 a few MLS teams had started fielding reserve sides in USL League One, a new third-level league run by the same body that runs the USLC. MLS announced in 2020 that it would relaunch the Reserve League in 2021, but COVID-19 put that plan on hold. MLS later tweaked this plan, announcing a new developmental league, unveiled as MLS Next Pro, that launched in 2022 as a third-level league (the same level as USL League One). Next Pro started with 21 teams, 20 of which are directly owned MLS reserve sides and the other independently owned. In the 2023 season, Next Pro features reserve sides for all MLS teams except CF Montréal and D.C. United; the latter originally planned to link up with Next Pro, but ended up not doing so for the time being.\\\

!!'''Eastern Conference teams'''

[[quoteright:150:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/columbus_crew.png]]

!!Western Conference teams

!!Defunct Teams

[[folder:Expansion]]

New expansion has been a hot topic since 2003, after the storm of the early-2000s downturn passed. Some have gone well, like the Cascadia Cup (Seattle, Portland, Vancouver). Others, not so much (Chivas USA). Some came out of left field (Salt Lake City, Toronto) but turned out okay. As of May 2023, one future club has been confirmed for 2025.

!!!San Diego FC
-->'''First Season:''' 2025 (projected)
-->'''Stadium:''' Snapdragon Stadium[[note]]Capacity: 35,000[[/note]]

San Diego was awarded the 30th expansion slot in May 2023, and the club unveiled its identity as San Diego FC that October. The ownership group is led by British-Egyptian businessman Mohamed Mansour and the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation, the first Native American nation to have a stake in a US pro soccer franchise. Other investors include current [[UsefulNotes/MajorLeagueBaseball San Diego Padres]] superstar Manny Machado. Like St. Louis, San Diego had the displeasure of having its NFL team, the Chargers, move to Los Angeles, which led to several parties submitting bids for MLS expansion to fill the void, including former MLS star Landon Donovan, who is part-owner of the USL Championship side San Diego Loyal SC[[note]]SD Loyal SC will cease operations at the conclusion of its 2023 season, due to the impending arrival of MLS to San Diego as well as COVID-related revenue losses incurred during their inaugural 2020 campagin[[/note]]. MLS had been interested in placing a club in San Diego since the league's formation, playing the 1999 MLS All-Star Game at Qualcomm Stadium (aka San Diego Stadium) and even considering placing the now-defunct Chivas USA in the city, but San Diego's lack of a suitable stadium at the time hindered that effort. The team will play at San Diego State's Snapdragon Stadium, which was built on part of the former site of San Diego Stadium; while the venue is not a true soccer-specific stadium, it was designed to accommodate an MLS franchise. Snapdragon Stadium is also home to NWSL side San Diego Wave FC.


[[/folder]]

[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/columbus_crew.png]]

[[folder:MLS Teams]]

[[folder:Rivalries]]

Here on TV Tropes, these rivalries are listed in [[TheRival/{{Sports}} the Sports section]] for the trope TheRival.
[[/folder]]

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 3rd. Overall: 8th. Playoffs: vs. Vancouver Whitecaps FC in Round One

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 9th. Overall: 16th. Playoffs: vs. St. Louis City SC in Round One

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 1st. Overall: 4th. Playoffs: vs. Sporting Kansas City in Round One

For decades, St. Louis has been one of the hotbeds of U.S. soccer, and the city has long been trying to get MLS' interest. In 2009, one group had all approvals for a new stadium across the Mississippi in Collinsville, Illinois, but MLS wasn't impressed with the group's financial resources. Other attempts were made through the 2010s, which accelerated after the [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague Rams]] left for Los Angeles in 2016. The city's bid for a team looked to have died in 2017 when city voters turned down a tax package to fund a new stadium. However, IT billionaire Jim Kavanaugh, part of the previous ownership group and also principal owner of Saint Louis FC, the city's USLC side, didn't give up. He recruited several female members of the Taylor family, principal owners of the Enterprise Holdings car rental company, as lead investors in a new ownership group. The group got initial approval for a new stadium in downtown St. Louis, in large part because their stadium plan almost totally used their own funds; the only new taxes for the stadium are being paid by fans attending the team's games. In August 2019, MLS officially announced that St. Louis City SC (in short "City SC") would join the league, with a target date of 2022 for the team's debut (though that would be put off to 2023, mainly due to stadium delays brought on by COVID-19). The combination of COVID-19 and the impending entry of City SC led Kavanaugh to fold Saint Louis FC at the end of the 2020 season, meaning that (1) the city was to be without pro soccer for two years and (2) City SC would have to establish its own reserve side. Both points ended up being addressed with the launch of the Next Pro side [=City2=] in 2022. The ownership group is most notable as the first in MLS in which women hold a majority interest. City SC came in with a bang, topping the Western Conference table in its first season.

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 6th. Overall: 13th. Playoffs: vs. Los Angeles FC in Round One

For the 2023 season, nine teams in each conference qualify for the MLS Cup playoffs, with the 8th and 9th place teams playing a single wild-card match, with the winner facing the conference champion in the first round. While the conference semifinals, finals, and MLS Cup match remain single-elimination matches hosted by the higher ranked seed with extra time and penalty kicks if necessary, the first round is played as a best-of-three series. Unlike most soccer tournaments, no match can end in a draw, and aggregate goals and away goals are not considered; instead, each game will have a clear winner with matches going straight to penalties if tied at the end of regulation time. The MLS Cup playoffs use a fixed bracket similar to the NBA and Major League Baseball[[note]]temporarily with 8 teams per league in 2020 (due to COVID cutting the regular season down to 60 games), and permanently with 6 teams per league since 2022[[/note]] rather than reseeding teams, as the NFL currently does and MLS and the NHL have done in years past. From the league's inception until the 2011 season, the MLS Cup championship was hosted at a predetermined neutral site, similar to the UsefulNotes/SuperBowl; however, since 2012, the championship match is hosted by the higher seeded team in the Supporters' Shield table.\\\

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 6th. Overall: 10th. Playoffs: vs. Columbus Crew in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 3rd. Overall: 3rd. Playoffs: vs. Atlanta United in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 7th. Overall: 12th. Playoffs: vs. Orlando City SC in first round

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 5th. Overall: 6th. Playoffs: vs. Philadelphia Union in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 8th. Overall: 17th. Playoffs: First round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 2nd. Overall: 2nd. Playoffs: vs. Nashville SC in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 4th. Overall: 5th. Playoffs: vs. New England Revolution in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 7th. Overall: 14th. Playoffs: vs. Seattle Sounders FC in first round

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 4th. Overall: 9th. Playoffs: vs. Real Salt Lake in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 3rd. Overall: 8th. Playoffs: vs. Vancouver Whitecaps FC in first round

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 5th. Overall: 11th. Playoffs: vs. Houston Dynamo FC in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 2nd. Overall: 7th. Playoffs: vs. FC Dallas in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 9th. Overall: 16th. Playoffs: vs. St. Louis City SC in wildcard round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 1st. Overall: 4th. Playoffs: vs. Sporting Kansas City in first round

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 6th. Overall: 13th. Playoffs: vs. Los Angeles FC in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 1st. Overall: 1st. Playoffs: vs. New York Red Bulls in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 8th. Overall: 17th. Playoffs: vs. FC Cincinnati in first round

San Diego was awarded the 30th expansion slot in May 2023, and the club unveiled its identity as San Diego FC that October. The ownership group is led by British-Egyptian businessman Mohamed Mansour and the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation, the first Native American nation to have a stake in a US pro soccer franchise. Other investors include current [[UsefulNotes/MajorLeagueBaseball San Diego Padres]] superstar Manny Machado. Like St. Louis, San Diego had the displeasure of having its NFL team, the Chargers, move to Los Angeles, which led to several parties submitting bids for MLS expansion to fill the void, including former MLS star Landon Donovan, who is part-owner of the USL Championship side San Diego Loyal SC[[note]]SD Loyal SC will cease operations at the conclusion of its 2023 season, due to the impending arrival of MLS to San Diego as well as COVID-related revenue losses incurred during their inaugural 2020 campagin[[/note]]. MLS had been interested in placing a club in San Diego since the league's formation, playing the 1999 MLS All-Star Game at Qualcomm Stadium and even considering placing the now-defunct Chivas USA in the city, but San Diego's lack of a suitable stadium at the time hindered that effort. The team will play at San Diego State's Snapdragon Stadium; while the stadium is not a true soccer-specific stadium, it was designed to accommodate an MLS franchise. Snapdragon Stadium is also home to NWSL side San Diego Wave FC.

One of the first expansion teams, along with the now-defunct Chivas USA, to be established after the contraction of the Tampa Bay Mutiny and Miami Fusion FC in 2001. Based in Utah, the "Real" in its name is meant to associate themselves with Real Madrid as well as having a European-sounding name. It was not until 2006 when Real Salt Lake and ''Los Blancos'' established a mutual partnership, with RSL and Real Madrid meeting twice a year for a friendly (one at home and one away), the training of RSL players at Santiago Bernabeu, and the establishment of a Real Madrid youth academy in Salt Lake City. Replaced Sporting Kansas City as the fourth MLS team with an official DistaffCounterpart in the 2017 offseason; Real launched Utah Royals FC in the 2018 season to replace the defunct FC Kansas City in the NWSL. RSL saw major turmoil in 2020 when the principal owner was found to have had a history of racial comments, with said owner essentially being forced to sell out. The NWSL side ceased operations, with the team's player-related assets being acquired by a group in... Kansas City. However, the NWSL offered Real's new ownership an option to return to that league, and the new RSL group took them up on it. The Royals will return in the 2024 season.

Formerly the Kansas City Wizards (shortened to the Wiz in their (and the league's) inaugural season), they adopted the "Sporting" name in association with European club names like Sporting Lisbon. Winners of two MLS Cups (2000 and 2013), plus the Supporters' Shield in 2000 and the US Open Cup in 2004, 2012, 2015 and 2017. Most notable for defeating Manchester United in a friendly on July 25, 2010. Their home stadium is in Kansas City, Kansas, whereas most franchises in the Kansas City area play their home games in Kansas City, Missouri (which is the larger of the two). From 2015 through 2017, the club also had a DistaffCounterpart in FC Kansas City, though that club was separately owned. FCKC folded after the 2017 season and was effectively replaced by the aforementioned Utah Royals. The Royals later folded and were effectively replaced by a new Kansas City side, now known as Kansas City Current, that had no common ownership with FCKC. While SKC and the Current have separate ownership, the Current moved into SKC's stadium in 2022 and will stay there until opening a new stadium of its own, likely in 2024.

An expansion team in 2006[[note]]in the same way that the Baltimore Ravens are an "expansion team" in the NFL. They were the ''original'' San Jose Earthquakes, having moved to Houston due to stadium issues.[[/note]]. Originally named "Houston 1836" to reflect the year Houston was founded and to have a European-style name along the lines of Schalke 04. However, the name displeased the Hispanic community in Houston, who related 1836 with the war for Texas independence. "Dynamo" comes from Houston's energy industry and many former Soviet Union-era clubs such as Dynamo Moscow. Under the management of former US international player Dominic Kinnear, who spent nearly a decade with the club from 2006-2014[[note]]a full decade including the two years Kinnear spent managing the club when they were the original San Jose Earthquakes[[/note]], they immediately won two MLS Cups, but then went more than a decade without further silverware until claiming the US Open Cup in 2018. The other MLS team with an official DistaffCounterpart, namely the Houston Dash. The ownership team includes former boxing great and current promoter Oscar De La Hoya and Philadelphia [=76ers=] superstar James Harden (who bought into the team when he was with the Houston Rockets).

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 6th. Overall: 10th. Playoffs: At Columbus Crew in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 9th. Overall: 19th. Playoffs: At New York Red Bulls in wildcard round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 3rd. Overall: 3rd. Playoffs: Hosting Atlanta United in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 1st. Overall: 1st. Playoffs: Hosting New York Red Bulls–Charlotte FC winner in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 7th. Overall: 12th. Playoffs: At Orlando City SC in first round

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 5th. Overall: 6th. Playoffs: At Philadelphia Union in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 8th. Overall: 17th. Playoffs: Hosting Charlotte FC in wildcard round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 2nd. Overall: 2nd. Playoffs: Hosting Nashville SC in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 4th. Overall: 5th. Playoffs: Hosting New England Revolution in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 7th. Overall: 14th. Playoffs: At Seattle Sounders FC in first round

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 4th. Overall: 9th. Playoffs: Hosting Real Salt Lake in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 3rd. Overall: 8th. Playoffs: Hosting Vancouver Whitecaps FC in first round

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 5th. Overall: 11th. Playoffs: At Houston Dynamo FC in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 9th. Overall: 16th. Playoffs: At Sporting Kansas City in wildcard round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 2nd. Overall: 7th. Playoffs: Hosting FC Dallas in first round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 9th. Overall: 16th. Playoffs: Hosting San Jose Earthquakes in wildcard round

-->'''2023 Position:''' Western Conference: 1st. Overall: 4th. Playoffs: Hosting Sporting Kansas City–San Jose Earthquakes winner in first round

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 6th. Overall: 13th. Playoffs: At Los Angeles FC in first round

However, like the US national team, it is beginning to, slowly, get respect, with European players like Steven Gerrard ([[TheCaptain talismanic captain]] of [[UsefulNotes/EnglishPremierLeague Liverpool FC, second most successful club in English history]], [[TheAce considered by his peers to be the best player in his position on the planet in his prime]] and winner of just about every trophy short of the Premier League itself - and he was one slip away from winning that, too) a major 2015 acquisition of LA Galaxy, firmly insisting that he hadn't come to just see his career out and wanted to win trophies. On top of that, players that go to play in the MLS are often still in demand in Europe, with AC Milan and Paris St. Germain, two of the biggest clubs in Europe, taking David Beckham on loan in the MLS off-season; Frank Lampard forming a key part of Manchester City's team after New York City FC loaned him back; Landon Donovan having several highly successful stints at Everton FC, a well-regarded English club which was the long term home of US goalkeeper Tim 'Secretary of Defence' Howard, and becoming a fan favourite; Zlatan Ibrahimović, who came from Man United to the Galaxy about a month into the 2018 season and ended the season as a finalist for league MVP, being a speculated target of several big European sides before signing what was reported to be the richest MLS contract at that time to stay in LA; and most recently in 2023, World Cup winner and candidate for all-time greatest Lionel Messi left French side PSG and refused a '''''billion-dollar''''' offer from Saudi Arabia to join Inter Miami in the largest MLS contract of all time.[[note]]How large? Messi's [[https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/37892322/messi-turning-point-draconian-mls-roster-rules reported salary of $50–$60 million]] was more than the ''combined'' 2023 roster salaries of CF Montréal, the New York Red Bulls, Orlando City, Real Salt Lake, and St. Louis City.[[/note]]\\

After several years in limbo due to stadium issues, the Miami franchise was finally made official in January 2018 and in September of the same year, the club's name was unveiled: Club Internacional de Fútbol Miami.[[note]]The club's short name, Inter Miami, has drawn ire from Italian Serie A side Inter Milan.[[/note]] The club was initially backed by retired English football icon David Beckham, his business partner Simon Fuller (creator of the ''[[Series/AmericanIdol Idol]]'' franchise), and Miami-based Bolivian telecom billionaire Marcelo Claure. In December 2017, the ownership group gained further financial clout with the addition of Miami construction magnates Jorge and José Mas and Japanese telecom billionaire Masayoshi Son (a business partner of Claure). Beckham exercised an option in his original MLS contract to buy an expansion team at a reduced price.[[note]]Beckham's expansion fee was $25 million, while the owners for NYCFC, Orlando City, Atlanta United, LAFC, and Minnesota United paid between $70 million to $100 million, the owners of FC Cincinnati and Nashville SC each paid $150 million (Jimmy Haslam also paid the same price to take over the Columbus Crew from Anthony Precourt), and St. Louis City SC paid $200 million, and Charlotte FC paid $325 million.[[/note]] After three failed stadium proposals, Miami Beckham United then planned to build their new stadium in the Overtown neighborhood. The Miami-Dade government had previously endorsed FIU's[[note]]Florida International University[[/note]] on-campus football stadium as a short-term solution. The league sought to have the Miami team ready in 2018, to launch alongside LAFC; however, with the league's announcement of expansion for 2020 and intense competition for new franchises, Beckham's group could have lost their franchise rights if a stadium was not secured in time. More recently, rumors emerged in spring 2017 that the Beckham group may abandon Miami in favor of Las Vegas; however, in June 2017, the group acquired the last parcel of land necessary to build their stadium, and that October, a local judge dismissed a lawsuit seeking to halt construction. In July 2018, Beckham unveiled alternate plans for a stadium as part of a larger mixed-use development, dubbed Miami Freedom Park, on the site of the city-owned Melreese Country Club, near Miami International Airport. The Melreese site was approved by Miami-Dade voters in a November 2018 referendum and was approved by the Miami-Dade council in April 2022, with construction on the Freedom Park stadium starting in 2023 and its opening set for 2025. In late January 2019, Inter Miami announced plans to redevelop the Lockhart Stadium site to serve as their permanent training ground; the development also includes a new 18,000-seat stadium which will host Inter Miami's future USL/Next Pro reserve side (later unveiled as Fort Lauderdale CF, and since renamed Inter Miami CF II) while also serving as an interim home for the first team until the Freedom Park Stadium opens. The club received unanimous approval from the Fort Lauderdale city council to redevelop the Lockhart Stadium site in April 2019 and demolished the old Lockhart Stadium a month later; the replacement became known as Inter Miami CF Stadium and is now DRV PNK Stadium. Inter Miami II started play in League One in 2020. After a disastrous start to the 2023 season, Inter fired its head coach, Beckham's former Manchester United and England teammate Phil Neville, and then made perhaps the biggest MLS signing at least since that of Beckham, if not in league history, by picking up Argentine legend Lionel Messi fresh off a World Cup win.[[note]]Messi owns several properties in the Miami area and frequently vacations there. Also of note, the Argentina national team is soon to open a satellite training center in the Miami area.[[/note]] Inter also moved to provide Messi with even more of a comfort zone by hiring Tata Martino, a former ''Albiceleste'' and Barcelona manager, as head coach; signing two of his old Barça teammates, Spanish internationals Jordi Alba (who captains ''La Roja'') and Sergio Busquets; and also picking up two young Argentine talents. US international [=DeAndre=] Yedlin is also on the squad. Past stars include former England international defender Kieran Gibbs and Messi's former international teammate Gonzalo Higuaín (both now retired). Messi's arrival during the Leagues Cup flipped the script on Inter's 2023 season; he proceeded to score 10 goals in his seven Cup games on Inter's way to its first-ever trophy. While the Herons' disastrous start, combined with international duty for several key players, fixture congestion, and an ill-timed injury to Messi, kept them out of the playoffs, things appear to be looking up in South Florida.

Five-time MLS Cup champions, their most recent Cup broke a tie with D.C. United for most decorated team. Made big news in 2007 by signing David Beckham, and later in 2015 by signing Steven Gerrard, 2017 by signing Jonathan dos Santos, 2018 by signing Zlatan Ibrahimović, and 2020 by signing Javier "Chicharito" Hernández (with only Chicharito now playing for the team, currently as captain). As a result of this, and other major signings, possibly the best known MLS team in Europe before Inter Miami signed Messi. Also home to Landon Donovan for most of his MLS career (2005–2014, plus a short comeback in 2016). Team operator Philip Anschutz was instrumental in Major League Soccer's survival in its early years, having owned not only the LA Galaxy, but he also previously held stakes in the Chicago Fire, Colorado Rapids, D.C. United, Houston Dynamo, New York Red Bulls, and San Jose Earthquakes; the MLS Cup trophy is named in Anschutz' honor for his contributions to the league and U.S. Soccer. Their stadium has been the temporary home to two teams in that other type of football. The NFL's Los Angeles Chargers played here from their return to LA in 2017 until the new [=SoFi=] Stadium opened in Inglewood in 2020. College football's San Diego State Aztecs, which had played in the Chargers' old stadium, played here in 2020 and 2021 while the new Snapdragon Stadium was built on the site of the old stadium. While the Galaxy's 2023 season was forgettable, the team did set a new MLS single-game attendance record, taking its home match in its local rivalry with LAFC to the Rose Bowl and drawing over 82,000.

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 10th. Overall: 20th. Playoffs: Did not qualify

An expansion team started in 2010 and is based in the riverside suburb of Chester with a stadium having a beautiful view of the nearby Commodore Barry Bridge. A ''lot'' of their culture is related to Creator/BenjaminFranklin and UsefulNotes/TheAmericanRevolution — they have 13 stars on the crest, their name is a reference to the union of the Thirteen Colonies, they put a snake on the crest to reference Franklin's famous "Join or Die" political cartoon, their oldest and biggest supporters group is called the Sons of Ben... you get the idea. Prior to the Union's establishment in 2008, Philadelphia was the largest media market without an MLS franchise, holding this distinction for nearly a decade. During the league's COVID-19 hiatus in 2020, NBA superstar Kevin Durant became a new minority investor in the team. That season also saw the Union win their first trophy in the form of the Supporters' Shield, only to flame out in their first playoff match. The Union had a ''far'' more gut-wrenching loss in the 2022 MLS Cup final against Los Angeles FC, scoring what appeared to be the championship-winning goal in stoppage time of extra time, only to see LAFC equalize at the death and win on penalties. While Philly doesn't have an NWSL side, it ''does'' host the aforementioned NJ/NY Gotham FC for one home game each season.[[note]]Presumably, Gotham wants to cultivate a South Jersey fanbase.[[/note]]

A 2018 expansion team which replaced Chivas USA as the Greater Los Angeles market's second team. Unlike the Galaxy, LAFC plays in the Los Angeles city limits. British people, think of Galaxy as Manchester United and LAFC as Manchester City. LAFC's ownership group includes names like Vincent Tan[[note]]Yes, the infamous owner of [[UsefulNotes/EnglishPremierLeague Cardiff City]][[/note]], [[UsefulNotes/NotablePlayersOfTheNBA Magic Johnson]], Mia Hamm, and Creator/WillFerrell. The team's home of BMO Stadium is adjacent to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on the site formerly occupied by the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena. LAFC was originally intended to start play in 2017, but stadium delays caused their debut to be put off a year. However, this meant that unlike many of LAFC's late 2010s/early 2020s expansion contemporaries, who have spent at least part of their first season in a temporary facility, LAFC played in its new digs from the start. Captained by Mexico international Carlos Vela, who scored an MLS record of 34 goals in 2019, breaking Josef Martínez' record from the previous season. Speaking of records set in 2019, LAFC claimed the crown for points earned in a season with 72, one more than the Red Bulls' record total from the season before; however, the Revs would take the points record two years later. In 2022, LAFC made a number of high-profile signings, including attacker Gareth Bale, formerly of Real Madrid and the all-time leading goal scorer for Wales; European Championship-winning Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini, formerly of Juventus; and former Barcelona striker Cristian Tello. Said signings helped them to the 2022 Supporters Shield and MLS Cup, with Bale scoring the goal that sent the MLS Cup final to penalties.[[note]]This turned out to be Bale's final club goal, as he fully retired after captaining Wales (aka Cymru) in that year's World Cup.[[/note]] Yet another side with a de facto NWSL partner, with its stadium also hosting Angel City FC.

As of the ongoing 2023 MLS season, MLS is guaranteed a minimum of five berths in the CONCACAF[[note]]Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football[[/note]] Champions Cup[[note]]CONCACAF's counterpart of the UsefulNotes/UEFAChampionsLeague and UsefulNotes/CopaLibertadores[[/note]] (known in the past as the CONCACAF [[IHaveManyNames Champions' Cup and Champions League]]). For the first time, these berths are now open to teams from either the US or Canada. The MLS Cup winner enters in the round of 16, and the Supporters' Shield winner, the regular-season champion in the other conference, and the next two teams in the Supporters' Shield standings enter in the first round. The United States, which had four direct berths in the final competition under the Champions League name in 2023, now has only ''one'' direct berth—that given to the winner of the US Open Cup.[[note]]The United States Soccer Federation's equivalent to UsefulNotes/TheFACup[[/note]] which is also contested by lower division professional and amateur teams sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation.[[note]]Since 2016, any professional lower division team either majority-owned by a higher division team or whose player roster is managed by a higher division team is ineligible. Amateur teams that have similar relationships with MLS teams are still allowed to enter, but can only meet their affiliated side in the cup final.[[/note]] The Open Cup winner enters the Champions Cup in the first round. That said, since MLS launched in 1996, only one team outside MLS has won the Open Cup. Canada goes from one berth in the Champions League to ''three'' in the Champions Cup—two for its top domestic level, the Canadian Premier League (specifically the teams that top the regular-season table and win the championship playoffs), and one for the winner of the Canadian Championship, the country's equivalent to the US Open Cup[[note]]Like the US, any professional lower division club owned or managed directly by a higher level club is disqualified.[[/note]] that features Canada's MLS sides, all CPL sides, and select teams from lower-level semi-pro and amateur leagues. [[ButWaitTheresMore That's not all.]] Three berths are awarded by performance in the Leagues Cup, a summer tournament that has expanded in 2023 to involve all MLS and Liga MX (Mexican top flight) sides. The Leagues Cup winner enters in the round of 16, while the runner-up and third-place teams enter in the first round.[[note]]Liga MX gets six automatic berths. The league crowns two champions each season, as it conducts a split-season format known as "Apertura and Clausura" (Spanish for "opening and closing"). The champion that's higher in the league table for the entire season enters in the round of 16, and the other enters in the first round. The runners-up in the Apertura and Clausura, plus the next two teams in the aggregate season table not already qualified, enter in the first round. The remaining berths are awarded by performance in the CONCACAF Caribbean Cup (three) and the CONCACAF Central American Cup (six), the newly launched club championships for CONCACAF's other two regional zones (the US, Canada, and Mexico form one zone).[[/note]] In all cases, if an MLS team earns qualification by more than one method, the affected berth is given to the highest-ranked team in the Supporters' Shield standings that has failed to qualify.\\\

-->'''Trophies Won:''' 2016 Supporters Shield, 1997 & 2016 US Open Cup

-->'''Trophies Won:''' 2002, 2005, 2011, 2012 & 2014 MLS Cup, 1998, 2002, 2010 & 2011 Supporters Shield, 2001 & 2005 US Open Cup

-->'''Trophies Won:''' 2022 MLS Cup, 2019 & 2022 Supporters Shield

-->'''Trophies Won:''' 2001 & 2003 MLS Cup, 2005 & 2012 Supporters Shield

-->'''Trophies Won:''' 2000 & 2013 MLS Cup, 2000 Supporters Shield, 2004, 2012, 2015 & 2017 US Open Cup

-->'''Trophies Won:''' 2013, 2015 & 2018 Supporters Shield

Originally the New York[=/=]New Jersey [=MetroStars=] (later just the [=MetroStars=], with no region identifier), they are the only MLS team to have [[ProductPlacement their sponsor]], who also owns the club, included in the team name. Three-time Supporters' Shield winners (2013, 2015, 2018). They were the last club of Thierry Henry, who retired as a player after the 2014 season but returned to MLS in 2019 as the head coach in Montreal, stepping down from that role after the 2020 season. Also notable for having a severe case of EveryYearTheyFizzleOut (like cans of Red Bull) when they're in good years, especially as of late. Typically, the Red Bulls will field one of the most skilled and talented squads in the league, but fail to make the cup. They also have one of the most developed soccer academies in US soccer, as well as one of the best USL Championship team (New York Red Bulls II). The Red Bulls' 2018 Supporters Shield win set the MLS record for most points attained in a single season (71) as well as the most wins in the post-shootout era (22). They still hold the wins record (now shared with the Revs), but the points record fell the next season to LAFC. Another side that has a de facto partnership with an NWSL side, with NJ/NY Gotham FC also making Red Bull Arena its home.

-->'''Trophies Won:''' 2020 Supporters Shield

An expansion team started in 2010 and is based in the riverside suburb of Chester with a stadium having a beautiful view of the nearby Commodore Barry Bridge. A ''lot'' of their culture is related to Creator/BenjaminFranklin and UsefulNotes/TheAmericanRevolution — they have 13 stars on the crest, their name is a reference to the union of the Thirteen Colonies, they put a snake on the crest to reference Franklin's famous "Join or Die" political cartoon, their oldest and biggest supporters group is called the Sons of Ben... you get the idea. Prior to the Union's establishment in 2008, Philadelphia was the largest media market without an MLS franchise, holding this distinction for nearly a decade. During the league's COVID-19 hiatus in 2020, NBA superstar Kevin Durant became a new minority investor in the team. That season also saw the Union win their first trophy in the form of the Supporters Shield, only to flame out in their first playoff match. The Union had a ''far'' more gut-wrenching loss in the 2022 MLS Cup final against Los Angeles FC, scoring what appeared to be the championship-winning goal in stoppage time of extra time, only to see LAFC equalize at the death and win on penalties. While Philly doesn't have an NWSL side, it ''does'' host the aforementioned NJ/NY Gotham FC for one home game each season.[[note]]Presumably, Gotham wants to cultivate a South Jersey fanbase.[[/note]]

-->'''Trophies Won:''' 2017 MLS Cup; 2017 Supporters Shield; 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2016, 2017 & 2018 Canadian Championship

The first Canadian team to join MLS, having started play in 2007. Though their MLS career started out rather undistinguished (until 2016, they had never finished higher than 11th in the league), they have been more successful in the Canadian Championship (currently contested by the country's three MLS teams, all Canadian Premier League teams, and two champions of lower-level Canadian leagues), winning four years in a row from 2009-2012. Rather unlucky in the league for many years, as they were known for purchasing great new players and performing well in the regular season, but missing the playoffs by one or two spots; however, they overcame this in the 2016 playoffs to become the first Canadian team to reach the MLS Cup game, beating national rivals Montreal in the Eastern Conference final. The next year, TFC became the first Canadian team to claim the Supporters Shield ''and'' the MLS Cup. In addition, because they also won the Canadian Championship, it means that TFC became the first MLS team to achieve a domestic treble. Home of American international Michael Bradley (son of the current TFC head coach). Italy international Lorenzo Insigne joined after the 2021–22 Serie A season. Played the first part of the 2021 season at Orlando City's Exploria Stadium.

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 6th. Overall: 11th. Playoffs: First round

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 8th. Overall: 15th. Playoffs: Did not qualify

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 7th. Overall: 14th. Playoffs: First round

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 14th. Overall: 26th. Playoffs: Did not qualify

-->'''Trophies Won:''' 2022 CONCACAF Champions League, 2016 & 2019 MLS Cup, 2014 Supporters Shield, 2009, 2010, 2011 & 2014 US Open Cup
-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 11th. Overall: 21st. Playoffs: Did not qualify

The first club to be promoted to MLS from a lower-division league, joining MLS in 2009. Has had a good run in the league so far, leading the league in ticket sales each year until Atlanta United came along, winning the US Open Cup four times (including three in a row), and also claiming the Supporters' Shield in 2014. While local businessman Adrian Hanauer has been the principal owner since 2002, the ownership group includes plenty of star power. Shortly before the team joined MLS, comedian and game show host Creator/DrewCarey and Seahawks and [[UsefulNotes/NationalBasketballAssociation Portland Trail Blazers]] owner Paul Allen (one of the founders of Microsoft) joined the group; Allen's interest passed to his sister after his 2018 death. In 2019, a group of 11 local families purchased the interest of a retiring minority owner; the most notable new members of the group were then-Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, his wife Music/{{Ciara}}, and hip-hop artist Music/{{Macklemore}}, with former Seattle Mariners baseball star Ken Griffey Jr. joining in 2020. The first club of U.S. international defender [=DeAndre=] Yedlin, who left in 2015 for a successful spell in the UsefulNotes/EnglishPremierLeague at Tottenham and Newcastle, and the final team of Clint Dempsey, captain of the U.S. national team before his retirement after the 2018 season. Before a disastrous 2022 season, the Sounders had the distinction of making the MLS Cup playoffs in all of their MLS seasons. Briefly had a loose connection with the NWSL side OL Reign ([[IHaveManyNames formerly Seattle Reign FC and Reign FC]]), which moved from Seattle to Tacoma after the 2018 season, namely some shared ownership. That ended when the parent company of prominent French club Olympique Lyonnais bought the then-Reign FC in the 2019–20 offseason, soon renaming that team OL Reign. Though for 2022, OL Reign ended up moving back to Seattle and into Lumen Field.

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 12th. Overall: 22nd. Playoffs: Did not qualify

-->'''2022 Position:''' Not applicable; first season in 2023

For decades, St. Louis has been one of the hotbeds of U.S. soccer, and the city has long been trying to get MLS' interest. In 2009, one group had all approvals for a new stadium across the Mississippi in Collinsville, Illinois, but MLS wasn't impressed with the group's financial resources. Other attempts were made through the 2010s, which accelerated after the [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague Rams]] left for Los Angeles in 2016. The city's bid for a team looked to have died in 2017 when city voters turned down a tax package to fund a new stadium. However, IT billionaire Jim Kavanaugh, part of the previous ownership group and also principal owner of Saint Louis FC, the city's USLC side, didn't give up. He recruited several female members of the Taylor family, principal owners of the Enterprise Holdings car rental company, as lead investors in a new ownership group. The group got initial approval for a new stadium in downtown St. Louis, in large part because their stadium plan almost totally used their own funds; the only new taxes for the stadium are being paid by fans attending the team's games. In August 2019, MLS officially announced that St. Louis City SC (in short "City SC") would join the league, with a target date of 2022 for the team's debut (though that would be put off to 2023, mainly due to stadium delays brought on by COVID-19). The combination of COVID-19 and the impending entry of City SC led Kavanaugh to fold Saint Louis FC at the end of the 2020 season, meaning that (1) the city was to be without pro soccer for two years and (2) City SC would have to establish its own reserve side. Both points ended up being addressed with the launch of the Next Pro side [=City2=] in 2022. The ownership group is most notable as the first in MLS in which women hold a majority interest.

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 9th. Overall: 17th. Playoffs: Did not qualify

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 11th. Overall: 23rd. Playoffs: Did not qualify

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 2nd. Overall: 3rd. Playoffs: Conference semifinals

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 9th. Overall: 19th. Playoffs: Did not qualify

Announced in December 2019, the club is fronted by billionaire hedge fund manager David Tepper, owner of the NFL's Carolina Panthers. Despite St. Louis City SC being announced earlier, Charlotte FC launched a year ahead of them. Rather than build an MLS-specific stadium, Bank of America Stadium was renovated to make it soccer-friendly; however, included among the renovations was replacing the stadium's natural grass surface with synthetic turf, similar to other MLS clubs that share a stadium with an NFL or CFL team. Previous efforts to bring MLS to the Carolinas include a bid by Marcus G. Smith, president of [[UsefulNotes/{{NASCAR}} Speedway Motorsports]], as well as a rival bid by the Raleigh-based lower division club North Carolina FC, both in 2016. Notably, CFC set a new single-game MLS attendance record in its home debut.

-->'''Trophies Won:''' 1998 MLS Cup, 2003 Supporters Shield, 1998, 2000, 2003 & 2006 US Open Cup
-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 12th. Overall: 24th. Playoffs: Did not qualify

-->'''Trophies Won:''' 2008 & 2020 MLS Cup, 2004, 2008 & 2009 Supporters Shield, 2002 US Open Cup, 2021 Campeones Cup
-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 8th. Overall: 16th. Playoffs: Did not qualify

-->'''Current Head Coach:''' Wayne Rooney

-->'''Trophies Won:''' 1996, 1997, 1999 & 2004 MLS Cup, 1997, 1999, 2006 & 2007 Supporters Shield, 1996, 2008 & 2013 US Open Cup
-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 14th. Overall: 28th. Playoffs: Did not qualify

Second to the LA Galaxy in overall honors, with 4 MLS Cups and 4 Supporters' Shields. One of the founding members of MLS, the name "United" was adapted from English club names (like Manchester United and Leeds United) and is a reflection of Washington D.C.'s status as the capital of the ''United'' States. For most of the early years of MLS, D.C. United had the only European-style name. From 2005 to 2008, D.C. United shared its home ground with a Major League Baseball team when the Nationals played at RFK Stadium, meaning they played on turf laid over dirt in some places for part of the year. After playing in RFK Stadium from their 1996 inception until 2017, the club opened the new Audi Field in the District during the 2018 season.[[note]]Due to construction delays, United played 12 of their first 14 regular-season games in 2018 on the road. The two home games in this stretch were played in Maryland, one at a small soccer stadium in suburban Germantown and the other at the US Naval Academy's (American) football stadium in Annapolis.[[/note]] Longtime Manchester United and England star Wayne Rooney was captain for two seasons until returning to England after the 2019 season to become a player and assistant coach at Derby County, before returning as their head coach in 2022 (after departing Derby following their descent into financial chaos). United is one of several MLS sides that have partnerships with separately owned sides in the top US women's level, the National Women's Soccer League. The Washington Spirit practice at United's HQ complex in Northern Virginia, and split home games between Audi Field and the stadium that hosts United's reserve side before moving all home games to Audi Field in 2023.

-->'''Trophies Won:''' None
-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 5th. Overall: 8th. Playoffs: Conference semifinals

FC Cincinnati was announced as the next member of MLS in May 2018, becoming the seventh team to be promoted to MLS from a lower-level league. Founded in 2015 and playing its first season in the United Soccer League (now known as the USL Championship) in 2016, FCC is backed by a group led by local billionaire Carl Lindner III. During its time in the USL, FCC was the best-supported U.S. soccer team outside of MLS, consistently drawing crowds at Nippert Stadium, home to University of Cincinnati (American) football, that would place the team safely in the top half of MLS (and, in fact, ''fourth'' in 2018). It had been the early favorite to snag one of the franchises awarded in the 2018 phase, but initially lost out to Nashville due largely to problems finding an appropriate site for a new stadium. Shortly before the MLS announcement, FCC reached a deal with the city of Cincinnati for a new stadium in the West End, near downtown and the rapidly gentrifying Over-the-Rhine, that opened in May 2021. Although FCC's entry was announced after Miami and Nashville, it joined MLS in 2019, largely because its then-current home could easily accommodate crowds larger than the new stadium can hold.[[note]]Nippert can hold 40,000, though FCC restricted capacity to 33,250 for MLS games. The new stadium holds around 26,000.[[/note]] While Cincy's media market is smaller than that of any previously existing MLS team, the market of 2021 MLS entry Austin FC is smaller still. Even though the team propped up the MLS table in its first season, the fans turned out in droves, placing FCC third in average attendance behind the attendance giants of Atlanta United and the Seattle Sounders. For FCC's first three MLS seasons, the club finished dead last in the overall table; however, the club finally made the MLS Cup playoffs for the first time in their fourth season.

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 6th. Overall: 12th. Playoffs: First round

After several years in limbo due to stadium issues, the Miami franchise was finally made official in January 2018 and in September of the same year, the club's name was unveiled: Club Internacional de Fútbol Miami.[[note]]The club's short name, Inter Miami, has drawn ire from Italian Serie A side Inter Milan.[[/note]] The club was initially backed by retired English football icon David Beckham, his business partner Simon Fuller (creator of the ''[[Series/AmericanIdol Idol]]'' franchise), and Miami-based Bolivian telecom billionaire Marcelo Claure. In December 2017, the ownership group gained further financial clout with the addition of Miami construction magnates Jorge and José Mas and Japanese telecom billionaire Masayoshi Son (a business partner of Claure). Beckham exercised an option in his original MLS contract to buy an expansion team at a reduced price.[[note]]Beckham's expansion fee was $25 million, while the owners for NYCFC, Orlando City, Atlanta United, LAFC, and Minnesota United paid between $70 million to $100 million, the owners of FC Cincinnati and Nashville SC each paid $150 million (Jimmy Haslam also paid the same price to take over the Columbus Crew from Anthony Precourt), and St. Louis City SC paid $200 million, and Charlotte FC paid $325 million.[[/note]] After three failed stadium proposals, Miami Beckham United then planned to build their new stadium in the Overtown neighborhood. The Miami-Dade government had previously endorsed FIU's[[note]]Florida International University[[/note]] on-campus football stadium as a short-term solution. The league sought to have the Miami team ready in 2018, to launch alongside LAFC; however, with the league's announcement of expansion for 2020 and intense competition for new franchises, Beckham's group could have lost their franchise rights if a stadium was not secured in time. More recently, rumors emerged in spring 2017 that the Beckham group may abandon Miami in favor of Las Vegas; however, in June 2017, the group acquired the last parcel of land necessary to build their stadium, and that October, a local judge dismissed a lawsuit seeking to halt construction. In July 2018, Beckham unveiled alternate plans for a stadium as part of a larger mixed-use development, dubbed Miami Freedom Park, on the site of the city-owned Melreese Country Club, near Miami International Airport. The Melreese site was approved by Miami-Dade voters in a November 2018 referendum and was approved by the Miami-Dade council in April 2022, with construction on the Freedom Park stadium starting in 2023 and its opening set for 2025. In late January 2019, Inter Miami announced plans to redevelop the Lockhart Stadium site to serve as their permanent training ground; the development also includes a new 18,000-seat stadium which will host Inter Miami's future USL/Next Pro reserve side (later unveiled as Fort Lauderdale CF, and since renamed Inter Miami CF II) while also serving as an interim home for the first team until the Freedom Park Stadium opens. The club received unanimous approval from the Fort Lauderdale city council to redevelop the Lockhart Stadium site in April 2019 and demolished the old Lockhart Stadium a month later; the replacement became known as Inter Miami CF Stadium and is now DRV PNK Stadium. Inter Miami II started play in League One in 2020. After a disastrous start to the 2023 season, Inter fired its head coach, Beckham's former Manchester United and England teammate Phil Neville, and then made perhaps the biggest MLS signing at least since that of Beckham, if not in league history, by picking up Argentine legend Lionel Messi fresh off a World Cup win.[[note]]Messi owns several properties in the Miami area and frequently vacations there. Also of note, the Argentina national team is soon to open a satellite training center in the Miami area.[[/note]] Inter also moved to provide Messi with even more of a comfort zone by hiring Tata Martino, a former ''Albiceleste'' and Barcelona manager, as head coach; signing two of his old Barça teammates, Spanish internationals Jordi Alba (who captains ''La Roja'') and Sergio Busquets; and also picking up two young Argentine talents. US international [=DeAndre=] Yedlin is also on the squad. Past stars include former England international defender Kieran Gibbs and Messi's former international teammate Gonzalo Higuaín (both now retired). Messi's arrival during the Leagues Cup flipped the script on Inter's 2023 season; he proceeded to score 10 goals in his seven Cup games on Inter's way to its first-ever trophy. While the Herons' disastrous start, combined with international duty for several key players and an ill-timed injury to Messi, kept them out of the playoffs, things appear to be looking up in South Florida.

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 5th. Overall: 10th. Playoffs: First round

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 10th. Overall: 20th. Playoffs: Did not qualify

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 3rd. Overall: 5th. Playoffs: Conference finals

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 4th. Overall: 6th. Playoffs: First round

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 7th. Overall: 13th. Playoffs: First round

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 1st. Overall: 2nd. Playoffs: MLS Cup Final

-->'''2022 Position:''' Eastern Conference: 13th. Overall: 27th. Playoffs: Did not qualify

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 2nd. Overall: 4th. Playoffs: Conference finals

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 10th. Overall: 18th. Playoffs: Did not qualify

-->'''2021 Position:''' Western Conference: 3rd. Overall: 7th. Playoffs: Conference semifinals

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 13th. Overall: 25th. Playoffs: Did not qualify

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 4th. Overall: 9th. Playoffs: Conference semifinals

Five-time MLS Cup champions, their most recent Cup broke a tie with D.C. United for most decorated team. Made big news in 2007 by signing David Beckham, and later in 2015 by signing Steven Gerrard, 2017 by signing Jonathan dos Santos, 2018 by signing Zlatan Ibrahimović, and 2020 by signing Javier "Chicharito" Hernández (with only Chicharito now playing for the team, currently as captain). As a result of this, and other major signings, possibly the best known MLS team in Europe before Inter Miami signed Messi. Also home to Landon Donovan for most of his MLS career (2005–2014, plus a short comeback in 2016). Team operator Philip Anschutz was instrumental in Major League Soccer's survival in its early years, having owned not only the LA Galaxy, but he also previously held stakes in the Chicago Fire, Colorado Rapids, D.C. United, Houston Dynamo, New York Red Bulls, and San Jose Earthquakes; the MLS Cup trophy is named in Anschutz' honor for his contributions to the league and U.S. Soccer. Their stadium has been the temporary home to two teams in that other type of football. The NFL's Los Angeles Chargers played here from their return to LA in 2017 until the new [=SoFi=] Stadium opened in Inglewood in 2020. College football's San Diego State Aztecs, which had played in the Chargers' old stadium, played here in 2020 and 2021 while the new Snapdragon Stadium was built on the site of the old stadium.

-->'''2022 Position:''' Western Conference: 1st. Overall: 1st. Playoffs: Champions

!!!San Diego

San Diego was awarded the 30th expansion slot in May 2023. The ownership group is led by British-Egyptian businessman Mohamed Mansour and the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation, the first Native American nation to have a stake in a US pro soccer franchise. Other investors include current [[UsefulNotes/MajorLeagueBaseball San Diego Padres]] superstar Manny Machado. Like St. Louis, San Diego had the displeasure of having its NFL team, the Chargers, move to Los Angeles, which led to several parties submitting bids for MLS expansion to fill the void, including former MLS star Landon Donovan, who is part-owner of the USL Championship side San Diego Loyal SC[[note]]SD Loyal SC will cease operations at the conclusion of its 2023 season, due to the impending arrival of MLS to San Diego as well as COVID-related revenue losses incurred during their inaugural 2020 campagin[[/note]]. MLS had been interested in placing a club in San Diego since the league's formation, playing the 1999 MLS All-Star Game at Qualcomm Stadium and even considering placing the now-defunct Chivas USA in the city, but San Diego's lack of a suitable stadium at the time hindered that effort. The team will play at San Diego State's Snapdragon Stadium; while the stadium is not a true soccer-specific stadium, it was designed to accommodate an MLS franchise. Snapdragon Stadium is also home to NWSL side San Diego Wave FC.

After several years in limbo due to stadium issues, the Miami franchise was finally made official in January 2018 and in September of the same year, the club's name was unveiled: Club Internacional de Fútbol Miami.[[note]]The club's short name, Inter Miami, has drawn ire from Italian Serie A side Inter Milan.[[/note]] The club was initially backed by retired English football icon David Beckham, his business partner Simon Fuller (creator of the ''[[Series/AmericanIdol Idol]]'' franchise), and Miami-based Bolivian telecom billionaire Marcelo Claure. In December 2017, the ownership group gained further financial clout with the addition of Miami construction magnates Jorge and José Mas and Japanese telecom billionaire Masayoshi Son (a business partner of Claure). Beckham exercised an option in his original MLS contract to buy an expansion team at a reduced price.[[note]]Beckham's expansion fee was $25 million, while the owners for NYCFC, Orlando City, Atlanta United, LAFC, and Minnesota United paid between $70 million to $100 million, the owners of FC Cincinnati and Nashville SC each paid $150 million (Jimmy Haslam also paid the same price to take over the Columbus Crew from Anthony Precourt), and St. Louis City SC paid $200 million, and Charlotte FC paid $325 million.[[/note]] After three failed stadium proposals, Miami Beckham United then planned to build their new stadium in the Overtown neighborhood. The Miami-Dade government had previously endorsed FIU's[[note]]Florida International University[[/note]] on-campus football stadium as a short-term solution. The league sought to have the Miami team ready in 2018, to launch alongside LAFC; however, with the league's announcement of expansion for 2020 and intense competition for new franchises, Beckham's group could have lost their franchise rights if a stadium was not secured in time. More recently, rumors emerged in spring 2017 that the Beckham group may abandon Miami in favor of Las Vegas; however, in June 2017, the group acquired the last parcel of land necessary to build their stadium, and that October, a local judge dismissed a lawsuit seeking to halt construction. In July 2018, Beckham unveiled alternate plans for a stadium as part of a larger mixed-use development, dubbed Miami Freedom Park, on the site of the city-owned Melreese Country Club, near Miami International Airport. The Melreese site was approved by Miami-Dade voters in a November 2018 referendum and was approved by the Miami-Dade council in April 2022, with the Freedom Park stadium projected to open in 2025. In late January 2019, Inter Miami announced plans to redevelop the Lockhart Stadium site to serve as their permanent training ground; the development also includes a new 18,000-seat stadium which will host Inter Miami's future USL/Next Pro reserve side (later unveiled as Fort Lauderdale CF, and since renamed Inter Miami CF II) while also serving as an interim home for the first team until the Freedom Park Stadium opens. The club received unanimous approval from the Fort Lauderdale city council to redevelop the Lockhart Stadium site in April 2019 and demolished the old Lockhart Stadium a month later; the replacement became known as Inter Miami CF Stadium and is now DRV PNK Stadium. Inter Miami II started play in League One in 2020. After a disastrous start to the 2023 season, Inter fired its head coach, Beckham's former Manchester United and England teammate Phil Neville, and then made perhaps the biggest MLS signing at least since that of Beckham, if not in league history, by picking up Argentine legend Lionel Messi fresh off a World Cup win.[[note]]Messi owns several properties in the Miami area and frequently vacations there. Also of note, the Argentina national team is soon to open a satellite training center in the Miami area.[[/note]] Inter also moved to provide Messi with even more of a comfort zone by hiring Tata Martino, a former ''Albiceleste'' and Barcelona manager, as head coach; signing two of his old Barça teammates, Spanish internationals Jordi Alba (who captains ''La Roja'') and Sergio Busquets; and also picking up two young Argentine talents. US international [=DeAndre=] Yedlin is also on the squad. Past stars include former England international defender Kieran Gibbs and Messi's former international teammate Gonzalo Higuaín (both now retired). Messi's arrival during the Leagues Cup flipped the script on Inter's 2023 season; he proceeded to score 10 goals in his seven Cup games on Inter's way to its first-ever trophy.

Another difference between MLS and its European counterparts is that the season runs from spring-to-fall. This has been criticized by its European counterparts and FIFA on the grounds it conflicts with the FIFA calendar and major summer tournaments, especially the World Cup. So far, the main reason MLS have opposed a fall-to-spring schedule is because of winter weather in Canada and the northernmost parts of the US. Plus, from a marketing standpoint, a spring-to-fall schedule means MLS only has to compete against [[UsefulNotes/MLBTeams Major League Baseball]] and UsefulNotes/{{NASCAR}} in the US and the [[UsefulNotes/CanadianFootballLeague CFL]] in Canada for viewership during the summer. A FIFA-compatible fall-to-spring calendar would mean MLS would be in competition against both several other American sports leagues ([[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague NFL]], [[UsefulNotes/NationalBasketballAssociation NBA]], [[UsefulNotes/NationalHockeyLeague NHL]] and NCAA [[UsefulNotes/CollegiateAmericanFootball college football]]) ''and'' soccer leagues from abroad. Most of the other countries with soccer leagues whose seasons fall within a single calendar year are either in the Southern Hemisphere, where such a league would play a fall-to-spring calendar (e.g. Brazil), or far up north (e.g. Sweden).[[note]]Interestingly, A-League Men also plays a spring-to-fall season, placing it in direct conflict with European leagues. However, the country's [[UsefulNotes/AustralianRulesFootball other]] [[UsefulNotes/RugbyLeague football]] [[UsefulNotes/RugbyUnion codes]] play mostly in the southern winter.[[/note]]\\

One of the two 2015 expansion teams, and the second team based in the New York metropolitan area. Unlike the Red Bulls or the NFL's Jets and Giants, they're trying to play in the Big Apple itself; until a stadium is built, Yankee Stadium in The Bronx is hosting their games, making NYCFC the second club (after D.C.) to share its stadium with a Major League Baseball club[[note]]This is not by coincidence—the [[UsefulNotes/MLBTeams New York Yankees]] own a 20% stake in the team, with [[UsefulNotes/EnglishPremierLeague Manchester City]] owning the rest. However, scheduling conflicts have forced NYCFC to play occasional matches at Citi Field or Red Bull Arena[[/note]]. Had a number of high-profile players in their early years in former England midfielder Frank Lampard and World Cup winners Andrea Pirlo and David Villa, and a high-profile former manager in Patrick Vieira, but all are now gone. That turned out to be a non-issue by 2021, however, as a roster primarily made of young guns, spearheaded by Golden Boot winner Valentin Castellanos and veteran keeper Sean Johnson, finally secured some silverware by winning the MLS Cup on penalty kicks. In late July 2022, it was reported that NYC mayor Eric Adams planned to approve a new stadium to be built near Citi Field.

San Diego was awarded the 30th expansion slot in May 2023. The ownership group is led by British-Egyptian businessman Mohamed Mansour and the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation, the first Native American nation to have a stake in a US pro soccer franchise. Other investors include current [[UsefulNotes/MLBTeams San Diego Padres]] superstar Manny Machado. Like St. Louis, San Diego had the displeasure of having its NFL team, the Chargers, move to Los Angeles, which led to several parties submitting bids for MLS expansion to fill the void, including former MLS star Landon Donovan, who is part-owner of the USL Championship side San Diego Loyal SC[[note]]SD Loyal SC will cease operations at the conclusion of its 2023 season, due to the impending arrival of MLS to San Diego as well as COVID-related revenue losses incurred during their inaugural 2020 campagin[[/note]]. MLS had been interested in placing a club in San Diego since the league's formation, playing the 1999 MLS All-Star Game at Qualcomm Stadium and even considering placing the now-defunct Chivas USA in the city, but San Diego's lack of a suitable stadium at the time hindered that effort. The team will play at San Diego State's Snapdragon Stadium; while the stadium is not a true soccer-specific stadium, it was designed to accommodate an MLS franchise. Snapdragon Stadium is also home to NWSL side San Diego Wave FC.

Began MLS play in 2011, having also played in the USL with Seattle and Portland. The second Canadian team to join the league after Toronto FC. One of the club's owners is Basketball Hall of Famer and current NBA coach Steve Nash, born in South Africa but raised in British Columbia's capital of Victoria. In 2015, they finally became the third MLS team to win the Canadian Championship after having previously managed the unenviable feat of five consecutive second-place finishes (to Toronto FC from 2009-12 and to the Montreal Impact, now CF Montréal, in 2013). Played the first part of the 2021 season at RSL's Rio Tinto Stadium.

-->'''Trophies Won:''' 2006 & 2007 MLS Cup, 2018 US Open Cup

However, like the US national team, it is beginning to, slowly, get respect, with European players like Steven Gerrard ([[TheCaptain talismanic captain]] of [[UsefulNotes/EnglishPremierLeague Liverpool FC, second most successful club in English history]], [[TheAce considered by his peers to be the best player in his position on the planet in his prime]] and winner of just about every trophy short of the Premier League itself - and he was one slip away from winning that, too) a major 2015 acquisition of LA Galaxy, firmly insisting that he hadn't come to just see his career out and wanted to win trophies. On top of that, players that go to play in the MLS are often still in demand in Europe, with AC Milan and Paris St. Germain, two of the biggest clubs in Europe, taking David Beckham on loan in the MLS off-season; Frank Lampard forming a key part of Manchester City's team after New York City FC loaned him back; Landon Donovan having several highly successful stints at Everton FC, a well-regarded English club which was the long term home of US goalkeeper Tim 'Secretary of Defence' Howard, and becoming a fan favourite; Zlatan Ibrahimović, who came from Man United to the Galaxy about a month into the 2018 season and ended the season as a finalist for league MVP, being a speculated target of several big European sides before signing what was reported to be the richest MLS contract at that time to stay in LA; and most recently in 2023, World Cup winner and candidate for all-time greatest Lionel Messi left French side PSG and refused a *billion-dollar* offer from Saudi Arabia to join Inter Miami in the largest MLS contract of all time.[[note]]How large? Messi's [[https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/37892322/messi-turning-point-draconian-mls-roster-rules reported salary of $50–$60 million]] was more than the ''combined'' 2023 roster salaries of CF Montréal, the New York Red Bulls, Orlando City, Real Salt Lake, and St. Louis City.[[/note]]\\

San Diego was awarded the 30th expansion slot in May 2023. The ownership group is led by British-Egyptian businessman Mohamed Mansour and the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation, the first Native American nation to have a stake in a US pro soccer franchise. Other investors include current [[UsefulNotes/MLBTeams San Diego Padres]] superstar Manny Machado. Like St. Louis, San Diego had the displeasure of having its NFL team, the Chargers, move to Los Angeles, which led to several parties submitting bids for MLS expansion to fill the void, including former MLS star Landon Donovan, who is part-owner of the USL Championship side San Diego Loyal SC. MLS had been interested in placing a club in San Diego since the league's formation, even considering the city a potential host for the now-defunct Chivas USA, but San Diego's lack of a suitable stadium at the time hindered that effort. The team will play at San Diego State's Snapdragon Stadium; while the stadium is not a true soccer-specific stadium, it was designed to accommodate an MLS franchise. Snapdragon Stadium is also home to NWSL side San Diego Wave FC.